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.s64.28

v2.c14.s64.28

The brief sketch of this compilation as well as the other illustrative *Śilpa-Śāstras* presented above incidentally substantiate two theories. Most of the architectural treatises, whether or not ascribed to an author, historical or mythical, are but compilations. Some of these have actually acknowledged the sources drawn upon while others have not. This practice of misappropriating somebody else's property is prominently shown in works like the *Purāṇas* and the *Āgamas*, which in most cases are undeniably huge compilations gathered together from various sources dealing with heterogenous subjects. The second theory is that the *Mānasāra*, though itself a compilation, because the author seems to have consulted some thirty-two authorities on architecture, appears to be the standard work on the subject, inasmuch as it is the most complete, scientific, and probably the oldest extant record. This last impression is, further, strengthened by comparison of the *Mānasāra* with the architectural portions of the *Purāṇas*, the *Āgamas* and the *Brihat-saṁhitā* in detail.¹