The Pantheons of Surya Pahar
I wrote this article on the history of Surya Pahar as a part of Sahapedia’s Culture for All initiative. The idea to repost this piece on my blog is for two reasons: one, I have added some crucial information to the original article; second, images. History becomes interesting only if the text is accentuated with images. The visual narration has an odd power to take the reader for a unique ride, cutting across time. Although the site gained prominence around the same time as Ellora, Surya Pahar, in modern times, is yet to be on the list of must-visit places for travellers in Northeast India. One reason could be the lack of travel writings on the historical past of this part of the world. There are now only a few remnants of the pre-Ahom era; and now more than ever, there is an urgent need to preserve these–through conservation, writing, and visual narrative.
Surya Pahar, one-hundred and thirty kilometers from Guwahati, in Goalpara district, bridges a gap of over two thousand years of Northeastern India’s history. A stone throw away from the majestic Brahmaputra river, and unknown to the prying eyes of archaeologists until 1960, the land hid an epoch beneath its heart. Surya means Sun and Pahar means Hill—the nomenclature suggests this site was perhaps a place of worship of the Sun God. Spread out over fifty-four acres of land, the area continues to baffle archaeologists. A series of excavations have revealed a stunning past: The area was a confluence of three faiths—Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism—in different periods. This discovery puts Surya Pahar at par with only a couple of places in India that became home to several faiths over time.
How these three religions ended up in the same place is still a mystery. Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese traveller who had visited the ancient city of Kamarupa (642 CE) during the reign of Kumara Bhaskaravarman, mentioned nothing about the place. Sculptures, stupas, stone ruins, and exalted folklores are strewn across the slopes and foothills of Surya Pahar.
Upon entry, towards the left, lies an ancient pond and the newest excavation (2001): a Nagara-style stone temple complex in panchayatana layout (9th-12th Century CE). Inside the complex, a circular panel carved on a stone slab was discovered with twelve forms of Sun God sculpted on it. A few steps towards North, one gets to see the largest monolithic votive stupa (Colossal Stupa) in Surya Pahar. The dome of the stupa has a necklace carved around it, while the base, medhi, has beautiful rose petals chiseled symmetrically. From the stupa, a road leads towards a hill where there are two Jain rock shelters, each at different heights. The first shelter has an image of the first Jain Tirthankara, Rishabanatha, and the twenty-second, Neminatha, in standing positions; the second shelter has a seated image of Rishabanatha sculpted on it. A few half-burnt earthen lamps around the sculpture is proof that devotees continue to visit this place to offer their prayers.
On the other side of the Surya Pahar, a series of sculpted Brahmanical figures, rock-cut caverns, and granite-cut stupas (pre-Christian era) adorn the landscape. One of those figures is the stunning twelve-armed sculpture of Viswarupam Vishnu, considered to be the grandest form of the deity. According to the local legends, sculptures are impressions made by the Gods, not humans, who had visited the place.
Beneath the Vishnu sculpture, there are eight different images of Vishnu, Shiva, and Hari-Hara in Samapada-sthanika (straight pose), carved on two separate boulders. The priest, who looks after the area and provides for religious chants for the devotees, claims that the three figures on the left boulder represent Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana from Ramayana; and on the right, five figures represent ‘Pancha Pandava’ from Mahabharata. This, however, is completely incorrect and an attempt to hyperbolize figures which are hard to read and understand by common people. The area is also scattered with rock-cut shiva-lingams of various sizes. Ask any local, and they will tell you there are 99,999 lingams around Surya Pahar. (An unauthenticated claim, but there are surely hundreds of them.) There is also a legend that the caverns, skilfully cut in square design, were used by yogis, hermits, and asuras to meditate. The lingams built inside these caverns are a work of wonder.
Towards the North-East, concealed by fallen leaves of teak, one can see an excavated temple complex built of burnt bricks (pre-Ahoms) and black votive stupas cut out from massive granite boulders. A few of them have eroded, but most still stand the test of time. Apart from its rich archaeological heritage, Surya Pahar reveals two important facts: one, the significance of the Brahmaputra river in trade and amalgamation of different faiths, and second, the secular vibe that the area exhibits.