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1. Temple Architecture: Basics
Sachin Kr. Tiwary

2. House of Heavenly Divine
मन्दिर+द्वार िेव+आलय=िेवालय Temple/Shrine प्रासाद+देवरा/देव-स्थल
Nomenclature/Terminology
मंदिर मंदिर प्रति करर सोधा। देखे जहँ िहँ अगतिि जोधा।।
गयउ दसािि मंदिर माह ीं।अति बिचित्र कहह जाि सो िाह ीं।।
सयि ककए देखा कपि िेह । मंदिर महँ ि द खख िैदेह ।।
भवि एक िति द ख सहावा। हरर मंदिर िहँ भभन्ि ििावा।।
Hanumanji searched each & every palace in Lanka
& then he entered Ravana’s palace, but even there
he could not find Sita. Further, he spotted a
beautiful temple, which was surrounded by many
tulsi plants & inside was the carving of the bow &
arrow of Shri Ram. Seeing this, Kapiraj Hanuman
was very happy, but thought to himself that in
Lanka, where only demons lived, who could have
made Shri Ram’s temple. ।।4।।
सुदिर काण्ड
श्रीरामिररिमािस
a place that is important to
a particular person or group
of people for religious
reasons or because it is
connected with a special
person.
पवभिष्ट व्यक्ति या सामाक्जक
वगग के भलए, धाभमगक कारणों
से या व्यक्ति-पविेष से
सींिींचधि होिे के कारण
महत्विूणग कोई स्थल, मींहदर,
िूजास्थल, मक़िरा, समाचध

3. Rock cut Caves
temples
Wooden
(Temporary &
Permanent)- Stone
Structural temples
Monolithic
Temples
Masroor Cave Temples, Himachal Pradesh
युगानुसार
क्षेत्रानुसार

4. Medium of
Temple
Construction
Stone
Brick
Stone +
Brick
Wooden

5. Antiquity of Devaalaya

6. 1. Sohgaura Copper Plate, 3rd century BCE
2. Lumbini Cave, Mauryan
3. Tulja Lena of Chaitya Cave plan and elevation, 50 BCE
1 2
3

7. Remains of the circular Bairat Temple, Rajasthan c. 250 BCE. A stupa was located in the center.

8. Apsidal Temple

9. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4128336?seq=1
Plan of an apsidal temple at Nagarjunakonda

10. Plan of an apsidal temple at Udayagiri and Sanchi

11. Early Literary Sources:
1. िृहत्सींहहिा वाराहभमहहर- ६ठी ििाब्द सीं- 20 Variety of Temples
2. मत्स्य िराण
3. भपवष्य िराण
4. दक्षिण के िारायण िींिूहदर िाि- देवालय िींहिका'
5. 'लिण सार समच्िय‘
6. समरांगणसूत्रधार - धार के िरमार राजा भोज (1000–1055 ई)-
सूत्रधार मींडि - 'प्रासादमण्डिम ्‘
7. पवश्वकमगप्रकाि वास्ििास्त्रम्- महपषग अभय कात्यायि – 1946
8. सप्रभेदागम- ग्रीवमारभ्य िाष्टाश्रीं पवमािीं िापवडाख्यकम्।
(सप्रभेद. 1, 31, 40)
9. करणागम: वेहद प्रभृति िाष्टाश्रीं िापवडीं िेति कीतिगििम्। (करण.
1, 7, 117)
10.सित्कमार वास्ििास्त्र
11.वास्िमण्डि
12.ब्रह्मिराण (मख्यिः वास्ििास्त्र)
13.मािसार भिल्ििास्त्र
14.दििल न्याग्रोध िररमण्डल
15.िम्भद्भापषि प्रतिमालिण पववरणम्
16.मयमिम् (मयासर द्वारा रचिि, कल ३६ अध्याय, ३३०० से
अचधक श्लोक)
17.वास्िकमगप्रकािम्
शिल्परत्न- श्रीकमार 16th century CE=
हहमालय से लेकर पवींध्यािल िक साक्त्वक गणों के िागर,
पवींध्यािल से लेकर कृ ष्णा िक राजस गणों के िापवड रर
कृ ष्णा से लेकर कन्यान्ि िक िामस गणों वाले वेसर िैल
के प्रासादों के तिमागण की िरींिरा रह है –
नागरं सान्त्वके िेिे राजसे द्राववडं भवेत्।
वेसरं तामसे िेिे क्रमेण पररकीततता:।।

12. Samarangana Sutradhara (11th Cen. CE)
1. Nagara/North Indian (Between Himalaya to Vindhya)
2. Dravid/South India (Between River Krishna to Kanyakumari)
3. Varata/Vesara/Chalukyan/Karnati (Between Vindhya to Krishna River)

13. Characteristics of Nagara
Temple style
Acc. to Kamika Agama (काभमकागम)
One of the longest Agamas followed by
most of the temples in South India.
And
Mayamata (मयमि) (1000 CE) of Mayamuni
dealing with the “science of architecture”
(vāstuvidyā). South Indian texts-
Plan- Square Plane with a number of graduated
projections in the middle of each side on the
exterior.
Cuneiform Shape, Chaturasara and Ayaataasra
Elevation- 08 Constituent parts-
Mula (root)-Masuraka (Plinth)-Jangha (wall)-
Kapota (cornice)-Superstructure Tower
(Curvilinear) with local features, vertical planes
(ratha-3,5,7,9)- gala (neck)- amalasaraka –
Kumbha with sula

14. Nagara
•Nagara is the style of temple architecture which became
popular in Northern India.
•It is common here to build an entire temple on a stone
platform with steps leading up to it.
•Earliest temples had only one shikhara (tower), but in the
later periods, multiple shikharas came.
•The garbhagriha is always located directly under the tallest
tower.

17. Dravida
• Dravida temple is enclosed within a compound wall.
•The front wall has an entrance gateway in its centre, which is known as Gopura/ Gopuram.
•The shape of the main temple tower is known as Vimana (shikhara in nagara style).
•The vimana is like a stepped pyramid that rises up geometrically rather than the curving shikhara of north India.
•In south India, the word Shikhara is used only for the crowning element at the top of the temple which is usually
shaped like a small stupika or an octagonal cupola (this is equivalent to the amalaka or kalasha of north Indian
temples).
•In north Indian temples, we can see images such as Mithunas (erotic) and the river goddesses, Ganga and Yamuna
guarding the temple. But in the Dravida style of temple architecture, instead of these sculptures, we can see the
sculptures of fierce dvarapalas or door keepers guarding the temple.
•A large water reservoir or a temple tank enclosed in the complex is general in south Indian temples.
•Subsidiary shrines are either incorporated within the main temple tower or located as a distinct, separate small shrine
beside the main temple.
•The north Indian idea of multiple shikharas rising together as a cluster was not popular in Dravida style.
•At some of the most sacred temples in south India, the main temple in which the garbhagriha is situated has, in fact,
one of the smallest towers.
•This is because it is usually the oldest part of the temple.
•When the population and the size of the town associated with the temple increased, it would have become necessary
to make a new boundary wall around the temple (and also associated structures).
•An example for this is the Srirangam temple at Thiruchirapally, which has as many as seven concentric rectangular
enclosure walls, each with gopurams.

20. •Just as the nagara architecture has subdivisions, dravida temples also have subdivisions. These are basically of five
different shapes:
1.Kuta or caturasra – square
2.Shala or ayatasra – rectangular
3.Gaja-prishta or vrittayata (elephant backed) –elliptic
4.Vritta – circular
5.Ashtasra – octagonal

22. Vesara
•The buildings in the Deccan region are hybridized style, which contains both elements from nagara
and Dravida architectural styles and is known in some ancient texts as the Vesara style.
•The vesara style became popular after the mid 7th century CE.
•-The temple height was reduced.
-The Vesara style also called the Chalukyan type possessed the Dravidian vimana and the Nagara- type faceted walls.
Most of the temples were contracted by the Rashtrakuta, Hoysala and Chalukya rulers.

23. Examples:
Chalukyas
1. Ravan Phadi cave, Aihole, Karnataka
2. Lad Khan Temple at Aihole, Karnataka
3. Durga Temple at Aihole, Karnataka
4. Temples at Pattadakkal, Karnataka
Rashtrakutas
•Their greatest achievement in architecture is the Kailasnath Temple at Ellora.
•The Jain temple at Pattadakkal was also built by Rashtrakutas.
Hoyasalas
•With the waning Chola and Pandya power, the Hoyasalas of Karnataka grew into prominence in south India and became the most
important patrons centred at Mysore.
•The three main temples of Hoyasala are the temples at Belur, Halebid and Somanathpuram.
•The most characteristic feature of these temples is that they grow extremely complex with so many projecting angles emerging from
the previously straightforward square temple so that the plan of these temples starts looking like a star. As the plan looks like a
star, it is known as stellate plan.
•They are usually made out of soapstone.
Vijayanagara
•The Vijayanagara Empire, which was founded in the 14th century, attracted a number of international travelers such as the
Italian, Nicoclo di Conti, the Portuguese Domingo Paes, Fernao Nuniz and Duarte Barbosa and the Afghan Abd, al- Razzaq, who
have left vivid accounts of the city.
•Architecturally, Vijayanagara synthesizes the centuries old dravida temple architecture with Islamic styles demonstrated by the
neighbouring Sultanates.

31. Any Question ?https://archive.org/details/historyofindiana030585mbp/page/
n15/mode/2up
https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.70188