of stüpas, caityasand caves (often rich-
ly ornamented and provided with archi-
tectural embellishments) in all probabil-
ity made use of older Hindu models.
Hindu TEMPLE architecture came
into its own during the GUPTArenais-
sance. Around 400 CEthe first brick or
stone temples appeared, built according
to a Roman–Syrian model: a cubicle
housing the IMAGEof the deity, a porti-
co for the worshippers in front of it, sur-
rounded by a gallery supported by pil-
lars, 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 nägarastyle is char-
acterized by a fairly tall and steep
ÿikhara(steeple) on top of the garbha-
gøha(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 ve-
ssara 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
dräviõastyle is characterized by multi-
storeyed 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 num-
ber 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 tra-
ditional specifications, he had to over-
see the procurement of suitable materi-
als, to supervise the day-to-day activi-
ties 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’)
IMAGEof ŸIVAwith the left half showing
female attributes, the right one male.25 ardhanärïThe 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.Encyclo - Letter A 10/2/03 9:37 am Page 25