Manasara Series (I. A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture; II. Indian Architecture according to Manasara-Shilpashastra; III. Manasara on Architecture and Sculpture: Sanskrit Text; IV. Architecture of Manasara: Translation; V. Architecture of Manasara: Illustrations; VI. Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad; VII. An Encyclopaedia of Hindu Architecture) v2.c14.s23.3

v2.c14.s23.3

Like villages, *śālās* are first divided into the same six classes of *daṇḍaka*, *svastika*, *maulika*, *chatur-mukha*, *sarvato-bhadra*, and *vardhamāna*. Some of these with a fixed number of halls are said to be temples, while others varying in the number of rooms are meant for the residence of people of different castes. A distinction is made with regard to the number of storeys they should be furnished with. The maximum number of storeys a *śālā* has is twelve. The various storeys of all these *śālās* are described in detail. Eleven alternative breadths, eleven lengths, and five heights, are given to each *śālā*. It should be observed that the width is generally the standard of measurement in Indian architecture; the length and the height being in most cases determined in comparison with the breadth. The height is described here by the general formulas indicated by the five technical names, *śāntika*, *paushṭika*, *jayada*, *dhanada* (in other places *sarva-kāmika*), and *adbhuta*. Many alternatives in measurement are, however, modified by the rules of *āyādi-shaḍ-varga*, as in all other places.