Wangath Temple complex is a group of monuments in Wangath, close to

Naranag Naranag or (Nara Nag) is a tourist village and ancient Hindu pilgrimage site, near Ganderbal town in Ganderbal district, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Well known for its ancient but pillaged temple ruins complex, it is located around 8 km from ...

, in the Ganderbal district of Jammu and Kashmir. Wangath is a village located around northeast of Srinagar. The current structure was built by

Lalitaditya Muktapida Lalitaditya alias Muktapida (IAST: Lalitāditya Muktāpīḍa; r. c. 724 CE–760 CE) was a powerful ruler of the Karkota dynasty of Kashmir region in the Indian subcontinent. The 12th-century chronicler Kalhana characterizes Lalitaditya as a ...

of the Karkota dynasty in the 8th century CE.

History

First group of temples near the village of Wangut in the Scind Valley

Kalhana Kalhana ( sa, कल्हण, translit=kalhaṇa) was the author of ''Rajatarangini'' (''River of Kings''), an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be ...

notes in ''

Rajatarangini ''Rajatarangini'' ("The River of Kings") is a metrical legendary and historical chronicle of the north-western part of India, particularly the kings of Kashmir. It was written in Sanskrit by Kashmiri historian Kalhana in the 12th century CE. Th ...

'' that

Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, s ...

built the city of Srinagar in the 3rd century BCE. His son Jaluka, 220 BCE, built the Shaivite temples Bhuteshvara, Jyestarudra, and '' Muthas'' in the Wangath valley around the holy spring of

. The Wangath temples were built in three groups, around the same time as the

Shankaracharya Temple Shankaracharya Temple or Jyeshteshwara Temple is a Hindu temple situated on top of the Shankaracharya Hill on the Zabarwan Range in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The temple is at a height of above the val ...

in Srinagari and the Bumazuv temple near Mattan. King Jaluka built a stone temple at the site of the spring ''Naranag'' around 137 BCE. King Jayendra (61 BCE) used to worship Shiva Bhutesha at the shrine.

(713–735 CE) donated a good sum of money to the shrine after his victorious expedition. King Avantivarman (855–883 CE) built a stone pedestal with a silver conduit at this shrine for the bathing of sacred images. Kalhana's father Canpaka and uncle Kanka also frequented the site. As per Kalhana, the treasury of this shrine was plundered by King Sangramraja of Kashmir (1003–28 CE), during King Uccala's time (1101–1111 CE) and later by the rebel baron Hayavadana.

Architecture and style

Bishop Crowie and Major Cole have identified the ruins of seventeen temple structures of various ages and dimensions in Buthser, near Wangath, in two distinct groups: the first on the western side and the second on the eastern side. Each group is enclosed by a separate stone wall, and lie a short distance from one another. The temple complex is located along the ''Kanka nadi'' or the ''Kanaknai'' and is constructed of local grey granite. Between the two groups of temples stand a number of structures of a third group, the ''Mathas''.

Western complex

The first group of six temples, also identified by Aurel Stein as ''Shiva-Jyestharudra'' or ''Shiva-Jyeshthesa'', is situated within an enclosure wall. The Jyestharudra group is placed on high grounds and consists of a main temple of ''Jyeshthesa'' (Shiva) surrounded by subsidiary shrines. The principal structure is a square of externally and internally, and has two entrances opposite each other, facing the northeast and southwest. In the center of the floor is a square space which is unpaved. It marks the site of the pedestal of the image. Internally, it has a domed ceiling. Externally, the roof is pyramidal.

Eastern complex

The second group of temples is enclosed in a massive rectangular stone wall, pierced by a two-chambered gateway. The six temples inside the wall are in ruins and are partly buried in the ground. The largest temple has a square base internally, similar to the largest temple in the western complex. This temple has been identified by Stein as ''Shiva-Bhuteshwara''.

Central pavilion

Between the western and eastern complexes lie a number of structures of a third group. This consists of the remains of a building measuring by , with a height of . Along the side of this structure are 30 monolithic bases or piers at intervals of . This was a pillared pavilion or ''matha''. An impressive rectangular cistern, hammered out of a boulder, is nearby.

Present status

Site of national importance

The

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexand ...

has declared the Wangath Temple complex at Naranag as centrally protected monuments of India. The temple appears in the list of "centrally protected monuments" as "Group of Ancient Temples" at Naranag, Kangan.

References

{{Jammu and Kashmir topics, state=collapsed Hindu temples in Jammu and Kashmir Destroyed temples Archaeological sites in Jammu and Kashmir Shiva temples in Jammu and Kashmir 2nd-century BC Hindu temples 7th-century Hindu temples Ganderbal district