The Cholas were great pioneers in temple building, they
included characteristics of Pallava temple- building traditions. A large number
of temples were built throughout their kingdom which carried the significance
of Dravidian temple design. The temple architecture gained hype from the
conquests of Rajaraja Chola and Rajendra Chola I. Architecture and art was at
its peak during the reign of the Cholas. They built small new stone temples
dedicated to Shiva and covered the brick built shrines of their predecessors
with stone.
The architecture becomes distinctive for its rejection of
the lion or vyala based pillars and a profuse relief decoration of the
exteriors-typically Pallavan features.
The bhakti movement seemed to have grown in influence over
the minds of the people and a whole iconography in bronze is devoted to the
nayanars (shiva saints) and the alvars (vaishnava saints).
The popularity of Shiva as Nataraja stems from the fact that it sums up the complex and
profound metaphysical concepts of Hinduism in an animated and forceful form.
Nataraja
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