A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism Klaus K Klostermaie

25 ardhanärï
The Lak•mï Näräyaæa Temple,
New Delhi: Built in the
20th century by the wealthy Birla family
(it is also known as ‘Birla-Temple’),
it uses the canons of architecture
determined in the ancient
Hindu Ÿilpa-ÿästras.
of stüpas, caityas and caves (often richly
ornamented and provided with architectural
embellishments) in all probability
made use of older Hindu models.
Hindu TEMPLE architecture came
into its own during the GUPTA renaissance.
Around 400 CE the first brick or
stone temples appeared, built according
to a Roman–Syrian model: a cubicle
housing the IMAGE of the deity, a portico
for the worshippers in front of it, surrounded
by a gallery supported by pillars,
with a flat roof, and surrounded by
a terrace. Later on, typical Indian
(Hindu) models of temple architecture
developed, which for convenience may
be classified into Northern, Eastern and
Southern.
The Northern or nägara style is characterized
by a fairly tall and steep
ÿikhara (steeple) on top of the garbhagøha
(the cella where the image of the
deity is housed). The porch in front of it
serves as a kind of audience hall for the
worshippers. They come individually
and circumambulate the image in a
clockwise direction. The Eastern or vessara
style features a more rounded
tower and often a more elaborate set of
buildings, including a hall for performing
musicians and dancers. The Southern or
dräviõa style is characterized by multistoreyed
gopuras, towering structures
over the entrance gates to the temple
complex: the sanctuary itself is usually a
fairly low and unobtrusive structure,
housing only the image of the deity. The
temple complex usually contains a number
of additional buildings, a tank and
other facilities. In South India especially
temples developed into veritable holy
cities, often built in concentric rectangles,
each with its own specific function in
the whole.
The architect enjoyed high prestige
and was expected to be an all-round
expert: not only had he to draw up the
plans for the buildings according to traditional
specifications, he had to oversee
the procurement of suitable materials,
to supervise the day-to-day activities
and to sculpt the main sculpture of
the new temple. Principles of traditional
Hindu architecture are found in several
Puräæas and Ägamas; the principal texts
are the Ÿilpaÿästras, or Västuÿästras, of
which one is attributed to VIŸVA-KARMA
(2), the architect of the gods, and one to
MAYA, the architect of the demons.
The main function of the Hindu
Temple is to provide an abode for the
image of the deity believed to dwell
within it.
ardhanärï (‘half-woman’)
IMAGE of ŸIVA with the left half showing
female attributes, the right one male.