temple architecture

🔆Temple Architecture

 

▪️Classification of Indian Temples 

✅ Nagara (in North India) is associated with the land between the Himalayas and Vindhyas. 

✅ Dravida (in South India) with the land between the Krishna and Kaveri rivers. 

✅ Vesara style 

✅Hoysala style  

✅Vijayanagara Art 

✅ Nayaka style 

✅ Pala School 

✅Jain Architecture 

▪️ Nagara Style

 

From fifth century AD onwards, a distinct style of temple architecture developed in the northern part of India, known as Nagara style of architecture. Within nagara style different sub-schools emerged in western, central and eastern parts of the country. 

✅Garbhagriha 

🔸Literally means ‘womb-house’ and is a cave like sanctum  

🔸 Garbhagriha is made to house the main icon (main deity)

✅Mandapa 

🔸It is the entrance to the temple 

🔸 May be a portico or colonnaded (series of columns placed at regular intervals) hall that incorporate space for a large number of worshipers 

🔸Some temples have multiple mandapas in different sizes named as Ardhamandapa, Mandapa and Mahamandapa 

✅Shikhara or Vimana 

🔸They are mountain like spire of a free standing temple 

* Shikhara is found in North Indian temples and Vimana is found in South Indian temples 

* Shikhara has a curving shape while vimana has a pyramidal like structure 

✅Amalaka : A stone disc like structure at the top of the temple shikara 

✅Kalasha : Topmost point of the temple above Amalaka 

✅Antarala (vestibule) :  A transition area between the Garbhagriha and the temple’s main hall (mandapa) 

✅Jagati : A raised platform for sitting and praying 

✅Vahana : Vehicle of the temple’s main deity along with a standard pillar or Dhvaj.