The Mishdi Chronicles

Nestled deep in the pristine Kangra valley, the Masroor group of temples are known to very few people. Their secluded hermitage is sometimes intruded by the seekers who seek to find solace in their quest and thrill of their explorations.

Till recently, even I didn’t have the faintest idea of the existence of this secret jewel hidden in the green canvas of the Himalayas, until I stumbled upon some breathtaking pictures of this place clicked by a friend who is both, a great traveller and photographer. The beauty of this structure, reflecting calmingly in the crystal clear water of the adjoining water body, was stunning. The quest that stirred within, finally took me to this place in the spring when the entire Kangra valley was scented with fresh bloom of blue mink and apricot flowers.

It was the month of March and the entire Himalayan valley was aglow with a splash of colours. The fruit trees were flowering, mustard plants were shimmering with yellow in the terrace farms and the blue mink spread a purplish blue carpet across the horizon.

With an excitement brewing in my heart to see the Himalayan beauty, I drove past the vast trenches of floss flowers donning a sapphire radiance in the sunshine.

The road to Masroor from the Haripur Fort was a stretch of about 17 km and was most pristine. The narrow and empty roads meandering through the hills carried with them the perfume of wild bloom and the freshness of the clean air.

I took this road after visiting the Haripur Fort in Kangra district. The fort, once a towering structure, lies barren and neglected today, thoroughly encroached by the locals. I read somewhere that this 600 year old fort was the place where Kangra miniature paintings were born, however, I didn’t find any trace of Kangra paintings in Haripur Fort. In fact, having seen the deplorable condition of the fort, it was difficult to believe that this was a historic place.

After driving for about 45 minutes, we reached our destination, the Masroor rock-cut temples. Perched atop a high hill and surrounded by the mighty Dhauladhar ranges, this architectural marvel was a visual delight.

We entered the premises by climbing a few steps. The site was maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India. There was no ticket counter and the entry tickets were to be obtained online by scanning the bar code displayed on a huge board put up by the ASI.

This elegant archaeological site once was a cluster of nineteen independent free standing monolithic rock-cut temples. The temple complex suffered a huge damage in the earthquake of 1905 which devastated most of the historical sites in Kangra valley including the panoramic Kangra Fort. A model of the Masroor temples kept in the ASI museum at Kangra Fort displayed the position of the temples with a greater clarity. After the earthquake, these free standing temples have tumbled upon each other making it quite difficult to count the exact number.

One wonders how this temple complex came to be known as Masroor. An Arabic word, Masroor denotes someone who is in a blissful and joyful state of being. It is really intriguing to think how the name ‘Masroor’ got associated with this Hindu temple complex in Himachal Pradesh. Maybe some traveller who was mesmerised with this exquisite site gave it a name which was most suited. The site indeed offers an elegant fusion of charm and tranquility.

The historical accounts of these temples are not available. Even the ASI could not offer much information about the rulers who built the temples and the dating of the site.

The temples of Masroor are built in Nagara style of architecture with prominent shikharas. The sanctum of the main temple is a cave like structure housing the idols of Ram, Laxman and Sita. The black idols appear quite new and perhaps a much later addition. The original idols are missing from the sanctums.

There is a huge pond right in front of the temples, very similar to the Angkorwat temple complex in Cambodia. In fact, the Masroor temples had a striking similarity with the Angkorwat temple, at least in the first glimpse.

Such water bodies exist in most of the sacred shrines across the religions, mostly for the purpose of ritualistic bathing. However, the serene pool of clear water here, reflects the tall spires of the temples, scattering ever changing hues at different hours of the day and reverberating the tales of the bygone era. One wonders how such a beautiful water body has been created at the top of a hill without any perennial source of water around.

The Masroor group of temples is one of the finest examples of the rock-cut architecture. India is replete with such structures which display a montage of exquisite rock-cut carvings sculpted out of a single natural rock. Most of these structures are either Hindu temples or Buddhist and Jain viharas and chaityas.

The Kailash temple in Ellora is the most remarkable example of a rock-cut temple architecture which never fails to fascinate its visitors. There is an endless list of such monuments in India and one would take many lifetimes to explore and exhaust the rich heritage of this country.

Varaha Cave temple, Pancha Rathas, Descent of the Ganges and Tiger cave are some rock-cut temples in Mahabalipuram which showcase an excellent masonry of ancient times. There are many more captivating pieces in the list which follow the suit like Badami cave temples, Aihole, Elephanta Caves, Undavalli Caves and Gopachal Jain monuments.

The Masroor temples display an artistic blend of sculptures of the deities of the Hindu pantheon. The finesse and the magnitude of the sculptures are extraordinary, alluding to their past grandeur. The carvings are precise and meet all standards and measurements of anatomy. How I wish I could listen to the voice of these stones and fathom the depth of their sound.

The Masroor temples have been carved out of the sandstones and have withstood the test of time. They survived a dreadful earthquake and stand tall unfazed. Not many people know about this site, hidden secretly in the Himalayas, yet whosoever stumbles upon this gem, is bound to get lost in its beauty. The remoteness of this site and the ignorance about its existence have somehow safeguarded it from the plundering and invasions which other sites in Kangra have suffered brutally. Yet, it could not escape the wrath of the nature and suffered a great damage in the earthquake. Despite this, the Himalayan treasure adds one more chapter to the glorious history of this country.

Like many other locations in the country, Masroor is also entangled between history and mythology. The folklores believe that the Pandavas sought refuge within the precincts of these temples during their exile and they even attempted to build a staircase to heaven. Thus, Masroor finds a place in the great epic of Mahabharata. Interestingly, an incomplete staircase inside the temple fuels the theory symbolically.

This site should invariably be a part of every ardent traveller’s wish list.

The temples of Masroor are indeed the abode of tranquility and serenity tucked amidst the pristine hills of Kangra. They are like the hermits of the Himalayas meditating in a trance and oblivious to the fancies of the world. They find their rhythm with the unstained purity of Dhauladhar and echo together in perfect blend. They both look at each other in absolute bliss and rise to another level of peaceful solitude. Somebody has rightly called them ‘Masroor’.