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.c16.268

v2.c16.268

The last question to answer is how the author of the *Mānasāra* came to know of these countries or divisions of India. If these countries were autonomous and independent of each other, the knowledge of them must have been received through literature, should a tour all over India for a purpose like this be thought an improbability in days before the establishment of the British Government. If on the other hand the internal affairs of all these countries were settled by a common and central authority, who alone could decide upon a policy for common good and under whom alone guide books like the *Mānasāra* discussing general methods and principles of building for all countries could flourish, there must have been an empire comprising all or most of these countries. The probability of the latter view is strengthened by the consideration of the styles of architecture, apart from the types of buildings discussed above. These styles are also designated by geographical names, which imply much broader divisions, namely, Northern, Southern and Eastern. They are called Nāgara, Drāviḍa and Vesara In case of some architectural objects Vesara admits of two other branches, namely, Andhra and Kaliṅga, the three together constituting Tri-kaliṅga or three Kaliṅgas.