|
Page6
There are
certain particular aspects which need mention in a discussion on the temples of Bengal.
The alluvial soil of Bengal and the indigenous qualities that go to make a Bengali have
much to do with the temples in this region. It is only a part of Bengal that has got
lateritic soil and there is a singular want of hills or quarries of block stone or other
kind of soft stone which abound in Bihar and other parts of Eastern India.
Bengal has to depend on the alluvial and clayey soil f her own and
bricks baked Gut of the clayey soil for building the temples. Bengal also lacked rich
rulers like Shah Jehan or the powerful dynasties of Orissa or of Southern India that could
spend fortunes over building temples. Bengal was always split among a number of rulers and
none of them had the definite stability to build anything regarding the temples of
Orissa or the great edifices in Agra or Delhi. It is said that the revenue of eighteen
years of the Mughal Empire had been spent over building the Taj Mahal and giving this
magnanimous landmark to India impoverished even Shah Jehan.
|
