Monuments: Eastern India

To serve the needs of various religious sects, the architects of eastern India and Bangladesh built structural monuments such as stupas, caityagrihas, monasteries, and temples. The stupas and caityagrihas were primarily for Buddhist worship, though evidence of stupas with Jain affiliation has been found. The monasteries were built for Brahmanical as well as Buddhist and Jain monks but, despite epigraphical references, no Brahmanical monasteries have yet been found. Temples were generally Brahmanical, sometimes Jain, but seldom Buddhist. Unable to withstand nature's fury, human indifference, and the fury of iconoclastic Turko-Afghan invaders, most of these monuments have disappeared, leaving many gaps in the history of their evolution.

Stupas and Caityagrihas

The Buddhist tradition affirms that the Licchavis of Vaishali had built many Buddhist stupas (mounds). Archaeological excavations at Vaishali (Bihar) led to the discovery of an earlier earthen core within a stupa that underwent successive enlargements. This earthen structure, containing a relic casket, is believed to be the stupa built by the Licchavis. Stupas built later are all in ruins. Presumably, as in other regions, eastern India's earliest stupas were large hemispherical domes, resting on circular drums, crowned by a parasol. Fragmentary remains, votive models, and sculptural depictions, dating from the seventh century a.d., indicate that over the centuries the stupa acquired an elongated shape by the addition of a square base, an increase in the height of the drum, and conversion of the crowning umbrella into a tapering row of flat discs. Sometimes a chapel, with an image of the Buddha in it, was provided at one or each of the four cardinal points of the stupa. Sites at which evidence of such stupas has been found include Nalanda in Bihar, Bharatpur in West Bengal, Paharpur, and Mainamati in Bangladesh, and Ratnagiri, Lalitgiri, and Udayagiri (Jajpur District) in Orissa.

A caityagriha was a Buddhist shrine, rectangular in plan with an apsidal back. A votive caitya (the other name of the stupa), within the apse, was the object of worship. Excavations have unearthed the foundations of two such caityagrihas, one at Lalitgiri and the other at Udayagiri (Jajpur District, Orissa).

Monasteries

Monastery architecture in eastern India began with a number of rock-hewn caves in the Barabar hills of Bihar. Donated by the Mauryan sovereigns (3^rd century b.c.) to the Jain Ajivika ascetics, these caves are usually single-celled. Only two of them, Sudama and Lomasha Rishi, have double chambers. The facade of the Lomasha Rishi resembles the gabled front of a contemporary wooden house, suggesting a carpenter's hand in these rock constructions.

Kalinga rulers ofthe first century b.c. honeycombed the Udayagiri and Khandagiri hills near Bhubaneswar (Orissa) with caves excavated for Jain monks. Some of these caves have pillared verandas in front. Two caves, at Mancapuri and Ranigumpha, are double-storied and sculptured. In the arrangement of these caves, no systematic plan was followed.

The monastery architecture was systematized by the Buddhists. Known as vihara and samgharama, the monasteries had in common four rows of cells with continuous pillared corridors around an open rectangular court. Approach to the inner court was provided by a gate pavilion on one of the shorter sides. In the center of the rear row of cells was a sanctuary chamber, whose back side projected beyond the line of the monastery wall. Some of the monasteries, referred to as mahaviharas, attained fame as great centers of Buddhist learning. One of them, the Nalanda Mahavihara in Bihar, dating from the fifth century a.d., comprised a row of storied blocks, each in the usual plan of a monastery. Near the front of these blocks was a row of temples, each enshrining an image of the Buddha.

Deviating from the conventional plan of a monastery, the Somapura Mahavihara at Paharpur (Bangladesh) and a few others contained the sanctuary of a terraced plan in the center of the court, rather than the middle of the rear row of cells. In Orissa, the dwelling blocks of the monks, though following the general monastery pattern, sometimes had an imposing stupa outside as their principal object of worship. The Ratnagiri Mahavihara on the Ratnagiri hill was one such monastery.

Temples

A period of experiments with different forms marks the early phase of temple architecture of the region. The ruins of an apsidal Jain religious edifice of the first century b.c. have been discovered on the Udayagiri hill near Bhubaneswar. A temple of cylindrical shape, known as Maniyar Math, at Rajgir (Bihar) was raised on an earlier circular base, which may have been the foundation of a lost stupa. Now in a fragmentary condition, it once displayed fine stucco sculptures in the Guptan style of the fifth century a.d. A Kumrahar (Bihar) clay seal, bearing a second- or third-century a.d. inscription, depicts a Buddhist shrine with an arched facade and a pyramidal roof tower. That depiction may be the prerestoration Mahabodhi temple at Bodh Gaya (Bihar), or a temple of that type. An octagonal temple of Shiva, famous as Mundeshvari (a corruption of Mundeshvara) Shiva, stands on the hilltop at Ramgarh (Bihar). In its interior, four pillars on four corners of a raised dais support the flat ceiling. The roof of the temple has collapsed. If the year 30 inscribed on the foundation stone, discovered loose, refers to the Harsha era, the Mundeshvari may be ascribed to a.d. 636.

At about the beginning of the seventh century a.d., architects of eastern India introduced a few standardized temple styles, the most important of which was the one defined as nagara in Indian canonical literature. Its two distinguishing features were a cruciform ground plan and a curvilinear shikhara (towering roof). Found all over eastern India, the nagara temple style displayed regional variations in the course of its evolution, though without changing its basic characteristics.

In Bihar the emergence of the nagara style may be recognized in the triratha (three-wall) plan. Segments were produced upon the face of the temple wall, creating part of it on a more forward plane. Some walls were divided into three segments; other walls were divided into five (panca-) or seven (sapta-) segments; with three moldings (vedibandha) on the exterior wall, as on the older base of the modern Siddheshvaranatha temple on the Suryanka hill of the Barabar range. Reference to this temple is made in a seventh-century cave inscription found nearby. In course of time, the temple became pancaratha, as in the Narasimha temple at Gaya, and acquired a pillared mukhashala (forward hall) as demonstrated by the preserved core of the Sun temple at Dabthu. A roof cover in either instance is missing. In the succeeding years, the earlier pancaratha plan was continued, but a horizontal molding divided the part of the wall between the vedibandha and the entablature into two vertical halves. A curvilinear sikhara rose upon the temple. The mukhasala in front had balconied windows at the sides, and four interior pillars on four corners of a central platform. The dilapidated Shiva temple at Umga, while attesting to these developments, gives, in the summary treatment of its features, clear evidence of a decadent trend. This decadence only quickened in the following years.

The early nagara temples of Jharkhand were invariably built on a triratha plan. In elevation, the bara (perpendicular wall section) had three divisions: molded vedibandha, jangha (part of the wall between dado and entablature) with a niche on the raha (projected central ratha) and a recessed baranda (entablature). The shikhara upon the bara was divided into a number of bhumis (horizontal stages) by right-angled bhumi-amalakas (ribbed quoins). In the mastaka (set of members crowning the shikhara), the most conspicuous element was a large flattish amalaka (spheroid, ribbed at the edges). Representative examples of the period include the Durgā temple at Diuri and the Mahishasuramardini temple at Haradih. Sometime later the pancaratha plan was introduced. Other developments included the presence of Gan. gā and Yamuna, two river goddesses, at the door flanks and navagraha (nine planets) panel on the door lintel. The Tanginath Shiva temple at Majhegaon is a shrine of this type. Now roofless, the temple appears, from its detached architectural parts lying about, to have once been covered by a curvilinear shikhara (tower) that supported a mastaka with a kalasha (pitcher) finial. Further development of the style is obscured by the absence of proper examples.

The extant nagara temples of Bengal were built either in stone or in bricks. The stone temples, now found only in West Bengal, are simple unpretentious structures. They began, as elsewhere, with a triratha plan, threefold division of the bara, curvilinear shikhara, and round mastaka. Of the three sections of the bara, the vedibandha was composed of three and sometimes four moldings, the jangha was plain except for a niche on the raha, and the baranda was indicated by a recessed frieze between two moldings. The shikhara had bhumi divisions by right-angled bhumi-amalakas. In the mastaka, the most prominent member was a large flattish amalaka. The two surviving examples of this early period, one Jain and the other Brahmanical, stand respectively at Charra and Tuisama. The developments in later temples showed an increase in the number of vedibandha moldings from an initial four to six, three pilasters in a row on the kanika (outermost ratha segment) in the jangha section, the occasional presence of navagraha panel on the door lintel, near-perpendicular rise of the shikhara, rounding off of the bhumi-amalakas, and a vertical band of interlacing caitya arch (horseshoe-shaped arch motif) design on the shikhara. Temple numbers 16 (now lost) and 18 at Telkupi and a deserted temple at Banda are a few examples illustrating the different phases of these developments. In the succeeding years, elaboration of details continued, but with simultaneous decline of the style. Finally, the temple acquired a saptaratha plan, the number of moldings in the vedibandha rose at times to nine, the jangha became divided into upper and lower sections by a bandhana molding, and the protruding double cornice of the entablature sharply interrupted the free and flowing transition from the bara to the shikhara. The bhumi-amalakas disappeared from the shikhara, whose almost vertical ascent was awkwardly broken by a sharp inward, virtually straight-lined, bend near the top. In the mastaka upon the shikhara, the amalaka was disproportionately small and the kalasha finial narrow and tall. Among the temples showing those features, three are standing at Barakar. One of them is dated in Shaka 1382 (a.d. 1461).

In striking contrast to the simplicity of the stone temples, the few surviving brick temples of Bengal are remarkable for the splendor of their decorative embellishments. All of them belong to the nagara order. Pancaratha earlier and saptaratha later, they show a two-storied jangha with a bandhana running between, a double corniced baranda, and a vertical sequence of subdued angashikharas (miniature replicas of a temple) on the shikhara. The bhumi-amalakas in the earlier examples are right-angled, but those of later temples are round. Embellishments on stucco plaster display an amazing variety of elegant and graceful designs and motifs. Most remarkable of them is the stylized but exquisite and large caitya arch design that constitutes the central theme of the shikhara decoration. Two brick temples, now standing at Deulghata (West Bengal), are the finest specimens of the type.

Less affected by the iconoclastic frenzy of the early Muslim invaders, Orissa retains a series of temples representing the three principal stages of evolution of the nagara style of the region: early, transitional, and mature. The style lost its force once the mature phase was over.

Like other regions, the deul, the local name of the sanctum to distinguish it from its other adjuncts, was triratha in plan at the beginning. Its perpendicular wall section, bara, had a vedibandha (pabhaga in Orissa) of three (subsequently four) moldings, a jangha with a niche on each of its ratha facets, and a baranda composed of a recessed frieze between two moldings. The gently curved shikhara rose in bhumi stages, each bhumi being demarcated by a square bhumi-amalaka. The mastaka, when found complete, showed a beki (short cylindical neck), a flattened amalaka, a low khapuri (skull-like member), and a cylindrical (later kalasha) finial. The deul, though alone initially, was complemented sometime later by an oblong mukhashala. The niches on the jangha of the deul contained images of family members and manifestations of the deity enshrined. On the door lintel of the sanctum, a panel of eight grahas (planets) were carved. All the adornments, including the figure sculptures, were done in bas-relief. The Parashurameshvara at Bhubaneswar, the Kutaitundi at Khiching, and the Lingaraja at Bhawanipur are some of the temples bearing these features.

In the transitional period, the deul acquired a pancaratha plan, the vedibandha moldings increased to five, nagastambhas (pilasters entwined with human-headed snakes) appeared on the jangha, vertical bands of interlacing caitya arch designs textured the shikhara, and the door lintel of the sanctum bore a panel of nine grahas. Figure sculptures were shown in high relief. In a major development, a pyramidal roof of gradually receding tiers came to surmount the mukhashala, as in Bhadra deuls in Orissa. In later years, most of these features were included among the invariable characteristics of Orissan architecture. This transitional phase is represented at its best by the small but pretty Mukteshvara at Bhubaneswar. For its perfect proportions, graceful sculptural embellishments, delicate surface treatment, and unobtrusive decorative scheme, this exquisite little shrine ranks as the "gem of Orissan architecture."

In the fully evolved form of Orissan architecture, the principal features of the deul were pancaratha ground plan, fivefold division of the bara, lofty near-perpendicular shikhara, round bhumi-amalakas, rise of angashikharas in graded height on the anuratha (intermediate ratha facet between raha and kanika) of the shikhara, lion rampant on elephant projecting from each face of the shikhara, and mastaka composed of short beki, ponderous amalaka, emphatic khapuri and bulbous kalasha, and dhvaja (emblem of the deity enshrined). Images of the incarnations or family members of the installed divinity were contained by the central niches, and those of the eight dikpalas (guardian deities of the quarters) were housed by the subsidiary niches on the jangha. As a convention, the navagrahas were displayed on the door lintel. The entire temple complex, comprising the deul, the mukhashala, and sometimes a natamandapa (dancing hall) and a bhogamandapa (refractory hall) in the same axial length, was placed within a walled enclosure.

The majestic Lingaraja at Bhubaneswar embodies all the features specified above, in their most finished and perfect shape. The temple, surrounded by a massive wall, has four components: deul, mukhashala (commonly called jagamohana), natamandapa, and bhogamandapa, the last two being later additions. The deul, the principal member of the complex, is remarkable for the soaring verticality of its great tower. Subduing every detail of the temple to this vertical urge, the shikhara moves up in a rapid sweep to produce the effect of one continuous line on its profile. In this accent on the unbroken linear ascent of the shikhara profile, rekha (line), the local name of the nagara deul finds its ample justification. A masterpiece of Indian temple architecture, the Lingaraja stands as the model for all later temples of Orissa. An in situ inscription, dated a.d. 1114–1115, fixes the upper limit of its date.

The glorious tradition set by the Lingaraja was raised to a new height by the stupendous Sun temple at Konarak. In the novelty of its conception as a huge Sun chariot and the solemn grandeur of its masterfully executed sculptures, the temple, even in ruins, represents the supreme achievement of the Orissan architects.

D. R. Das

See alsoTemple Types (Styles) of India

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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