File:0051423 Baijnath temple, Vaidyanatha mandir, Baijnath Himachal Pradesh 169.jpg

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English: The Baijnath temple is a late 12th to early 13th century Shiva temple in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh. It is called the Vaidyanatha temple of Kirgrama in regional pre-16th century Sanskrit literature, which means a temple dedicated to the "Lord of Physicians". Two Sarada-script Sanskrit inscriptions attribute the temple to two Hindu merchant brothers named Manyuka and Ahuka.

The Baijnath temple is a complex of shrines with the main west-facing stone temple that follows the Nagara architecture. In front are two Nandis. The seated Nandi is older, the standing Nandi is bigger and was added later. The main temple has a four pillar mukhamandapa, followed by a square mandapa. There are three cardinal entrances to the mandapa. Its walls and ceilings are carved with Hindu artwork. The garbhagriya has a square plan (8 sq ft interior, 18 sq ft exterior). This sanctum is dedicated to a Shiva linga. Outside on the vimana walls are Hindu artwork, with Surya on the east. Other Hindu deities on the outer walls include Brahma, Durga, Chamunda, Kartikeya, Gajalakshmi, Mahisasuramardini, Kalyanasundramurti, dancing Ganesha, Vishnu in different avataras, Harihara, Indra and Umamaheshwara. In addition to Hindu deities, a Jaina Tirthankara (likely Mahavira) is also reverentially included on the temple walls attesting to close relationship between Hindu and Jain traditions in the Himalayas.

The temple was damaged after the 14th-century, and extensively repaired by Raja Chand Katoch around 1786 AD, after the collapse of the Mughal Empire and after the British East India Company and the Sikh Empire came to power. These repairs introduced major changes to the roof and sections of the temple complex. Later, during the colonial era, some inscriptions and Hindu artwork from this temple were moved to Lahore museum, and these can no longer be found in Lahore or anywhere else.

The temple complex has smaller shrines for Ganesha, Krishna and other Hindu deities. A shed preserves many mutilated and broken temple sections damaged during the Delhi Sultanate era.
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Source Own work
Author Ms Sarah Welch
Camera location32° 03′ 02.98″ N, 76° 38′ 45.83″ E Kartographer map based on OpenStreetMap.View this and other nearby images on: OpenStreetMapinfo

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current05:17, 7 January 2024Thumbnail for version as of 05:17, 7 January 20243,366 × 4,488 (5.4 MB)Ms Sarah Welch (talk | contribs)Uploaded own work with UploadWizard

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