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) v7.c47.85
Mānasāra Series (I. A Dictionary of Hindu Architecture; II. Indian Architecture according to Mānasāra-Śilpaśāstra; III. Mānasāra on Architecture and Sculpture: Sanskrit Text; IV. Architecture of Mānasāra: Translation; V. Architecture of Mānasāra: Illustrations; VI. Hindu Architecture in India and Abroad; VII. An Encyclopaedia of Hindu Architecture) v7.c47.85
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v7.c47.85
It is stated (in vv. 91–95) that people at first used to live in caves, mountains, rivers, etc. They began to build houses in order to protect themselves from cold and heat (śītoshṇa-vāraṇāt). Then they built kheṭas (towns), puras (houses), grāmas (villages) and nagaras (cities). And to measure their length, breadth, and the intermediate distance between two settlements (sanniveśa) the people instinctively (yathā-jñānam) employed their own fingers. Thence forward the aṅgulas are used as standards of measurement.