Bateshwar temples, a revived piece of history

60 temples have been reconstructed form the rubble

Temples dedicated to Shiva and Vishnu which were built about 300 years before the Khajuraho temples. Well, that sums up how old these temples are and yet majority of people are oblivious to its existence. The Bateshwar Temples came up as 200 temples in the 8th century AD. After restoration today only 60 stand so far. The ASI official responsible for the miraculous restoration from pure rubble that was found is KK Muhammed. He cut a deal with the dacoits of the region and convinced them to let him do the restoration of the great temples that their ancestors had built.

The grandeur of the temples can still be seen from a distance. In the middle of an illegal mining area they suffer decay daily and yet stand tall as a symbol of greatness of a now forgotten empire. The temples are placed in a almost a geometrical manner according to the hierarchy of the temple. The tallest temple in the area is still not completely restored and still stands above the others as a small symbol of power amongst these humble godly abode’s. The people who live nearby did not know that these temples existed and there isn’t a lot of information online either, so there is a big possibility that there are a lot of the temple parts which are missing and will never be found, after all they aren’t called dacoits for no reason.

The temples have ornate carvings inside and many of them have small Nandi statues sitting outside the main doorway. The ones which have Nandi sitting quietly in front of them are Shiv temples which have a small Shiv linga inside (well most of the restored ones do). Even if these temples are tiny they have ornate carvings not only on the inside but on the outside as well.

ornate carvings contribute to the aura of the temples

There is a small shrine which still has a roof and surrounding walls, you are allowed to climb onto the first floor of this little house and you get a wonderful of the surroundings as well as a nice panoramic view of the temples around the area. These temples take you down the memory lane into the rich heritage of India and how is spotted with numerous of these little miracles of architecture. This kind of artistic brilliance is barely found in today’s day anymore. If you are ever driving through Madhya Pradesh or visiting anywhere near Gwalior, then do take out a few hours and go and visit this temple and change your outlook towards medieval architecture.

A closer look at one of the temples