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.c49.78

v7.c49.78

The plan of a village, outlined in the ninth chapter of *Mānasāra*, is theoretical for its details do not tally with any of the realistic descriptions by Greek, Chinese or Arab visitors. None the less, it is instructive. A village, we are told, should be surrounded by a wall or stone pierced by four main gates which should be connected by roads. The villages should thus be divided say into four principal blocks. A highway should also run round the village and public buildings be located on it. The whole inhabited area should be well-supplied by ponds and tanks. Caste which influenced all life and thought in ancient India did not leave town-planning untouched. It is proposed that the best quarters should be reserved for the Brahmans and that the Chandālas should live outside the limits of the village.