Architecture in Miscellaneous treatises

The works on royal polity deal with architectural matters in a more than casual way. The Kautiliya Artha-sastra, for instance, devotes some seven chapters to the subject, containing a large number of structural details. There are interesting descriptions of forts, fortified cities, town-planning, and military and residential buildings." The Sukra-niti deals with both architectural and sculptural objects. Rules and structural details are given together with interesting descriptions of forts and fortified towns, of temples and other kinds of buildings, and of various sorts of images.³ In this treatise sculptural details are more numerous in some respects than even in the Silpa-sastras. Repair of broken images, for instance, is an important matter in sculpture, which has been dealt with in detail in this treatise. Another important contribution made by the Sukra-niti to the Silpa-sastras is the 1 patala (Chapter) 28-- uttamadagatalavidhih | 2 Chapter 22 - - janapada nivesa | 23-bhumicchidra vidhana | 23 - bhumicchidravidhana | 24 - durgavidhana | 5- durganivesa | The last two deal with the laying out of fortified towns and forts. 65--JF, grhavastuka (residential and military buildings). 66 vastuvikraya, simavivada, maryadasthapana, etc. For full details, see the writer's Encyclopaedia under Durga, Nagara, and Grama. 3 Chapter IV, Section 4: (1) eufruithe construction of temples and other kinds of buildings. For details of royal palaces, see the concluding portion of Chapter 1. (2) carving images in general. (3) affarenhe images of the riding animals of deities. (4) ganapatimurtinirmanavyavastha -- the image of Ganapati. (5) images of the female deities. (6) anafine_images of Bala (child Krishna). (7) saptataladimurtibhedasya nirmanavyavastha -- the images measured in the seven (sapta) and other tala measurements. (4) paisacimurtiniganavyavastha - the images of the demonesses. 2 (5) bhagnapratimasthapanavyavastha - the repair of the damaged images. (10) 3749841|--Festival in connexion with installation of images. Section 6- (11) gif-the construction of forts (and fortified towns). For full details, see the writer's Encyclopaedia under Talamana. 92

description of the seven-tala measures which are generally applicable, both in India and the West, to well-proportioned human figures only. Avowedly historical works are not numerous in Sanskrit. Of the two treatises, one is concerned with the reign of a single king, and the other with the events of a country, covering many reigns. In both these treatises architecture has been given its already well-recognized place. The Harsha-charita is a history of Harshavardhana of Kanauj, during whose reign the famous Chinese traveller Hieun Tsang visited India. In this history it is stated that the palace had, besides the harem, always more than three courtyards; the outer one being for people and for state reception, the next inner one for chiefs or nobles, and the third one for intimate persons only. The palaces were stately buildings, though not of stone. The floors, however, are described as made of shining stones. The columns and walls were ornamented with gold and even precious stones. There was usually a several-storeyed building with inner gardens of flower-beds and large fruit trees." Mention is made also of detached buildings like the mandapas or pavilions for the purposes of sabha (council hall), satra (inn), prapa (water sheds), and pragvamsa (an auxiliary shed to a sacrificial room).2 The useful articles of house furniture, such as thrones (simhasana), couches (sayana), and asandi, meaning chairs, are also described.³ The Raja-tarangini of Kalhana, dealing with the history of Kashmir, refers frequently to architectural objects like castles (bana-sala),ª monumental buildings (chaitya), and monasteries (viharas)." But in these references very few structural details are to be met with. The references of Kalhana to temples and other buildings also generally lack constructive details.? But interesting structural details. of some shrines merely referred to in Kalhana's work are elaborated 1 History of Medieval India, Vaidya, p. 152. See Harsha-charita, p. 215-216, description of the palace of Prabhakara Vardhana of Thanesvara. 2 Harsha-charita, p. 176. bahiruparacitavikatasabhasatrapragvamsamandapah prasutagave gramah | See also ibid, p. 137. 3 H. C., p. 103, ibid, 153. I, 103, 170; III, 380, 381; IV, 200, 204. 4 VIII, 1666. * I, 93, 94, 98, 103, 140-144, 146, 147, 169, 199, 200; III, 9, 11, 13, 14, 355, 380, 464, 476; IV, 79, 184, 188, 200, 210, 215, 216, 262, 507; VI, 171, 175, 303; VII, 696, 1336; VIII, 246, 248, 2402, 2410, 2417, 2431, 2433, 3343, 3352, 3353: 7 Compare, e.g., the Sarada temple (I, 37); Sarada-sthana (VIII, 2556, 2706), etc. 93

CLASSICAL ARCHITECTURE HINDU ARCHITECTURE IN by Major C. R. Bates in the Gazetteer of Kashmir¹ and have been given in a note by Sir M. A. Stein.2 The astrological and astronomical treatises frequently refer to architectural topics, especially those bearing upon auspicious times. In a pamphlet of this class twenty-one things are stated to be observed in connexion with building a house.³ A famous astronomical treatise, the Garga-samhita, deals with a large number of purely architectural subjects, such as the courts, compounds, compartments, rooms, dimensions, and location of doors.4 The more authoritative works like the Surya-siddhanta, the Siddhanta-Siromani, 6 and the Lilavati deal exhaustively with a very 1 P. 339- • " • 2. The temple is approached from the lower slope of the hill by an imposing stone staircase which leads up in sixty-three steps to the main entrance of the quadrangular court enclosing the temple. It is about 10 feet wide and rises rather steeply between two flanking walls of massive construction, broken in six steps or flights. The entrance to the court is through a gateway, provided with the usual double porch of Kasmirian architecture.' 'The temple, which occupies the centre of the quadrangle, forms a square cella conforming in plan and elevation to the usual features of Kasmir architecture. It is raised on a basement 24 feet square and 5 feet 3 inches high. The walls of the cella proper recede about 2 feet from the edge of the basement. They are adorned on the north, east and south by trefoil arches and supporting pilasters both projecting in relievo. Below these arches are small trefoil-headed niches covered by double pediments.' " • * The entrance to the interior of the cella is approached by stairs 5 feet wide with flanking side walls. There is an open portico in front of the door projecting about 4 feet beyond the pilasters on each side of the doorway. It is supported on the outside by two pillars . . . The interior of the cella forms a square of 12 feet 3 inches, and has no decoration of any kind.' -(Kalhana's Rajatarangini, Vol. II, notes, p. 283 fol.). 8 ayarasisca naksatram vyayastaramsakastatha | grahamamtri rasimamtri natibhedaganendavah || adhipatyam varalagna tithyutpattistathaiva ca | adhipatyam vargaveram tathaiva yonivarakam || rksavairam sthitinaso laksananyakavimsatih | kathitani munisresthaih silpavidhirgrhadipa || || -(Laghu-Silpa-jyotih-sara, 3-5). The manuscript in the Trinity College, Cambridge, is in a mutilated condition. The contents of the first and second chapters, fols. 67-68, are almost illegible. The following are a little better : (i) vastuvidyayam caturbhagavibhagapratibhagavidhih (fol. Goa ). (ii) gargiyayam vastuvidyayam catuhsaladvitrisalaikasalavidhih (fol. 6 oa). (iii) af: (Chap. 3, fols. 57 a and 68 b). dvarapramanavidhih (fol. 57 b). dvarastambhocchrayah (fol. 6 ob ). (iv) : (fol. 68 b). 5 Chapter III, 1-4. 6 Chapter VII 36-49. 7 Part II, Chapter 11, section vii. 94

technical matter bearing upon architecture, namely, the description of gnomons which were used for finding out cardinal points. The subject is architecturally very important, inasmuch as it refers to the orientation of buildings.¹ The poetical works of Magha, Kalidasa, Bhavabhuti, and others refer occasionally to architectural matters. In the Sisupalavadha, the sea-side city of Dvaraka, and the assembly halls and palaces of Yudhishthira and Krishna are described at length; the ornaments for the body and weapons, cars and chariots are also referred to.2 In the Vikramorvasiya, for instance, mention is made of a flight of stairs made like the waves of the Ganges; in the Meghaduta a market-place in Visala and the city of Alaka are elaborately described.³ The Uttara-Rama-charita refers to an architecturally important matter, namely, cement which is specially described in some Silpa-sastras. In the same work Nala, the son of the heavenly architect Visvakarman, is mentioned as an engineer who built the bridge joining India with Ceylon.5 6 4 Of this class of works, the Mrichchhakatika, which deals with the ordinary affairs of wordly people, refers very frequently to architectural matters which are two numerous to be included here. A very interesting description of the gateway and as many as eight courtyards into which the whole compound is divided is given in the fourth act. 1 Compare the writer's Encyclopaedia under Sanku, and for full details, see pp. 100-101. *2 III, 33-64, XIII, 51-63, II, 4-5, III, 2-11, 17-23, 27-28. 3 gagatarangasphatikamanisopana, see also maniharmya (Vikramorvasiya, Kale's ed. 18 g 8, Act III, p. 73) ; Meghaduta, I, 33-34 ; II ; 1-22. 4, Act III, preceding verse 40. 6 Act III, verse 45. Compare the Ramayana Chapter 22, verses 41-42. In the Manasara also Nala is mentioned as an architect, see Manasara, Chapter II. 8 Act I, , threshold (verse 17); side entrance (38; also II, 83 ; V, 129; VI, 209, 211, etc.); courtyard (39); c dovecot on the top palace (52; VIII, 282, 283; IX, 347, 349, 35º, 351). Act II, 117). merchant quarters (88, 136); af, outer hall (101, Madagas, inner court (107, 108, 109; VI, 204). pakvestaka, amestaka, baked and unbaked brick ( 111 ) . Act V,, fence (177); Mazafcht, roof of the garden-house (177). Act VI,, main gate (216). Act IX, court of justice (289, 291). 3/4 3/4¶¶¶¶¶, court of justice (289, 302, 305, 307, 320, etc.). gafara, grass lawn (291). 95

CLASSICAL ARCHITECTURE HINDU ARCHITECTURE IN This description is full of further architectural details. This reference is specially important owing to the fact that in the Manasara, as well as the Puranas and the Agamas, the compound, however big it may be, is divided into not more than five courts, the fourth of which is technically called Prakara in the Manasara. The construction of the play-house is referred to in the Natya-satra on dramaturgy, and several other texts on dancing, singing, and instrumental music. The Natya-sastra of Bharata describes in great detail the stage proper and the auditorium. The audience-house, as it is designated, admits of three varieties, namely, the circular or semi-circular, quadrangular, and triangular pavilions. There is also given a similar account of the stage proper. On the two sides of it an entablature is raised over four pillars and green-rooms at the back and sides, and the platforms or theatre proper at the front are erected upon a higher level than the auditorium. Two of these three types of theatres have been referred to in the Vishnudharmottara. The Sangita-makaranda² of Narada supplies an account of an unspecified type of the stage and the auditorium. The Sangita-Ratnakara of Nihsanka-Sarngadeva³ describes the auditorium alone. Traces of an advanced state of architecture are found also in works like grammars and lexicons. Yaska in his Nirukta mentions several words which can be used for masonry houses only. In the later lexicons, like the Amarakosha, lists of several architectural terms are met with. Derivations of words like bhaskara, sculptor; ishtaka, brick stambha, pillar; attalika, edifices, are found in Panini's grammar. They no doubt imply the existence of brick and stone buildings in those times.❝ 1 Chapter II, 7, 8, 25. 2 V. 2-9. 3 VII, 1351-61. 4 R. L. Mitra, Indo-Aryans, I, 25-26. 5 Amarakosha, section on towns and houses (Chapter II, section ii, named puravarga, verses 1-2; pages 116-126, ed. Sivadatta, Bombay, 1915). 6 Mitra, ibid, I, 19. 96