GWALIOR’s SUN TEMPLE- Hail the Birlas!

As I entered the premises of the Sun Temple, Gwalior, this was the first look that greeted me. I was instantly humbled. I had visited Konark and Modhera (Ahmedabad) Sun Temple, and hardly expected anything worthy or imposing. Of course, being a devotee of Adityam, I came for worship. But this first glance itself was enough to take my breath away. What we see here is the side entrance. We take right from further ahead and arrive at the grand entrance.

Ghanshyam Das Birla passed away in 1983. Construction of the Sun Temple in Gwalior, which is an exact replica of the Konark Sun Temple, began in 1984, and got completed in 1988. By then Basant Kumar Birla had become the patriarch of the Birla Family, while Aditya Vikram Birla ran their businesses.

There is a major difference in that there is no idol of Sun in the Konark, and hence no worship takes place. But a beautiful murthi does grace the premises of the Gwalior Surya Mandir or the Vivaswan Temple, where daily worship and attendant rituals are performed. This is a beautiful structure constructed in red sandstone, with white marble flooring.

The magnificence of the Vivaswan Temple, Gwalior took me by surprise. Temple structure is built over an elevated platform, and the premises cover an area of around 20000 sq. feet. The statues of Sh. GD Birla and Mrs. Birla face the temple in homage-paying positions.

Seven horses pull the temple-shaped ratha or chariot, with reins in the hands of Sun himself. The chariot has 24 wheels, 12 on either side, and each wheel has 16 spokes-8 thick and 8 thin.

Seven horses depict seven days of the week. 24 wheels stand for 24 fortnights in an year. Temple walls are adorned with carvings of Ganesh, incarnations of Vishnu, deities, fauna and flora.

Besides the main entrance, there are two side gates to enter the sanctum. Each entrance door has idols of nine planetary gods (navgrahas). Just over the sanctum, in the roof, are four windows to allow sunlight to fall upon the idol. The idol sits in kamal mudra, holding kamalam in his hands.

The temple is surrounded by lush green gardens, full of variety of flowering trees, and a fountain.

Truly, Vivaswan Temple in Gwalior is a majestic home of Sun God amid greenery and quietude.