07-09-2008, 10:17 PM
Dear HH and Bodhi,
Another interesting building must be the garden palace of Raja Bhoja in Agra, not far from the Badalgarha Fort (Lal Haveli or Red Fort).
<i>.... Again as bearing on the other side of the argument I have now to mention that, on the right bank of the river about 5 miles above the fort there is the site of an ancient garden palace called the garden and palace of Raja Bhoj. Certain intelligent educated Hindus in Agra say that it is traditionally held to have been a palace of the Raja Bhoj of Malwa of the 5th "to 6th centure; but at any rate all agree as to the fact that this garden palace of Raja Bhoj was in existence previous to the Muhammadan conquest of this part of the country.</i>(Archaeological Survey of India. Report for the year 1871-72, part 2 Agra by A.C.L.Carlleyle. page 4.)
One interesting piece of information on palaces of Ujjain, may be extracted from the Mrcchakatikam describing the Palace of Vasantasenâ with 8 courts.
Even though it is from a literary work, perhaps the poet had a real palace of Ujain in mind.
There is a lot of information in the Matsya Purana, Brhat Sa]mhita and the Shilpa/Vastushastras (like Vishvakarmaprakasha, Samaranganasutradhara). After enumerating 18 predecessor in chapter 253 (grhamana-nirnaya), the Matsya gives information about the Devalayas and Nrpalayas based about the shalas it has, like Ekashala, Dvishala, Trishala, Catuhshala (Pancayatana type, sarvatobhadra type), in chapter 269 (Mandapa-lakshana) it gives information about 22 types of temples, like Meru, Kailasha, Vimana, Hamsa, Caturashra (square) and Ashtashra (octagon), etc. Chapter 270 describes the various types of Mandapa, like Trikona, Catushkona, Ashtakona, Vrtta (circular), etc.
Chapter 254 (Stambhamana-nirnaya) information is given about the 5 types of Stambhas or pillars or towers: Rucaka (4 sides), Vajra (octagon), Dvivajra (16 sides), Pratinaka (32 sides) and Vrtta (circular)
One interesting point in the Gupta Age work, is the Garbhamana measurement: Ashtapada/Padashta or 8 squares around the central Pada for the Brahmasthana and Murtti or Linga. This is exactly what is later called the Hasht Bihisht concept in Mughal and Safavid architecture of the 16th/17th century. (late 16th c. Humayun Rauza, middle 17th c. Taj Mahal and late 17th c. Hasht Behesht in Iran).
What makes it more interesting, is when the Garbhamana measurement is applied to a Navaranga Prasada (having 8 Angas: 4 Karna-shalas in the corners and 4 Mukha-shalas in the 4 cardinal directions), consisting of 16 supporting pillars )Solah Vedi), in each corner a pillar. This is in a Caturashra Chatuhshala Prasada. (Humayun's Rauza and the Hasht Behesht palace have this concept) But if we take an Ashtashra Prasada, we get a Barah-khamba. The 4 corner pillars in the 4 outer Padas are left out. These 4 pillars may be backprojected to the corners of the Jagati or platform, giving the 4 Maha-Stambhas. (The Taj has this concept)
A Navaranga Prasada is rather a Barahdari, but both Hasht Bihisht buildings in Delhi and Agra are rather being used as tombs.
Four Maha-Stambhas around a Sanctum both on a raised platform, are first met with in the Bauddha Mandala concept of Stupas. An stylistical miniature example: Model of a stupa (Buddhist shrine), ca. 4th century, Pakistan, ancient region of Gandhara, Bronze; H. 22 3/4 in. (57.8 cm), W. 7 1/2 in. (19.1 cm). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Donald J. Bruckmann, 1985 (1985.387ab)
Another, also of Gandhara, 2nd century CE, has 4 lion-crowned Stambhas surrounding the Stupa. http://spach.info/documentation/newsletter...Mayy%201999.pdf
Minarets attached to Mosques was a later development. Round minarets were even much later, the origins of which were in the east, Bauddha, Jaina, Vaishnava and Shaiva Stambhas placed close to their Sanctums. The first converted Sanctums + Stambhas by the Muslims was in Afghanistan:
In Pharos (1909), his fundamental monograph on towers, H. THIERSCH remarked:
<i>''The Islamic countries of the East are characterized by minarets⦠which are circular in plan and cylindrical or conical in elevation. The origin of this round minaret remains in the darkâ¦. Not the tower of Samarra, and less even the one of Delhi, can be considered the sourceâ¦
The originâ¦. Must be looked for in other regions and in older times⦠in those borderlands between India and Persia which today form part of Afghanistan. Here we find the oldest cylindrical towers I know⦠it is certainly not proof, but a welcome indication⦠of their congeniality with mosque towers that the local Muslims call them ''minar''.</i>
[Thiersch has here the complex formed Qutb Minar in mind]
Today there is only a reference to two major (Nâgara and Drâvida) and
one major hybrid style (Vesara), and some local varieties. But these three grand stles are actually named after their places of origin: Drâvida in southern India, Vesara in Karnataka and Nâgara is originally a Gujarati style (spread by the Chalukyas from Gujarat to Orissa). The last spread also to the north. But where is the real North-Indian style, with local northwestern, Sindhi, Rajasthani, Haryanvi and Pracya substyles? Do we have to look for them in converted and ruined Devalayas and Nrpalayas from the Sindhu to the Brahmaputra?
Another interesting building must be the garden palace of Raja Bhoja in Agra, not far from the Badalgarha Fort (Lal Haveli or Red Fort).
<i>.... Again as bearing on the other side of the argument I have now to mention that, on the right bank of the river about 5 miles above the fort there is the site of an ancient garden palace called the garden and palace of Raja Bhoj. Certain intelligent educated Hindus in Agra say that it is traditionally held to have been a palace of the Raja Bhoj of Malwa of the 5th "to 6th centure; but at any rate all agree as to the fact that this garden palace of Raja Bhoj was in existence previous to the Muhammadan conquest of this part of the country.</i>(Archaeological Survey of India. Report for the year 1871-72, part 2 Agra by A.C.L.Carlleyle. page 4.)
One interesting piece of information on palaces of Ujjain, may be extracted from the Mrcchakatikam describing the Palace of Vasantasenâ with 8 courts.
Even though it is from a literary work, perhaps the poet had a real palace of Ujain in mind.
There is a lot of information in the Matsya Purana, Brhat Sa]mhita and the Shilpa/Vastushastras (like Vishvakarmaprakasha, Samaranganasutradhara). After enumerating 18 predecessor in chapter 253 (grhamana-nirnaya), the Matsya gives information about the Devalayas and Nrpalayas based about the shalas it has, like Ekashala, Dvishala, Trishala, Catuhshala (Pancayatana type, sarvatobhadra type), in chapter 269 (Mandapa-lakshana) it gives information about 22 types of temples, like Meru, Kailasha, Vimana, Hamsa, Caturashra (square) and Ashtashra (octagon), etc. Chapter 270 describes the various types of Mandapa, like Trikona, Catushkona, Ashtakona, Vrtta (circular), etc.
Chapter 254 (Stambhamana-nirnaya) information is given about the 5 types of Stambhas or pillars or towers: Rucaka (4 sides), Vajra (octagon), Dvivajra (16 sides), Pratinaka (32 sides) and Vrtta (circular)
One interesting point in the Gupta Age work, is the Garbhamana measurement: Ashtapada/Padashta or 8 squares around the central Pada for the Brahmasthana and Murtti or Linga. This is exactly what is later called the Hasht Bihisht concept in Mughal and Safavid architecture of the 16th/17th century. (late 16th c. Humayun Rauza, middle 17th c. Taj Mahal and late 17th c. Hasht Behesht in Iran).
What makes it more interesting, is when the Garbhamana measurement is applied to a Navaranga Prasada (having 8 Angas: 4 Karna-shalas in the corners and 4 Mukha-shalas in the 4 cardinal directions), consisting of 16 supporting pillars )Solah Vedi), in each corner a pillar. This is in a Caturashra Chatuhshala Prasada. (Humayun's Rauza and the Hasht Behesht palace have this concept) But if we take an Ashtashra Prasada, we get a Barah-khamba. The 4 corner pillars in the 4 outer Padas are left out. These 4 pillars may be backprojected to the corners of the Jagati or platform, giving the 4 Maha-Stambhas. (The Taj has this concept)
A Navaranga Prasada is rather a Barahdari, but both Hasht Bihisht buildings in Delhi and Agra are rather being used as tombs.
Four Maha-Stambhas around a Sanctum both on a raised platform, are first met with in the Bauddha Mandala concept of Stupas. An stylistical miniature example: Model of a stupa (Buddhist shrine), ca. 4th century, Pakistan, ancient region of Gandhara, Bronze; H. 22 3/4 in. (57.8 cm), W. 7 1/2 in. (19.1 cm). Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Donald J. Bruckmann, 1985 (1985.387ab)
Another, also of Gandhara, 2nd century CE, has 4 lion-crowned Stambhas surrounding the Stupa. http://spach.info/documentation/newsletter...Mayy%201999.pdf
Minarets attached to Mosques was a later development. Round minarets were even much later, the origins of which were in the east, Bauddha, Jaina, Vaishnava and Shaiva Stambhas placed close to their Sanctums. The first converted Sanctums + Stambhas by the Muslims was in Afghanistan:
In Pharos (1909), his fundamental monograph on towers, H. THIERSCH remarked:
<i>''The Islamic countries of the East are characterized by minarets⦠which are circular in plan and cylindrical or conical in elevation. The origin of this round minaret remains in the darkâ¦. Not the tower of Samarra, and less even the one of Delhi, can be considered the sourceâ¦
The originâ¦. Must be looked for in other regions and in older times⦠in those borderlands between India and Persia which today form part of Afghanistan. Here we find the oldest cylindrical towers I know⦠it is certainly not proof, but a welcome indication⦠of their congeniality with mosque towers that the local Muslims call them ''minar''.</i>
[Thiersch has here the complex formed Qutb Minar in mind]
Today there is only a reference to two major (Nâgara and Drâvida) and
one major hybrid style (Vesara), and some local varieties. But these three grand stles are actually named after their places of origin: Drâvida in southern India, Vesara in Karnataka and Nâgara is originally a Gujarati style (spread by the Chalukyas from Gujarat to Orissa). The last spread also to the north. But where is the real North-Indian style, with local northwestern, Sindhi, Rajasthani, Haryanvi and Pracya substyles? Do we have to look for them in converted and ruined Devalayas and Nrpalayas from the Sindhu to the Brahmaputra?