Draupadi and Arjuna Rathas

Walk up to the first structure on your left as you enter the complex.

This is called the Draupadi ratha. In the epic, Mahabharata, Draupadi is the common wife of all the five Pandava brothers. This Ratha is designed like a hut with a thatched roof. The entrance to the shrine is guarded by two female dwarapalakas or doorkeepers.

Inside, you can spot Goddess Durga, both in the shrine and on the outer walls of the shrine. Durga is the fiery goddess of war and is usually depicted riding a lion and carrying a weapon in each of her many arms. In this particular instance, she is shown standing in the sanctum, while her magnificently carved lion awaits her outside. In those days, kings prayed to Durga before every battle and made sacrifices to her – chickens, goats, buffaloes, and at times, even men; men who came forward voluntarily to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. Look closer at the carvings in front of you. A male devotee is shown in the position of severing his own head with a small knife - perhaps the part of worship or salvation.

Walk up to the second ratha after Draupadi Ratha. This is called the Arjuna ratha. In the Mahabharata, Arjuna was a handsome prince and a skilled archer. This shrine was originally meant for Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction. We know this because his vehicle, Nandi the bull, is carved behind the structure. You will also see carvings of an eagle and an elephant along the outer walls of the structure - vehicles of Lord Vishnu, the god of protection, and Lord Indra - the god of the Heavens respectively.

The Arjuna ratha is carved over two levels and the upper level shows the early stages of the Dravidian style of temple architecture. On one outer wall, you will spot Shiva leaning on Nandi, the bull. He is flanked by two handsome couples. Some scholars speculate that these could be royal couple, one of them, perhaps the Pallava king who built this complex, Narasimha Varman 1, also known as Mamalla, along with his queen.