Category:Parvati Temple Khajuraho

Parvati Temple 

11th-century Vishnu temple, now with Parvati statue in Khajuraho, India
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Instance of	Hindu temple
Part of	Khajuraho Group of Monuments
Location	Khajuraho, Chhatarpur district, Sagar division, Madhya Pradesh, India
Founded by	Chandelas of Jejakabhukti
Heritage designation	Monument of National Importance
24° 51′ 11.4″ N, 79° 55′ 19″ E
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The Parvati temple is a small early 11th-century Hindu temple near the Vishwanatha temple in the western group of monuments. It has been been extensively restored with new materials in a process that incorporated ruins and temple parts found here. The temple was originally for Vishnu because the lalitabimba shows Vishnu riding his Garuda vahana. Inside its sanctum, however, is a beautifully carved historic 11th-century Parvati statue riding her godha (iguana) vahana, giving this temple its modern era name – Parvati temple. This means that there was another Khajuraho temple, now lost, that housed this Parvati statue.

The temple is close to the much larger Vishwanatha temple, and its geometric alignment suggests that perhaps the Vishwanatha temple was a major Hindu temple complex where the main temple was surrounded by many shrines. If that hypothesis is true, then this Vishnu temple was one of many shrines around the main temple.

Other than the Parvati statue, the artwork on the doorway of this temple is notable. The door is flanked by goddess Ganga and Yamuna, the sakhas include amorous couples and other Hindu arts, the lintel has Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. All artwork and the statue inside the sanctum are damaged, many defaced, some with broken limbs or beheaded. The temple had a mandapa in front, but that is entirely gone.