Early Indian Architecture

HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE - II
BY : Ar. Kiran Patel
Assistant Prof.
Kiad, kalol
 History Background
• "Architecture is that great living creative spirit which from
generation to generation, from age to age, proceeds, persists,
creates, according to the nature of man, and his circumstances
as they change. That is really architecture."
………….. Frank Lloyd Wright
• “Architecture is the matrix of civilization”……....Lethaby

• A study of history of architecture shows that the meaning of

architecture and its relation to human xperiences have been
expressed in number of ways in the past.
• The intellectual and creative development of man manifested
itself in the varied nature of architecture in different ages and
across different civilizations.
• Thus, all over the world, various civilizations and cultures have
contributed greatly to the art of building construction and which
have been revealed in substantial form. (Rowland,1953).
• Every style of building construction reflects a clearly distinctive
basic principle that represents a particular culture and era.
For example, the strict and formulaic building design in Greek
architecture exhibits a sophisticated aptness, whereas the Roman
building design which are impressive even by modern standards, were
based on their advanced technology (Brown, 1942).
(aptness- the quality of being appropriate/suitable/relevant)
Similarly, a uniquely zealous French Gothic signifies a passionate culture
and the Italian Renaissance reflects the artistic scholarship of its time.

• In the same way, the typical quality of early Indian architecture

lies in the expression of spiritual contents through its temple
architecture.
• In India the temples are found everywhere varying from small
villages to the metropolitan cities. The word ‘temple’ is derived
from the Latin word templum means a sacred precinct.
• Temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities,
such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites.
(Analogous - comparable, parallel, similar, like, Related
cognate, equivalent, symmetrical, homologous)
• Traditionally, the temple is a sacred structure and also an
indicative of abode of god or gods. However the Indian temples
are not only the abode of God and place of worship, but they are
also the cradle of knowledge, art, architecture and culture.
• The practices and traditions of temples exist not only in history
but also in present time which greatly influence the socio-
cultural life of its people and gives continuity to traditional Indian
values.
• However, unlike the western architecture, the evolution of Indian
temple architecture is marked by a strict adherence to the
original ancient models that were derived from religious
consideration- and that continued over many centuries with the
use of the basic proportion and rigid forms of the early temples.

• One of the most significant highlights of Indian architecture has

been the evolution of the Hindu temple architecture. The Hindu
temple architecture is distinguishable from the Jain and Buddhist
temple architecture.
 HINDUISM AND ITS RELEVANCE TO ARCHITECTURE

“The temple is the most characteristic artistic expression of Hinduism,

providing a focus for both the social and spiritual life of the
community it serves.”............Goerge Michell
• The main purpose of the early building art in the Indian sub-
continent was the representation of the existing religious
perception of the people in a tangible form.
• Therefore early Indian architecture in the form of various
sacred monuments is essentially a representation of its
religious beliefs.
• The earliest significant known buildings relate to Buddhism
and Jainism.
• The Hindu temples that came to be known for their
ornamental value are also symbolism of Hindu philosophy.
• Hinduism is the oldest and among one of the largest
religious traditions practiced till date. It has flourished for
over 2,000 years in many parts of Asia covering Indian sub-
continent, the peripheral sub-Himalayan valleys and major
parts of south–east Asia.
• It spread as religious, social and political force during this
period. Even though the remnant of Hindu culture are seen
throughout the south-east Asia, India, Nepal and Bali are
most predominantly Hindu.

“Hinduism is not a sole religion, it is the collection of costumes

of various religions which are native and predominant in
India, does not believe in any one philosophic concept or any
single God, thus may be broadly described as a way of life.”
 1. Origin of Hinduism – (The basic concept of Hinduism and its
relevance to the design of Hindu temple architecture. )
• Hinduism has no fixed scriptural canon but its doctrines are
to be found in certain ancient works, notably the Vedas, the
Brahmanas, the Upanishads, and the Bhagavad gita (Baker,
1969).
2. Gods and Cults - The ritual and legalistic side of Brahmanism is
the caste system based .(Brahmins, soldiers, agriculturists, or
servants)
3. Treatises - Ancient scriptures and books in Hinduism , written
in Sanskrit language and categorized as Shruti ("that which is
heard") and Smriti ("that which is remembered").
4. The Temple: Divinity and Man - The ideology behind the
designing of Hindu temples is to link man with the gods.
• Hindu temple is the place where one can feel being close to
god.
• The temple is the symbol of enlightenment.

• 5. Temple and Society - In Hindu culture, temple is not only a

place of worship but they act as a centre for intellectual and
artistic life (Michell,1988).
• The temple complex housed schools, hospitals and courts for
the community. The presence of these activities eventually
gave the people more knowledge about the traditions and
made them appreciate the older practices.
• Temple provided means of livelihood for a large number of
persons and greatly influenced the economic life of the
community
 Indian Temple Architecture
• History Of India

1. Indus valley civilizations

2. Buddhist influence

3. Hindu temples

4. Islamic influence

5. Mughal empire
• In ancient Indian texts, a temple is a place for Tirtha -
pilgrimage .
• The Hindu temple architecture is an open, symmetry driven
structure, with many variations, on a square grid of padas,
depicting perfect geometric shapes such as circles and
squares .
• The architectural principles of Hindu temples in India are
described in Shilpa Shashtras and Vastu Sastras.
• The Hindu culture has encouraged aesthetic independence to
its temple builders, and its architects have sometimes
exercised considerable flexibility in creative expression by
adopting other perfect geometries and mathematical
principles in Mandir construction to express the Hindu way of
life.
The site - Location of Temple
• The appropriate site for a Mandir, suggest ancient Sanskrit
texts, is near water and gardens.
• Major Hindu Mandirs are recommended at sangams
(confluence of rivers), river banks, lakes and seashore,

The layout -
• A Hindu temple design follows a geometrical design
called vastu-purusha-mandala.
• The name is a composite Sanskrit word with three of the most
important components of the plan.
• Mandala means circle, Purusha is universal essence at the
core of Hindu tradition, while Vastu means the dwelling
structure.
• The design lays out a Hindu temple in a symmetrical, self-
repeating structure derived from central beliefs, myths,
cardinality and mathematical principles.

EVOLUTION OF HINDU TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE

• Hindu forms of worship -Evolution of temple form -
meaning, symbolism,
• Ritual and social Importance of temple
• Categories Early shrines of the Gupta and Chalukyan periods
• Tigawa temple
• Ladh Khan and Durga temple -Aihole
• Papanatha, Virupaksha temples -Pattadakal
• Kailasanatha temple - Ellora of temple - Elements of temple
architecture
 Evolution of temple form as per Time Period

Harappan
•Drainage syste
•Rectangular intersecting roads
•Sanitary system
Mauryan
•Monolithic Pillars
•Finely carved capitols – Bull capitol and Sarnath capitol
•Stupas start during this period – 4 gateways
•Surface built with bricks
•Viharas and Chaityas
•Rock Cut Architecture
 Evolution of temple form as per Time Period

Shunga – Satvahanas
· Early classic architecture
· Carved railings and gateways around Buddhist shrines
Kushan
· Sculpture developed
· The emperor himself was a divine authority
· Buddha was first time given a human form during this time
Gupta period
· Beginning of Hindu temples – temple at Deoghar, Udaigiri caves
in Orissa
· Vaishnavite temple in Vidisha
 Evolution of temple form as per Time Period

Chalukyas
• Blend of Aryan and Dravidian style of architecture
Pallavas
· Mandaps, Rathas and finely carved panels and pillars
· Shore temple at Mahabs is a structural temple
· Ratha temple is a rock cut temple
· Kanchipuram also has temples.
Panels depict shiva as Natraja, History of Pallavas
Cholas
· Tanjaur Temple: 65 m tall vimana
· Pillared halls and sculptures depicting Bharata’s natyashastra
· Fine paintings
 Evolution of temple form as per Time Period

Pandyas
· Built high outer walls and gopuram
· Their gopurams can be seen from long distances
Hoysalas
· Belur and Halebeed temples
· Profusion of manifold pillars with rich and intricate carvings
· Panels depict gods and goddesses
Orissa Temples
· Lingraja temple 40 m high
· Sun Temple
 Hindu temples

• The Temple is a holy site (Tirtha), where they practitioners can

perform circumambulation (Pradakshina).
• They also perform the pious act of gazing at the deity (Darsan)
and offering prayers, flowers and food (Puja).
• The temple is never a meeting place for a congregation, but it
came to be a focal point of the community.
• The heart of the temple is the dark hall called Garbha Grha
(womb hall),where the most important icon is placed. It is the
most important area.
• Pillared halls (Mandapa) and porticos were added to the
Garbha Graha, which was surmounted with a tower (Sikhara)-
-center of the universe (axis mundi).
 Hindu temples
• Many varieties: wood, brick, terracotta, and variety of stone
(e.g., schist, chlorite, marble)
• Temples required to be heavily ornamented (things lacking in
ornament were considered imperfect or incomplete.
• Motifs: narrative reliefs, animal motifs, floral and vegetation
motifs.
- Brahma-God of Creator
- Vishnu- God of Preserver (has many incarnations such as
Rama and Krishna)
- Shiva-God of Destroyer (Also the protector of animals)
- Devi - goddess (E.g., Laksmi (“Good Fortune”) and Parvati);
symbolizing beauty, benevolent, and wealth as well as power
and wrath.
Chapter II
 Hindu Temples

•The Hindu temples commonly known as Mandir in Hindi and

derived from the Sanskrit word Mandira, are identified by several
names in different parts of India as koil or kovil in Tamil,
devasthana in Kanada and devalaya, in Telugu etc.

•In general , Hindu temple structure can either be isolated

structure or a part of complex.

•The character of Hindu temples reflected local architecture

styles and the material and skills to which they related.

•The main forms and styles of the Hindu temple were established
during 600-800 AD.
 Beliefs of Hinduism

• There are nine beliefs, which offer a simple summary of Hindu

spirituality. Satguru Sivaya Subramaniyaswami (1993) in Dancing
with Siva explains it as;

1. Vedas : Divinity of the Vedas, the world's most ancient

scriptures. These primordial hymns are God's word and the
bedrock of Sanatana Dharma, the eternal religion which has
neither beginning nor end. (Hymn - A religious song or poem of
praise to God)
2. One Supreme being : Who is both immanent and
transcendent, both creator and Unmanifest Reality.
(Immanent – Fundamental/basic or present Everywhere,
Transcendent – Divine/spiritual , Unmanifest – Unproven )
3. The Universe: The universe undergoes endless cycles of
creation, preservation and dissolution.

4. Karma : The law of cause and effect by which each individual

creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds.
(Bhgvad Gita)

5. The Soul Reincarnates : (having been reborn in another body. -

84 crore birth as per said in ancient scripts.)
Evolving through many births until all karmas have been
resolved, and moksha, spiritual knowledge and liberation
from the cycle of rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be
eternally deprived of this destiny.

6. Divine Beings : Exist In unseen worlds and that the temple

worship, rituals, sacraments as well as personal devotionals
create a communion with these Devas and Gods.
7. Satguru : A spiritually awakened master is essential to know
the Transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good
conduct, purification, pilgrimage, self-inquiry and meditation.

8. Life Is Sacred : All life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and

therefore practice ahimsa, non-injury.

9. Salvation : No particular religion teaches the only way to

salvation above all others, but that all genuine religious paths are
facets of God's Pure Love and Light, deserving tolerance and
understanding.
Elements of Hindu temple

•Sikhara
•Garbhagriha
•Pradakshina patha
•Mandapa
•Antarala
•Ardhamandapa

Some other essential elements :

• Gopurams
• Pitha
• Toranas
• Amalaka
Material of Construction:
• The Indian temples were built with all types of materials
depending upon the availability from region to region.

•The range of material varied from timber to mud, plaster, brick and
stone during all periods and throughout India. The materials play an
important role in the overall appearance, construction
techniques and monumental character of these temples.

• As the earlier structures were fashioned from less durable

materials such as timber, brick and plaster the early examples of
Hindu architecture & Many of the later stone temples were
modelled on wood and bamboo architecture is apparent from the
carvings, roof forms and window shapes.

• The construction of temple in stone is the most distinctive

expression of Hindu architecture.
Evolution of Architectural Styles :
• The distinctive architectural styles of Hindu temples have so
developed due to broad geographical, climatic, cultural, racial,
historical and linguistic differences between the northern plains
and the southern peninsula of India.

• Nagara Dravidian Vesara

History of Northern style Temple : Begins from

• The Guptas and their successors (5th to7th century) and

advanced to Early chalukyas (7th to 8th century),
The Kalingas and Eastern Gangas (8th to 13th century),
The Pratiharas and Chandellas (8thto11th century),
The Maitrakas and the Solankis (8th to13th century),
The Rajputanas (8th to 12th century).

 History of Southern style Temple : Begins from

• Early Chalukyas, and Kalchuris (6th to 8thcentury) and
advanced to the Pallavas (7th to 8th centuries),
The Rashtrakutas (8th to 10th century),
The Cholas (10th to 11th century),
The Hoyshalas and Later Chalukyas (11th to 14th century) and
The Vijayanagas and the Nayakas (15th to 17th century, Brown,1942).
History of Vesara style Temple:

•The Hindu temple construction during the medieval period (6th-

13th centuries) took place on a magnificent scale comparable to the
building of churches and cathedrals in the medieval Europe.

•Hindu temple architecture reached to its final form by combining

influences from both the Northern and Southern India and
probably also from the cultures of invaders who continued to
enter India from the north- west during this period (Michell, 1988).
 The Geometry of Hindu Temple
Vastu-purusa mandala
• A myth explains the symbolic diagram (mandala): the gods in
seeking to impose order on chaos, forced the primeval man,Purusa,
into a square grid, the vastu-purusa mandala, whose basic unit is
the square pada.
•The temple is a link between the physical world of man and divine
world of God. And to connect them, the plan of cosmos were
graphically copied in the foundation of the temples called as the
Vastupurashamandala.
•The Hindu architecture, religious or vernacular, in the ancient
times were based on the geometry of the Vastupurashamandala

The Concept: - Vastupurashamandala

•The Hindu philosophy was among the first to relate the human
figure as the basis of a system of proportion, which was years later
demonstrated by Leonardo da Vinci and by Le Corbusier in
Modular system of measurement. In Hindu philosophy the form of
the purasha (human) body was made to suit the abstract idea of
the square, as the supreme geometric form (Groover,1980).
 The Vitruviun Man,(Source:www.boloji.com),

The Modulur,(Source: www. mypages.surrey.ac.uk),

•The basic form of the Vastupurashamandala is the square and

square is the important and ideal geometric form in Hindu
philosophy, which represents the earth.
•All the necessary forms like the triangle, hexagon, octogan and
circle, etc can be derived from the square.
•The four sides of the square represent the four cardinal directions.

• The square also symbolizes the order, the completeness of endless

life and the perfectness of life and death.

•According to Hindu beliefs, man’s everyday life is also governed by

the number four as in four classes(varnas), four phase of life, four
great eras, four head of Brahma(the creator God), the four Vedas,
etc.
• Similarly, the circle represents the universe and is considered as the
perfect shape, without any beginning and end, suggesting
timelessness and infinity, a typically heavenly
feature.
• Hindu temple is the dwelling of the gods. It is based on the grid
systems of 64 (8x8) and 81 (9x9) squares.
• Square is the prefect shape for the ground plan.
• Priests perform ritual of consecrations which connect between
sexual rites and fertility in Hindu architecture.
PRINCIPAL ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES OF A TEMPLE
 PRINCIPAL ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES OF A TEMPLE

• Earlier temples of the period had a flat slab roof, often

Monolithic , but the later temples in brick and stone developed
a Shikhara.
Shikhara – Four sided Pyramid
with receding tiers mounted over
the inner sanctaury where the
deity is placed.
 DEFFERENT TYPES OF TEMPLE STYLE

• According to the various architectural texts written in early

medieval times, temple architecture can be broadly classified as
Nagara, Dravida and Vesara.(Mix Style)

1. Nagara style - is associated with the land Between the

himalayas and vindhyas.
2.Dravida style - with the land between the Krishna and kaveri
rivers.
3. Vesara style - is sometimes associated with the area between
the vindhyas and the Krishna river.