Initials in Buddhist Architecture

The Buddhist architecture has its root deeply implanted in the

Indian soil- the birthplace of the Buddha's teachings. The Buddhist
architecture began with the development of various symbols,
representing aspects of the Buddha's life (563 BCE - 483 BCE).

For the first time, it was the Indian emperor Ashoka, who not only
established Buddhism as the state religion of his large Magadh
empire, but also opted for the architectural monuments to spread
Buddhism in different places.
 Buddhism…its antecedents ….
• Gautama Buddha, known earlier as prince Siddhartha, was serendipitously
born in the time of questing for a fixed point of certainty in the deceitful
external world.

• Having gained enlightenment, He travelled throughout the kingdoms of

north India, attacking the superstition of the Hindus, the sacrifice of animals
in the Yagnas, and most importantly, the most debasing and dehumanizing
form of discrimination ever .... the caste system chartered in the sacred
texts, such as the Vedas and the Manusmriti, to be a legitimate form of
society and ostensibly ordained by the Gods.

• It is over His mortal remains and relics belonging to Him that the STUPAS
were built. They were also built over the remains of kings, heroes and
monks.

• The fundamental ideology of Buddhism lies in its rejection of ‘God worship’

and its preaching of an EIGHT FOLD PATH essentially based on leading a life
of strong values to attain Moksha or salvation
297 BC

ASHOKA CONVERTED IN TO BUDDHISM IN OFFICAIL WAY - 5 TO 9TH

CENTURY

IT ENTERS CHINA, TIBET, VIETNAM,JAPAN, KOREA, Burma ETC.,

13TH CENTURY

DECLINE OF BUDDHISM NORTH INDIA

15TH CENTURY

DECLINE OF BUDDHISM IN SOUTH INDIA

 The basic elements of buddhist philosophies which were
produced in the form of architectural features :- -

The square base represents earth

The hemispherical dome/vase represents water

The conical spire represents fire

The upper lotus parasol and the crescent moonrepresents air

The sun and the dissolving point represents the element of

space.
Distinctive Features of Buddhist Architecture
ASHOKA HAD SPREADED BUDDHISM TO MAGADHA EMPIRE AND
ALSO ADOPTED ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENTS TO SPREAD
BUDDHISM TO DIFFERENT PLACES.

THE MAJOR ARCHITECTURE FEATURE ARE

STUPAS ( EXAMPLE : SANCHI STUPA )
STAMBAS ( EXAMPLE : ASHOKA PILLAR)
CHAITYAS ( EXAMPLE : CHAITYA AT KARLI)
VIHARAS ( EXAMPLE : VIHARA AT AJANTA)
Stupas
Stupas are one of the most prominent and powerful
architectural element used in Buddhist architecture . A stupa is
a dome-shaped monument, used to house Buddhists' relics or to
commemorate significant facts of Buddhism.

Conceptually, a stupa is a cosmological

diagram linking the body of the Buddha to
the universe.
•The central mass consists of an earthen
hemispherical mound faced with fired
bricks, with a shallow berm (or medhi )
ringing its base.
•This round structure is then surrounded by
a stone balustrade (or vedika) that Plan diagram: Stupa II at Sanchi
replicates a construction out of wood.
Stupas

Outer terrace
Paved terrace
Dome
CIRCULAR IN PLAN, SECTION,
ELEVATION AND FORM…

Chhatravali or Umbrella sticks

Harmika
Anda or Egg
Stambha or Pillar
Torana or Gateway
Shapes of stupas

"The shape of the stupa represents the

Buddha, crowned and sitting in meditation
posture on a lion throne. His crown is the top
of the spire; his head is the square at the
spire's base; his body is the vase shape; his
legs are the four steps of the lower terrace;
and the base is his throne."

1) DHANYAKARA (paddy heap shape)

2) GHANTAKARA (bell shape)
3) BUBBLAKARA (bubble shape)
4) GHARHAAKARA (pot shape)
5) PADMAKARA (Lotus Shape)
6) AMALTAKA (AMLA FRIUT Shape)
Shapes of stupas
Based on events in
Buddha’s life…
1.Birth 2. attainment of
enlightenment 3.first
teachings post
enlightenment 4. great
miracles 5.period of
retreat teaching his own
mother reborn 6. sorting
of disputes
7.postponement of own
death 8. Nirvana
The Sacred Precinct…Sanchi •It had to be
neither too far
Site location, issues under consideration… from the village or
town nor too close.
•Monks spent lot
of time begging for
food, so had to be
near.
•The majority part
of the time spent
praying/meditating
,
So noise was a
factor.
•Generally Stupas
were built on trade
routes.
Precinct…Stupa, Chaitya halls, Viharas
Stupa at Sanchi… the relics preserved…

•Physical remains of Buddha and other saints ... nails, bones, hair..
•Objects used by them …. robes, begging bowls, vessels…
•Abstract symbols … Triratna, Chakra..
 The Stupa…
• If one starts piling rubble and soil over an object,
generally the form of the ‘structure’ is a circular
based mound, a crude hemisphere of sorts, with
the silhouette roughly of a hyperbola.
• This hemisphere, called the ANDA or egg… later on
became the image of the cosmos.
• Built of brick/clay/stone, it thus graduated from
being just a funerary mound to represent a divine
order, the infinite space of the skies, abode of God.
Sometimes, the surface was finished off with a thick
layer of lime mortar and left austere against an
intricately carved railing/gateway etc. But at times,
it was coloured or even gilded with recesses in it for
lit lamps, appearing like a guiding beacon of the
faith in all directions.
• The egg also had the connotation of being the
Womb or ‘Garbha’, containing the seed or ‘Bija’, the
relic of the monk.
• The construction of Stupas were seen as
meritorious works, helping in propagating the
doctrines of Buddhism.
The Stupa….
MEDHI….
• Around the base of the dome was a plinth, a raised platform of a diameter
greater than that of the dome so that the Stupa not only was given a
stature of a monument, but also was allowed a circumambulatory path
around it called the Pradakshina Path.
• The Stupa being circular was not oriented in any cardinal direction and so
four gateways/entrances marking the cardinal directions with elaborate
entrances called Toranas completed this inadequacy.
• Sometimes there was an additional terrace at an upper level, which not
only broke the singular mass of the hemisphere, but was supposedly used
by a select few elites as monks and royalty for worship, while the lower one
catered to common people.
• This upper level was accessed by a double
flight of steps called the SOPANA.

UPPER LEVEL

LOWER LEVEL
The Stupa…
PRADAKSHINA PATH
• Circumambulation, a concept of going
round and round in circles, common
also to the Hindu Temple ideology is a
reference to the vicious cycle of life
and death that humans get caught in THE RAILING AND THE TORANA, BOTH
with the way out of it being by getting CREATE A DIVIDE BETWEEN THE
salvation or Nirvana, by following the OUTSIDE ORDINARY WORLD AND THE
rigours of the religion. INNER SPIRITUAL WORLD
• The entry is at a tangent to the circle
and not direct…and also geared for a
clockwise movement only. The
approaches are inconvenient for exits
as the four bulges in the railing lead
‘in’ and not ‘out’…. This is a reference
to the continuous wheel of rotation of
the infinite cosmos, the relic, and the
doctrines. There is a strong visual
symbolism of the Hindu Swastika.
The Stupa…
• The railing called the VEDICA
demarcates the profane and
sacred space and made in stone.
• Square and octagonal Upright
posts called THAMBA are
pierces by lens shaped
horizontal members called
SUCHI. The top most horizontal
bar is provided with a coping
stone to drain rain water
• Unlike the austere dome the
railings are full of carvings
offsetting a balance in the
entire edifice, interestingly on
both sides, depicting the Jataka
tales.
 The Stupa…
TORANA
• The ceremonial gateways marking the
cardinal directions and sort of framing the
Stupa, seem to have emerged with
influences from the Aryan village gates as
much as from those in China- Pai Lou and
Japan-Torii from Tor meaning ‘pass’
• Crafted with heavy embellishments, they
are made of two upright columns with
capitals of lions or elephants. ( denoting
strength) These support three horizontal
panels with volutes at the ends, between
whose gaps are rows or ornamental
balusters.
• The top panel is crowned with the Tri-Ratna
symbols of Buddhism, Buddha/ Dharma/
Sangha and the wheel of justice.
The increased height of the Stupa was a result of the analogy between
man and cosmos. The Medhi is the abdomen, the Anda is the upper
part of the body and the Chhatri or honorary umbrella surrounded by
the railing or the urn containing the relic (which later was shifted to the
top), the head.
The Stupa…
HARMIKA AND CHHATRI
• The dome has a slight crushed profile at the
top and here sits a HARMIKA, a square
balcony, with a railing imitating the Vedica
below. It encloses a pedestal. A three tiered
stone or wooden umbrella, the
CHHATRAVALI, symbolic of the Vedic altar,
also considered the insignia of prince
Siddharth completed the top profile.
• In a later period, an inverted stepped
pyramid covered by the umbrella formed the
finial.
• The vertical part of the Harmika, goes all the
way in to the centre of the mound to the
‘Bija’ and is like the cosmic tree.
• The relic, was in later times shifted from the
centre of the mound to the Harmika.
The Stupa… some more components…
• At Amravati, is seen an addition of architectural
elements to further articulate the Stupa. There
are entrance platforms on which the Toranas
stand, called the AYAKAS and…
• Directly facing the visitor were built five
intricately carved worshipping pillars called
ARYAKAS, depicting five stages of Buddha’s life,
instead of the Toranas.
• They forced the visitor to PAUSE at the
entrance before beginning the Pradakshina.
• Simha-Dwars or pillars denoting doorways,
interrupted the procession, and making it
sequential.
• The Ashokan free standing pillar, having an
important place in Buddhist architecture is
perhaps a tribute to their greatest patron and
accepted as a religious symbol.
 The Stupa…From the Vedic Aryan to Buddhism…
• The concept of circumambulation or
Pradakshina is common to the sacrificial altar
or Yagnya and the Stupa.
• The concept symbolizes the unending cycle of
life and death from where salvation …call it
Moksha or Nirvana has to be attained. The
Swastika, a symbol used till today by the
Hindus, is symbolic of the ancient solar cult of
the Vedic times.
• The Torana is taken from the Cow-gate of the
Aryan village. fence The gate with upright
• The Aryans were very fond of fencing villages posts, and horizontal
members
for military purposes and sanctified areas like
sacrificial places, trees. These evolved in to the
railings or the Vedica.
• The axis of the Chattri going to the centre of
the Stupa is like the cosmic tree under which
the village wise dispensed justice.
 AXIS ARTICULATION

CARDINAL
DIRECTIONS

PLINTH

A simplified mound over relics following a journey of increasing complexity in SCALE /

SYMBOLISM / ARTICULATION

The perfect proportions of
the Buddha’s body are
used in the design of the
proportions of the Stupa.
There are references to five
elements as well.
Stupas with their
plans in Thailand
Tibetan style CHORTENS
The square foundation symbolizes
the EARTH
The steps FIRE
The dome WATER
The Parasol WIND
And the finial ETHEREAL SPACE
uniting the sun and moon, one
signifying the real world and the
other the heavenly one.
SPREAD OF BUDDHIST ARCHITECTURE

260-220 B.C
during Ashoka
and his
followers.
265 B.C. during
Bimbisara / Ashoka

1ST.CEN.CE.during the
Sunga and Kushan
dynasty.
SPREAD OF BUDDIST ARCHITECTURE

11TH.C.CE. with the

epicentre shifting to
Srilanka

1ST.C-10TH.C.CE.during the
Gupta dynasty.
 THE TIBETAN STUPA…

• In the Tibetan school, the shape of

the Stupa represents the figure of the
Buddha crowned and sitting in
meditation posture on a lion throne.
• His crown is the top of the spire
• His head the square at the base of the
spire
• His body is the vase shaped portion
• The legs are represented by the steps
of the base which is the throne.
JOURNEY FROM STUPA…
… TO THE PAGODA
 FROM STUPA TO PAGODA….

PAGODA..places of worship like Stupas, but accessible.

.. Amalgamation of local beliefs, iconography, details etc. that
gave them the diversity.
.. Generally many tiered / storied, always odd in number
..Secular in nature and also stored apart from relics,
manuscripts, soon became parts of precincts.
.. Pavilions are covered but non-walled and meant to be
shaded places of rest and contemplation.
.. Merged aesthetically into the surroundings.
.. Scientifically also acted as lightening rods to attract lightening
and make the edifice a charged space literally and spiritually.
 DIVERSITY OF PAGODAS

Shwedagon-Pano, Myanmar Pagoda on one pillar, Vietnam

 DIVERSITY OF PAGODAS

Horyu, Japan Iron Pagoda, China

 THE JAPANESE TEMPLE

• Traditionally, Japanese religion had no deities,

only worship of spirits in nature and natural
phenomena….mountains, forests, rain, wind…
• These gave life to humans and also took them
and thus must be revered.
• Thus, first objects in nature were worshipped
• Shrines were built to attract the spirits give them
physical space and allow communication with
humans.
• The first worship places were huts to house the
objects that evoked spirits.
• The huts became tiered Pagodas .
ARRIVAL OF BUDDHISM..
The temple precinct
• The shrine becomes permanent, a concept of Buddhism and
built to preserve the relics of Buddha.
• This shrine built in addition to the traditional shrine, is
elaborate and palatial.
• Borrowing of elements like the ‘Torana” or gate, the lions and
dog sculptures on the gates, the prayer halls .
• Local materials..timber and local climate..paper screens
become part of the structure.
• Roof is permanent and elaborate and curved and projecting.
• Halls are flexible with movable paper screens.
• Elements of water and stone- Buddhist elements of Ying-Yang
FEATURES OF A JAPANESE TEMPLE
-Shrine
-Lecture hall
-Living quarters/kitchen
-Gate
-Monasteries
-Bell shaped window
-Covered corridors
-Pagoda
-The important rock garden
FEATURES OF A JAPANESE TEMPLE

TORANA-GATE PAGODA LOTUS SHAPED WINDOW

Stambhas or Lats ….
Stambhas are best known as columns, which were carved with
inscriptions and crowned with emblems, such as the elephant and
lion, often reminiscent of Persepolitan architecture or a Graeco-
Roman type . The origin of these columns are still argued as if an
Indianoriginorpersepolitan type.
Viharas or Monasteries ….
Viharas originally meant "a secluded place in which to
walk", and referred to "dwellings" or "refuges" used by
wandering monks during the rainy season.
In the early decades of In the second century b.c. a standard
Buddhism the wandering plan for a vihara was established. It
monks of the Sangha, dedicated could be either structural, which was
to asceticism and the monastic more common in the south of India, or
life, had no fixed abode. During rock-cut like the chaitya-grihas of the
the rainy season (cf. vassa) they Deccan. It consisted of a walled
stayed in temporary shelters. quadrangular court, flanked by small
These dwellings were simple cells. The front wall was pierced by a
wooden constructions or door, the side facing it in later periods
thatched bamboo huts. often incorporated a shrine for the
image of the Buddha. The cells were
This basic layout was still similar to fitted with rock-cut platforms for beds
that of the communal space of an and pillows. The unwanted rock was
ashrama ringed with huts in the excavated, leaving the carved cave
early decades of Buddhism structure.
 VIHARAS
• Buddha first found patronage in Bimbisara, ruler of Magadha, who accepted
the faith and established many Viharas in the region so much so that the
region came to be known as Bihar…
• Viharas were initially simple wooden thatched constructions, shelters for
the wandering Buddhist monks during monsoons.
• Because it became meritorious to not just feed but shelter monks and offer
them comfort as a token of respect, the Viharas began to become grand
and architecturally rich.
• Locations were always convenient enough to get the food but cut off the
disturbances.
• Later on they also became educational
institutions teaching the religion.
• Some, like the Nalanda became
hugely important Universities.

VIHARA in Pali means dwelling or refuge.

 VIHARAS
• The plan was simple, in the form of small
cells surrounding a central courtyard.
• They could be free standing or rock cut.
• If they were double storied, they had a
colonnade around them for movement.
• Some had a Stupa in the premises.
• Each cell or Vihara had the typical horse
shoe arch with the Charity window.
• The cells were very frugal.
• Verandahs served as transitions between the outermost
spaces and the inner retreats.
• Later Viharas had independent Chapels and sanctuaries
with Stupas and images of Buddha where prayer
could be carried out.
• Ostentatious Viharas had ornamentally pillared halls to
span large spaces.
Ornamentation

Frugal cell bed

 VIHARAS…TIBETAN GOMPAS…
• Gompas are fortified centres of
learning, penance and
monasteries, also universities
located in the regions of India
(Ladakh), Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet etc.
• The designs may vary but basically,
follow a general sacred
geometrical Mandala design of a
central prayer hall, containing a
Buddha statue, benches for the
monks to pray and attached living
quarters.
• They may also contain Stupas.
GOMPAS…
Chaityas or Caves ….
Chaityas were the “sacred spots” ,temples as well as
assembly halls created out of particular demand of Buddhist
religion..
Architecturally they show similarities to Roman design concepts of
column and arch. The monks built many structures which were
carved out of a single massive rock, done with hammer and
chisel, bare hands. These were known as cave temples. About
1200 such cave temples were built throughout India.
The most important are at Karle, Ajanta, Ellora, Udaigiri,
Aurangabad and Nasik. They were rectangular halls, with finely
polished interior walls. There were a number of well proportioned
pillars, generally around 35, and a semi-circular roof. Opposite one
entrance stood a stupa. All the pillars have capitals on them, with
carvings of a kneeling elephant mounted on bell-shaped bases.
 CHAITYA HALLS
• ‘CHAITYA’ means ‘Chita’ …mound
of ashes after the cremation of a
person.
• So, Chaitya is to do with the
mound that covers the ashes of a
saint or relic.
• Halls are monuments within
which lie Stupas. Additionally,
they are places to house
devotees and monks while
praying.
• Many of them are spectacular
despite being deceptively simple FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION….THE
APSIDAL END FOLLOWS THE CURVE
from outside , because the sub- OF THE STUPA.
terannean or cave-like feel added
to the sense of retreat .
CHAITYA HALLS
The earliest Chaitya halls as seen in
Sanchi were free standing.
They were part of the precinct.
They essentially contained a Stupa,
surrounded by a congregation
space, a colonnaded processional
path and enclosed by an outer
wall.
Perhaps the Stupas in the open
did not give the feel of an inner
retreat for prayer in addition to
being inconvenient during rains.

Free standing Chaitya hall at

Lalitgiri
 EVOLUTION OF THE CHAITYA HALLS

• The first Chaitya halls were believed to have been built in a

non-durable material namely bamboo.
• They resembled the humble hut like dwelling of people.
• Even when they became caved, the imitation of the wooden
building continued. The dome above the Stupa is a basket like
wooden support.
 EVOLUTION OF THE CHAITYA HALLS

• The early cave halls at Lomas Rishi and Sudama are in two
artificial caves hewn out of a huge chunk of granite. They had
a rectangular barrel shaped hall with a round house like
structure attached to one side.
 EVOLUTION OF THE CHAITYA HALLS

Rock cut at Bhaja

Brick at Chezarla and stone at
Sanchi.The colonnade around
the Stupa replaced by a wall.
EVOLUTION OF THE CHAITYA HALLS
Elaboration of the
exterior for the first time.
Imitation of the wooden
facades of the urban
dwellings.
Upper stories projected
and multi-tiered galleries
can only be executed in
wood.
CHAITYA HALLS
• The rock cut caves were The interiors show resemblance to the Roman
carved out of a single arch and column.
massive rock with bare The concept of the apse is a Greek prototype.
hands using hammers and
chisels.
• They could be as huge as
40m in length, 15m in
width and went up to
heights of 15m.
• Over time the wall
separating the Stupa from
the hall was removed to
form an apsidal single hall
with a colonnade around
the hall that continued
around the Stupa.
 CHAITYA HALLS
• Scale of the Chaitya halls…
CHAITYA HALLS
The entrance is a demarcation
between the sacred and the
profane is from the longitudinal
side not from the front in the first
few caves like Lomas Rishi but later
from the front.
The entrance was always marked
by the typical horseshoe shaped
charity window.

The barrel shaped roof

carved in from the rock