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Hoyasala Temple Architecture (view source)
Revision as of 13:00, 25 March 2019
, 13:00, 25 March 2019→Hoysala Sculpture
In most Hoysala temples, the closed ''mandapam'' has either no windows, or perforated windows which let in some light. It has thick walls. It is a large hall and hence there are four pillars to support the roof. Both outside and inside of the ''mandapam'' are decorated. The pillars are the famous lathe-turned and the ceilings of the bays of the ''mandapam'' are exquisitely decorated. It is large but smaller than the open ''mandapam''.
In most Hoysala temples, the closed ''mandapam'' has either no windows, or perforated windows which let in some light. It has thick walls. It is a large hall and hence there are four pillars to support the roof. Both outside and inside of the ''mandapam'' are decorated. The pillars are the famous lathe-turned and the ceilings of the bays of the ''mandapam'' are exquisitely decorated. It is large but smaller than the open ''mandapam''.
The open ''mandapam'' has an intricate plan. It is a staggered square of many sizes and variations. The number of pillars and bays vary here and the open ''mandapam'' of Veera Narayan temple Belavadi has one of the largest open ''mandapams'' of any Hoysala temple.[[File:Plans of the Maha Mandapam.png|thumb|115x115px|''Plans of the Maha Mandapam''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Plans_of_the_Maha_Mandapam.png]]As it is open it has only parapet walls on which many pillars rest. The inside of the parapet has ''kakshasana'' (seating bench). The ''mukha mandapam'' is very small, just an opening with a roof and two pillars supporting it.
The open ''mandapam'' has an intricate plan. It is a staggered square of many sizes and variations. The number of pillars and bays vary here and the open ''mandapam'' of Veera Narayan temple Belavadi has one of the largest open ''mandapams'' of any Hoysala temple.[[File:Plans of the Maha Mandapam.png|thumb|292.988x292.988px|''Plans of the Maha Mandapam''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Plans_of_the_Maha_Mandapam.png|left]]As it is open it has only parapet walls on which many pillars rest. The inside of the parapet has ''kakshasana'' (seating bench). The ''mukha mandapam'' is very small, just an opening with a roof and two pillars supporting it.
=== Vimana ===
To describe the ''vimana'' of a Hindu temple certain terminology is necessary. The walls of the ''garbha-griha'', ''antarala'' and ''mandapam'' support ''vimanas'' of different kinds. These ''vimanas'' are built of aediculae. Between the ''vimana'' and the walls a horizontal section of the parapet is decorated with elements which are also present in the ''vimana''.
This decoration, above the parapet, generally consists of elements such as ''kuta, shala, panjara'' and a chain of them called a ''hara''. These aediculae are nothing but miniature forms of various kinds of vimanas. ''Kuta'' is the square domed ''vimana'' aedicule is called ''kuta'' and is generally found at the corner of the ''vimana''. ''Shala'' is the barrel-roofed and rectangular roof of the ''vimana'' of a ''gopuram'' in south India. Its miniature form in aedicule is called ''shala''. Finally, ''panjara'' is the cross-section of a ''shala'' vimana, generally which is visible in the vimanas roofs of ''gopurams''.[[File:Vimana a) roof tower b) kuta roof c) shala roof d) kapota.png|thumb|''Vimana a) roof tower b) kuta roof c) shala roof d) kapota''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Vimana_a)_roof_tower_b)_kuta_roof_c)_shala_roof_d)_kapota.png|338.242x338.242px]]
These are the basic aediculae which make up the ''vimana'', but there are some other techniques with which the design of the ''vimana'' is made even more complex. Most common of them are staggering and splitting. Staggering is defined by Adam Hardy as:[[File:Staggering.png|thumb|Staggering|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Staggering.png|left|333x333px]]<blockquote>“Staggering, or progressive stepping out, suggests expansion in stages, a serial emanation. Closely bunched offsets can also create the impression of vibration (''spanda'') as if with inner energy. A staggered sequence of forms, embedded one within another, can be entirely at one level (in which case the elements slide out like an unfolding telescope) or step down as they step out.”</blockquote>
Splitting is another technique in which an aedicule or architectural motif such as a ''panjara'', or a ''stambha'' is split into half with the intervening space either remaining empty or containing a niche figure.
Bursting of Boundaries - When a form which is projecting and enshrined within a frame, actually bursts over in its expansion, and overstepping its boundaries appears to be leaving the confines of its frame. It suggests a greater sense of movement and expansion.[[File:Splitting.png|thumb|Splitting|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Splitting.png|none|327x327px]][[File:Progressive Multiplication.png|thumb|''Progressive Multiplication''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Progressive_Multiplication.png]]Progressive multiplication - Starting from top to bottom, a whole aedicule is multiplied successively, starting from top and then descending in ever increasing numbers.[[File:Bursting of Boundaries.png|thumb|''Bursting of Boundaries''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Bursting_of_Boundaries.png]]The vimanas are decorated with these aediculae. A ''hara'' is a chain of the aediculae comprising ''kuta, shala'' and ''panjara'' and their staggering. Starting from one end a ''vimana tala'' may have a ''kuta'' at the corner, a ''shala'' in the center and a ''kuta'' at the other corner. This scheme would be called a k-s-k scheme. If a ''panjara'' is added at the center of the ''shala'' then the scheme would be: k-s-p-s-k.
===Hoysala Sculpture===
===Hoysala Sculpture===
[[File:Hoysala sculpture at Somnathapur, Mysore, Karnataka.png|thumb|''Hoysala sculpture at Somnathapur, Mysore, Karnataka''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Hoysala_sculpture_at_Somnathapur,_Mysore,_Karnataka.png]]In the Hindu temple, sculpture is inextricably enmeshed with architecture to the point where the boundary between them becomes unrecognizable. This is another feature which distinguishes the Hindu temple from other sacred architectures in the world. In the Hoysala architecture this feature becomes even more exaggerated. As Gerard Foekema says, in Karnataka, mainly in Kalyani Chalukya and Hoysala temples, architecture is decorated with architecture. These architectural parts are both functional and decorative. Since most of these parts are constructed by chiseling hence they are technically sculpture but play the function of architecture as well.
[[File:Hoysala sculpture at Somnathapur, Mysore, Karnataka.png|thumb|''Hoysala sculpture at Somnathapur, Mysore, Karnataka''|link=http://dharmawiki.org/index.php/File:Hoysala_sculpture_at_Somnathapur,_Mysore,_Karnataka.png]]In the Hindu temple, sculpture is inextricably enmeshed with architecture to the point where the boundary between them becomes unrecognizable. This is another feature which distinguishes the Hindu temple from other sacred architectures in the world. In the Hoysala architecture this feature becomes even more exaggerated. As Gerard Foekema says, in Karnataka, mainly in Kalyani Chalukya and Hoysala temples, architecture is decorated with architecture. These architectural parts are both functional and decorative. Since most of these parts are constructed by chiseling hence they are technically sculpture but play the function of architecture as well.