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However, a recent analysis of the orientation pattern of more than one hundred
Indian temples shows otherwise (Aller & Belmonte, 2015). The sample includes
Hindu and Jaina temples, the latter being mostly orientated north. Of Hindu temples,
74 (82%) of them were orientated within the solar range, with a maximum close to
due east, a fact apparently supporting ‘equinoctial’ orientations (Fig. 12).
However, this is misleading when one goes into the details. For example, the substantial temples of the Chola Dynasty are facing 94° in Gongaikondacholapuram but
only 74° in Tanjore. This fact is still more remarkable for the wonderful temples of
the Chandela Dynasty at Kajuraho (Fig. 12), since they are predominantly orientated
Fig. 12 (a) Kandariya Mahaveda and Devi Jagadambi temples in Kajuraho (India; Chandela
Dynasty, tenth century AD). These are among the 107 Hindu and Jaina temples measured by the
author in November 2007. (b) Azimuth histogram of this group, with 74 temples located within the
solar range. Notice the peak concentration close to east. Diagram by Juan A. Belmonte
What Equinox?