Article | Gargoyles are surprised to see climate change | Dr (Ms) Sharad Singh | Central Chronicle

My Article published in Central Chronicle -
Gargoyles are surprised to see Climate Change

-    Dr (Ms) Sharad Singh*
Writer, Author & Social Activist
Blogger - "Climate Diary Of Dr (Ms) Sharad Singh"

If the Gargoyles of North India could talk to each other, they would have discussed each other's condition in such a way that why do you have a sore throat? To this one Gargoyle would reply to the other that my throat was sore due to the heavy rain. Then he asks Gargoyle what happened to your throat? So the second one would reply saying that my throat has dried up due to not getting enough rain and now the rainy season is also going so there is no hope left. Both Gargoyles looked at each other sadly and cursed their fate as to why so much art was spent on them. In fact, the Gargoyles are shocked, worried about climate change.

In addition to the practical function of projecting water away from a building, gargoyles were also intended to symbolize 'guardianship' of the building and to ward off evil spirits. Their open mouths were symbolic of them devouring giants. Gargoyles are carved stone creatures known as grotesques. Often made of granite, they serve an important purpose in architecture. Other than providing interesting decoration for buildings, they contain spouts that direct water away from the sides of buildings. Gargoyles prevent rainwater from running down stone walls and protect them. Sheila Kumar, writer and author says  in her article 'Mystique of the misshapen' that – "Gargoyles are traditionally thought to have been created during the Medieval period but examples date back to some ancient civilizations as well. They have been found on the roofs of Egyptian temples where their mouths served, of course, as a spout for water. Greek temples had their own version of gorges, often lions and other ferocious animals. The temple of Zeus originally had 102 lion-headed gargoyles or spouts, 39 of which remain. Europe, of course, is gargoyle heaven; they dot buildings in Toledo in Spain, Trondheim in Norway, Hillerod in Denmark, Vienna in Austria, Brugge and Mechelen in Belgium, Cologne in Germany, Zagreb in Croatia, and across the Netherlands and Portugal. Strangely, they are found also in Quito in Ecuador, the Forbidden City of Beijing, Ottawa in Canada, and Sydney in Australia. Closer home, a Shiva temple just outside Kollengode in Kerala and the temples of Uttarakhand come to mind, though these Indian spouts resemble your regular lion, horse and elephant. The gorges on newly-built structures usually have the mask of a raakshas or demon. Virtually, all the old Gothic churches in France sport gorges of varying monstrous proportions. The ones atop the Notre Dame in Paris have been a tourist attraction for ages, while the U.K. has its fair share atop the ancient academic buildings of Oxford, in Manchester, at Westminster Cathedral, at Winchester Cathedral, and in Cheshire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Wales, Ireland and in the many abbeys of Scotland."
But I found a big difference between western and Indian gargoyles that Indian gargoyles have rich and soft aesthetic elements by the sculpture, while western gargoyles have scary and hard elements in aesthetically approach. In the Western Gargoyles, images of demons are made, which are often in the form of semi-animals. From which there is a very scary feeling when the water comes out with the sound of thunder. But Indian Gargoyles do not have any horror even though they have semi-human faces. Statues of lion, boar and Udan Gandharva have been made in Khajuraho temples. In which there is beauty. Other old temples and buildings in India have beautiful gargoyles more than this one. Whether Western or Indian, both the Gargoyles have the same function, to trick the water that collects on the roof and throw it away from the walls so that the walls are not damaged. In the Western Gargoyles, it is imagined that the real devil also hides among their fearsome figures, and when it rains heavily, the water flowing from the Gargoyles takes away those hidden devils along with them and gargoyles provides protection to homes.
You must be thinking that Gargoyles are lifeless artifacts of stone, then why am I saying that today they are amazed to see the climate change? It is natural for them to be surprised. Climate change is affecting the weather. The weather is getting uncertain. Sometimes it rains heavily and sometimes it starts raining all of a sudden. Those places where water used to rain less have started receiving heavy rains and where there used to be heavy rains, it has started raining below average. That's why gargoyles built for heavy rain appear dry today and gargoyles built for low rain are forced to withstand the pressure of heavy rain. If the Gargoyles of North India could talk to each other, they would have discussed each other's condition in such a way that why do you have a sore throat? To this one Gargoyle would reply to the other that my throat was sore due to the heavy rain. Then he asks Gargoyle what happened to your throat? So the second one would reply saying that my throat has dried up due to not getting enough rain and now the rainy season is also going so there is no hope left. Both Gargoyles looked at each other sadly and cursed their fate as to why so much art was spent on them. In fact, the Gargoyles are shocked, worried about climate change.
There has been a system since the time the earth came into existence. The season of a place is the average weather that affects it over a given period of time. Precipitation, sunlight, wind, humidity and temperature are the factors that affect the season of a place. Changes in weather can be sudden and can be felt, whereas it takes a long time to change seasons, so it is relatively difficult to experience. Seasons have been changing throughout the history of the Earth. This change is happening more rapidly during the last 150-200 years. Human activities are responsible for this pace of change and it is a cause for concern for scientists. In the name of so-called development in 100 years, we have exploited the sources of groundwater and water so much that the whole world is facing the shortage of drinking water. Thousands of small rivers have become extinct in the country and the world, ponds and wells have dried up. The groundwater level is going down. Looking at the statistics, today's picture is quite grim. Nowadays erratic rainfall, partial rainfall is emerging as a very big problem. This year we are seeing that the situation of rain, rainfall inside the whole country is very worrying.  That's why not only us but also the stone structure Gargoyles that shed rain water built by our forefathers are amazed and we can take care of ourselves and our gargoyles, by removing the reasons why the weather is becoming increasingly erratic. . We have to make every effort to slow down the pace of climate change, understanding the structural importance of the gargoyles.
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(11.09.2022)
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