Lepakshi – The venerated Snake Photo

Photographer’s Note

Inside the large inner courtyard, the monolithic 7 metres high Nagalinga -- the largest of its kind in India entice the eye by it’s sheer scale and perfection - Carved out of a natural boulder to the west of the shrine, this seven-hooded Naga (Snake) shelters a black-polished lingam (epitome of the mighty God, Shiva) cradled in its ribbed coils.

A noticeable crack near the base is explained by a legend.

It is said that the Nagalinga was carved by the sons of a woman who lived in a house opposite where the sculpture stands today. Her sculptor sons arrived home for lunch one day. As the meal wasn't ready, they began working on a huge boulder nearby. By the time their mother came to call them in for the meal, the sculpture was complete. Her look of astonishment and admiration is said to have caused a crack in the base.

The person ‘posing’ is incidental, for the purpose of scale. I wished he was not looking directly at me. Notice the two gopuras (temple towers) which can be seen on the right over the covered pillared causeway.

gary91, pablominto, Luan, riclopes, sabyasachi1212, pierrefonds, ramthakur, pastadog, pranab, emjleclercq, anavazao, TeresaT, ramesh_lalwani, Henryk_Bilor, postvikram, anew, batalay has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

gary91 (15321) 2006-05-18 0:33

Hello Angshu,
Such a massive piece of stone... Good idea to have left this man in order that we can see the scale.
Once again, your shot has a very good definition and we can see a lot of details, especially looking at these fantastic "gopuras"
Thanks for bringing us this estonishing site.
Regards. Christian

pablominto (41354) 2006-05-18 1:03

Hi Angshuman,
Interesting composition with good lines!
You convey well the massive impression from the site, and the inclusion of the guy adds scale and benefit to the compo...
Nice play of lighting, good colours and details!
Greetings,
Pablo -

riclopes (33135) 2006-05-18 3:42

Excellent Angshu!
I love the shot, with this huge carved monolitic and the interesting legend in your allways excelent note. Very well captured and perfectly balanced composition, with a wonderful lighting and very good quality of the image, as usual. The person is, of course, good for the scale and I agree with you about posing at you, but that's a minor detail in this marvellous photo.
Best wishes,
Ricardo

Luan (15935) 2006-05-18 3:57

Hello Angshu,
a nice picture, It perfectly shows the typical architecture of temples in south of India. You have succeeded to fit all the monument onto your compo.
Well done
Luan

Gerrit (36269) 2006-05-18 4:24

Hi Angshu,
Impressive stuatue like a wide spread mouth swallowing the posing man.
Thanks and regards, Gerrit

sabyasachi1212 (19546) 2006-05-18 5:16

Hi Angshuman,
Excellent composition. Having that person posing is actually a brilliant idea, it gives us a sense of dimensions. Your series on Lepakshi is indeed a documentary masterpiece.
Thanks for sharing
Sabyasachi

jasmis (50995) 2006-05-18 5:32

Educational photo. Fine composition. Interesting note. Regards.

pierrefonds (26645) 2006-05-18 5:44

Hi Angshuman,

A good POV of the high Nagalinga sculpture, the photo is sharp and clear. It has a good perspective and nice colors.

Pierre

ramthakur (1501) 2006-05-18 6:58

Excellent image, Mr Chatterjee, that showcases this extremely beautiful and significant feature of the Lepakshi complex very effectively.
Your photographic skills are extraordinary.

pastadog (12821) 2006-05-18 7:21

Hi Angshuman - a great POV and excellent sharpness in this pretty shot. Thanks for shot and note! Daniel
ps - I find the guy in blue too conspicuous, I believe there would have been a sense of scale even without him

feather (50144) 2006-05-18 7:35

Interesting legend; you must have spent almost as much time on research as you have on the photography of this wonderful place. Detail and clarity are wonderful as usual. I share your reservations about the man posing; would he have turned to look up at the sculpture if you had asked? Nevertheless another fine addition to your series.
Kath

markstaples (15670) 2006-05-18 14:02

Nice diagonals and lines. The lighting seems very harsh but you've managed exposure well, Nicely composed.
Best wishes
Mark

pranab (5354) 2006-05-18 14:35

angshu,
anothergreat perspective of this temple. good color and detail maintained as usual. do i detect slight tilt here? i like the human element for scale but you are right i wish he was not looking at you too.

emjleclercq (14506) 2006-05-18 16:41

An impressive sculpture, which seems to be different in style (more stylized) than the inside of the temples. I wondered what the black stone was but you provided the answer in your note.

All the best,

Emmanuel

capthaddock (28640) 2006-05-18 17:16

Angshu -the snake structure is inteersting, and balances the tower at right, but the person looking at the camera is very unfortunate.

anavazao (5592) 2006-05-18 17:28

wow,
great details and composition!
Good idea, colours, light!
Good work my friend:)
Thanks ana:)

TeresaT (10733) 2006-05-18 18:44

Hi Angshuman,
perfect detail of this beautiful stone.
I like the inclusion of the man here because it gave us the idea of the size of the stone.
good light and colours too.
regards
teresa

rabdelnoor (2973) 2006-05-18 19:50

Hi Angshu,
What a great sculpture showing these seven naja. Very impressive, based on the size and artwork. Nice composition, including the gopuras you have shown us before.
Take care
Ricardo

sergio1 (12150) 2006-05-19 3:46

Hi Angshuman
Veri nice lights to shot. I like the compo and pov. Good sculpture and sharp.
Thanks for share.
Sergio

ramesh_lalwani (3209) 2006-05-19 13:34

Hi Angshuman
I think you must be very satisfied with photos taken during your Lepakshi trip.I enjoyed seeing all and reading your very informatibe notes.This shiv linga is very impressive.Lovely colors TFS
Ramesh

Henryk_Bilor (20371) 2006-05-19 14:04

Hello Angshuman
Very nice architecture. Great captured.
Best regards

clic (4065) 2006-05-19 14:08

Bonjour Angshuman
The composition here is carefully prepared: The 2 gopuras act as a counter-weight to snake's mass.
Perfectly balanced exposure showing subtle details in midtones as well as in highlights.
Wonderfful take!
Robert

postvikram (1199) 2006-05-26 4:00

Hello Angshu,
Nicely done . Beautiful composition, nice note.
Good lighting.

Vikram

anew (580) 2006-05-27 10:07

Hi Angshu,
This is a wonderful sight indeed. I hope I get to go visit it sometime...
Regards,
Anu

plimrn (19710) 2006-05-29 1:10

Hi Angshu,
As always, your detail is impeccable and your note provides excellent learning. I sure wouldn't want to encounter him come to life!!
Regards, Pat

batalay (21193) 2007-02-07 11:54

Hello Angshu,
Fabulous shot of Lepakshi, and the temple, accompanied by a succint and informative note. The individual seated on the left does serve to give scale, but does not bother me. I agree that it would have been better if here were standing up and looking in awe at the statue, but you certainly cannot control other visitors.
Warm regards,
Bulent