Sahasralinga Tank or Sahasralinga Talav is a medieval artificial water tank in Patan, Gujarat, India. It was commissioned during Chaulukya (Solanki) rule, but now it is empty and in a ruined state. It is a Monument of National Importance protected by Archaeological Survey of India (N-GJ-161).
Sahasralinga Tank is among the many artificial tanks built in different parts of Gujarat under the patronages of Jayasimha Siddharaja (1092-1142 AD). There was earlier a smaller tank named Durlabh Sarovar at this place, built by Durlabharaja. [1] Jayasimha Siddharaja in early part of 12th century, expanded and decorated this lake with temples, Kunds, ghats and various other buildings, including Palace and educational institutions and Dharma-shalas.
The Sahasralinga Tank was one of the largest and grandest water tanks in size.
The lake was in rectangular form. The great embankment surrounding it is of solid brick work and was faced with stone masonry forming flights of steps to the water's edge. Water was directed from Saraswati river by a canal to this lake. Inside the canal, there was a Kupa (reservoir), called Rudra-Kupa, which was built to smooth the flow of the gushing water from the river. It was named Rudra-Kupa rightly, as it checked the flow of Saraswati river just as god Rudra (Shiva) checked the flow of river Ganga. From Rudra-Kupa, the water was diverted to Sahasralinga tank by three channels, thus it was called Triveni. On the banks of lake, numerous little temples containing over 1000 shiva-lingam were placed, which Jayasimha Siddharaja brought from Amarkantak. On all sides, temples were built, most of which are either destroyed or converted to mosques. There was image of god Vishnu on the brink of lake water. [2]
These temples were dismantled during the late medieval period when a large octagonal rauza was raised on a part of its ruins. Near the middle of the eastern embankment are the remains of the old Shiva temple, comprising the basements of the pavilions together with a colonnade of forty eight pillars. Towards the western end, there is a basin in which water from the Saraswati river was collected and then allowed to pass into the inlet channel of the Sahasralinga Tank. This cistern is about forty meters in diameter. [3]
Many tirths were located on the banks of the lake:
Sahasralinga lake was used for irrigation and other purposes by residents of Patan. [4]
In early part of 14th century, Patan was attacked by Alf Khan, general of the Khalji dynasty, the temples along the banks suffered damage but the lake survived.[ citation needed ] Till the reign of Akbar, the lake survived in good condition as Bairam Khan, Akbar's tutor, while passing through Patan on his way to Mecca, was said to have been murdered after he returned from boating in this tank in 1561.
The temples were destroyed and paved embarkments of the lake being removed over time. It is suspected that due to heavy flood in river Saraswati, the city was submerged and the lake was destroyed. One of the banks of the lake towards the city is called Phati Padno Pol, which indicates the lake might have burst out from this side. [5]
Jasma Odan, a wife of Rooda who belonged to the Od community of tank diggers, cursed Chaulukya ruler Jayasimha Siddharaja who, captivated by her beauty, proposed marriage to her. Due to the curse, the tank would not fill with water. To repeal the curse, a human sacrifice was needed. Mayo or Mahya(Jay Vir Maghmaya), from the lower caste Vankar community, sacrificed himself resulting in water filling the tank. Jaysimha, out of gratitude, allowed his caste to stay with higher castes in town. [6] [7] [8]
This legend of Jasma Odan is untrue. [9] The fragmentary inscription on Bijal Mahadeo Kuan in Patan, which was originally inscribed on Kirtistambha that once stood on the banks of this lake in Patan, mentions that the water was directed to this lake to fill the lake for irrigation and other purposes since the lake’s original water source wasn’t enough to fill the lake. [10] Similar instances have been noted to fill the lakes by river water, Karna Sagar near Modhera, Ana Sagar in Ajmer through waters of Chandra Nahar.
Sahasra [11] is the correct suffix that means "a thousand", not SahasTra. However, it is invariably misspelled as the latter. Notice how the same suffix is spelled when it occurs in family names (example: Sahasrabuddhe [12] ) without a T. The confusion arises because the Hindi letter "Sa" (स) merges with "ra" (र) and looks like "tra".
Patan is the administrative seat of Patan district in the Indian state of Gujarat and is an administered municipality. It was the capital of Gujarat's Chavda and Chaulukya dynasties in medieval times, and is also known as Anhilpur-Patan to distinguish it from Prabhas Patan. During the rule of Gujarat Sultanate, it was the capital from 1407 to 1411.
Dholka is a city and municipality in the Ahmedabad District of the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the headquarters of Dholka Taluka, and is 48 km by road via National Highway 8A southwest of the city of Ahmedabad. Dholka has an average elevation of 17 metres (56 ft).
Palanpur is a city and a municipality of Banaskantha district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Palanpur is the administrative headquarters of Banaskantha district. Palanpur is the ancestral home to an industry of Indian diamond merchants.
Prabhas Patan, also known as Somnath Patan or Prabhas Kshetra, historically named Dev Patan, is an suburbs area situated in Veraval, Gir Somnath district in Saurashtra region of Gujarat, India. Somnath temple, a place of pilgrimage due to its importance as Jyotirlinga site dedicated to Shiva, is located here.
Kumarapala was an Indian king from the Chaulukya (Solanki) dynasty of Gujarat. He ruled present-day Gujarat and surrounding areas, from his capital Anahilapataka.
Siddhpur, also spelled Sidhpur, is a town, municipality and headquarter of Sidhpur taluka in Patan district, in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is a historical place located on the bank of the endorheic Saraswati River, which is probably a remaining of the ancient Sarasvati River.
Karna was an Indian king from the Chaulukya (Solanki) dynasty of Gujarat. He ruled the present-day Gujarat and surrounding areas, from his capital Anahilapataka.
The Sahasra Bahu temples or Sasbahu Temples, at Nagda, Rajasthan, are a pair of late 10th-century Hindu temples dedicated to Virabhadra. They share a platform, facing the temple tank, and are similar in style, but one is rather larger than the other. The larger one is surrounded by ten subsidiary shrines, the smaller by four; only the bases remain of some of these. The temples have many of the characteristics of slightly later Māru-Gurjara architecture but lack others, especially in the plan and exterior sculpture.
Jasma Odan is a folk deity from medieval Gujarat about a woman who committed sati to protect her honor after her husband was murdered by Siddharaj Jaisinh, a king of Chaulukya dynasty.
Rani Ki Vav is a stepwell situated in the town of Patan in Gujarat, India. It is located on the banks of the Saraswati River. Its construction is attributed to Udayamati, the spouse of the 11th-century Chaulukya king Bhima I. Silted over, it was rediscovered in the 1940s and restored in the 1980s by the Archaeological Survey of India. It has been listed as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India since 2014.
Brahma Kund is a stepped temple tank in Sihor town of Bhavnagar district, Gujarat, India. It is located near the southern wall of the old town. It believed that it was constructed by Jayasimha Siddharaja.
Jayasiṃha, who assumed the title Siddharāja, was an Indian king who ruled western parts of India. He was a member of the Chaulukya dynasty.
The Rudra Mahalaya Temple, also known as Rudramal, is a destroyed/desecrated Hindu temple complex at Siddhpur in the Patan district of Gujarat, India. Its construction was started in 943 CE by Mularaja and completed in 1140 CE by Jayasimha Siddharaja, a ruler of the Chaulukya dynasty. The Hindu temple was destroyed by the Sultan of Delhi, Alauddin Khalji, and later the Sultan of Gujarat, Ahmed Shah I (1410–1444) desecrated and substantially demolished the temple, and also converted part of it into the congregational mosque of the city. Two torans (porches) and four pillars of the former central structure still stand along with the western part of the complex used as a congregational mosque.
Stepwells are wells in which the water is reached by steps. They are most commonly found in western India especially Gujarat where over 120 such wells are reported. The origin of the stepwell may be traced to reservoirs of the cities of the Indus Valley civilization such as Dholavira and Mohenjo-daro. The stepwells were constructed in the south western region of Gujarat around 600 AD. From there they spread north to Rajasthan and subsequently to north and west India. Construction activities accelerated during the tenth to 13th century during the Chaulukya and Vaghela periods. The construction of these stepwells hit its peak during the 11th to 16th century. The Muslim rulers of the 13th to 16th century did not disrupt the culture that was practiced in these stepwells and encouraged the building of stepwells. The wells lost their significance in the 19th century due to introduction of water pumps and pipe-systems.
Madana-Varman was a king of the Chandela dynasty of India. He succeeded his father Prithvi-Varman as the ruler of the Jejakabhukti region. He revived the Chandela glory by subduing the neighbouring kingdoms, and commissioned several tanks and temples.
Durlabha-raja was an Indian king who ruled parts of present-day Gujarat from his capital at Anahilapataka. He was a member of the Chaulukya dynasty.
Khengara was a Chudasama king of Saurashtra region of western India who reigned in the 12th century. His capital was at Junagadh. He was a contemporary of Jayasimha Siddharaja, the Chaulukya ruler of Anahilapataka. According to bardic tales, he was a son of Navaghana and had succeeded him.
Ranakadevi was a legendary 12th century queen of Khengara, the Chudasama ruler of Saurashtra region of western India. She is mentioned in the bardic tragic romance representing the battle between Chudasama king Khengara and Chaulukya king Jayasimha Siddharaja. However, this legend is not credible.
Munsar Lake is water body constructed by Minaldevi, mother of Jayasimha Siddharaja, of Chaulukya dynasty. It was named as Mansavor but due to Indiscretion it's widely known as Munsar. This lake is situated at Viramgam, near Ahmedabad.
Ranakdevi's Temple is a 9th or 10th century Hindu temple dedicated to Ranakdevi located in Wadhwan in Surendranagar district of Gujarat, India. It is built in post-Maitraka and early Nagara phase of Māru-Gurjara architecture style.
