Modhera Sun Temple

Built around 1026 under Bhima I of the Solanki dynasty, the Modhera temple is laid out on an east-west axis so that at the equinoxes the rising sun reaches through the hall to the sanctum, where an image of Surya once stood. It comes in three parts: the kunda, a stepped tank of over a hundred small shrines set into descending terraces; the sabha mandapa, an open pillared hall with carved brackets and toranas; and the sanctum itself, whose superstructure was destroyed. Carving covers the exterior in bands of deities, dancers and horses. Worship ceased centuries ago and the site is preserved as a monument.

History

The shrine was built in the reign of Bhima I of the Chaulukya dynasty; in 1024-1025 Mahmud of Ghazni invaded his kingdom, and a force of around 20,000 soldiers tried without success to stop him at Modhera, which the historian A. K. Majumdar suggests the temple may commemorate. It stands at about 23.6° latitude, near the Tropic of Cancer, worship here ended long ago, and in December 2022 it was added to UNESCO's tentative list (Wikipedia, Sun Temple, Modhera).

What you'll find

• The stepped tank - terraces of small shrines descending to the water.
• The pillared hall - carved brackets and an open assembly space.
• The solar alignment - the axis reaching the sanctum at the equinoxes.
• The exterior carving - bands of figures around the outer walls.

When to go

October to March; Gujarat summers are severe. The equinoxes in March and September are when the alignment works. A dance festival is held here each January.

What to expect

The sanctum superstructure is gone and no image remains; this is a ruin, not a working temple. There is no shade at the tank. Interpretation on site is limited.

Nearby

Patan and the Rani ki Vav stepwell lie north; Ahmedabad is south.

Key facts