Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c33: Chapter XXVI: The Northern or Indo-Aryan Style (concluded): The Temples at Gwalior (11th century) and Brindaban (16th century)
Indian Architecture (Buddhist and Hindu Periods) c33
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Chapter XXVI: The Northern or Indo-Aryan Style (concluded): The Temples at Gwalior (11th century) and Brindaban (16th century)
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THE NORTHERN OR INDO-ARYAN STYLE—(*concluded*)
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THE sacred buildings within the Fort at Gwalior, as a whole, differ little in their architectural style from those of the surrounding country, although as they form a small series by themselves, they invite separate description. On the other hand the other group included in this chapter, that at Brindaban near Muttra, a hundred miles to the north and built several centuries later, consists of several temples of a specially localized order. Of the earlier series, those at Gwalior, there are some eleven structures of a religious character within the perimeter of this rock-bound fortress, five of which take the form of temples. Out of the five, three only are of importance, while their architectural composition is such as to give them considerable significance. According to an inscription the largest of the three, known as the greater Sas-Bahu was finished in A.D. 1093, and the other two cannot be far removed from this in date, so that all may be regarded as representative of the style in these parts towards the end of the eleventh century, or shortly after.
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If any one of this small series is earlier than the others it is that designated the Teli-ka-Mandir, or Oilman's temple, a name for which there is no convincing explanation, a tall commanding structure eighty feet in height, and of a distinctly unusual appearance. (Plate CXVI, Fig. 2). In its conception this building is rather more of a shrine than a temple, as it consists of a sanctuary only, comprising a tower together with a substantial porch and doorway leading to an interior cella; there is attached to it no assembly hall or mandapa, and none of those pillared pavilions which ordinarily formed part of the fully developed temple structure. Moreover it is also exceptional in that no parts of its plan are square, its shape externally being an oblong, 60 feet by 46 feet, and so is the inner chamber, which is 30 feet by 15 feet, as well as the passage connecting this with the doorway. Naturally the formation of the ground plan conditions the elevation, which apart from its configuration, is also from base to summit treated in a decidedly different manner from any other sanctuaries in the Indo-Aryan style. The most marked departure from the orthodox design of the temple tower is in the composition of the summit or roof. Owing to the oblong formation being continued throughout its height, the upper part of the building is also oblong in shape, and it is clear therefore that it could not be finished off by means of the usual pyramidal construction. But it was evidently never the intention of the designers to complete in it this fashion, for they proceeded to give it a superstructure similar to the vaulted roof of a Buddhist chaitya hall. To emphasize this Buddhist character there is a form of sun-window at either end, a keeled ridge with finials, and pillared arcades derived from the rock-cut colonnade system along each of its longitudinal sides. The porch continues the idea, as it is carried up almost to the height of the roof and appears also to have terminated in a chaitya arch gable.
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The Teli-ka-Mandir represents a rare type of Brahmanical sanctuary, for probably the only other example in the Indo-Aryan style with a sikhara of this order, a relic of their distant Buddhist heritage, is the Vaital Deul at Bhubaneswar, a Siva temple of the Orissan group and erected a century earlier. Both these temples, although separated by half the width of the entire sub-continent, are notable illustrations of the manner in which certain thought-forms, evolved during a much earlier movement and based on different ideals, emerged after a long interval to be incorporated in their structural composition
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More orthodox in style than the preceding, are the two remaining temples of the series in Gwalior Fort, both designated *Sas-Bahu*, literally the "mother-in-law and daughter-in-law," the origin of which nomenclature is also obscure. Both are in much the same architectural mode, the smaller of the two, although an elegant little building, in comparison with the large example, of which it is a reduced and simplified copy, is relatively unimportant For, apart from considerations of style and structure the large Sas-Bahu temple is a most informative production, its composition and treatment generally adding not a little to our knowledge of architectural development at this period (Plate CXVII) Dedicated to Vishnu in the last years of the eleventh century, although still a grand pile, this temple is but a portion of the original conception, as only the main hall or mandapa remains, the vimana with its sikhara which was probably 150 feet in height having disappeared On plan the building is in the form of a cross, the entire length being 100 feet, the width across the transepts 63 feet, while the height of the great hall was originally about 80 feet.
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As only the great hall is now the part in existence, it is from this structure alone that the architectural style of the Sas-Bahu can be judged, but it is quite sufficient for the purpose. Externally this maha-mandapa or assembly hall is in three stories, which take the form of open galleries or loggias surrounding the building on all sides Each story is defined by a massive architrave, with the spaces between occupied by pillars and piers, the effect of the facades being that of large open arcades. The roof is partly demolished, but was an arrangement of diminishing tiers of ornamental masonry rising up into a low pyramidal or domical formation. Undoubtedly much of the vivid and vigorous appearance of the exterior elevation of this structure was obtained by the skilful conception of its plan, one of the underlying objects of which was to enable the facades to be projected into a bold combination of contrasting planes. These planes, interrupted by columns alternating at regulated intervals with openings, have been so devised as to produce a successive correlation of solids and voids, of passages of light merging into graduated shadows, which make the exterior of this building, from all points of view, a composition of more than ordinary elegance.
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The interior arrangements of this hall are as artistically ingenious as the exterior. It has been remarked that the building is in three stories, but this does not apply to the [Figure: Fig 2 Kīradu, Mallānī Dist , Mewār - Someswara Temple , 11th century]
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Fig 1 Kiradu, Mewar Vaisnav Temple , 11th century
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Fig. 2 Osia, Marwar Temple “No 2” , c. 9th century
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Fig 1
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interior which is one large central chamber, contained within the ranges of open galleries forming the outside facades. In other words it consists of one tall compartment only, around which project the loggias, one above the other, which comprise the triple stories of its external elevation. The central hall, however, which corresponds in some respects to the "crossing" of a Gothic church as it is where the nave and transepts meet, was over thirty feet in diameter, a wide space to be bridged by the only method then employed by the Indian masons, and, moreover, above this it was necessary to support the solid stone courses of the roof. The problem was solved by introducing into the interior four massive piers, and on these large but shapely supports the superincumbent masonry was imposed. But such an expedient naturally destroys any effect of open spaces, and makes the interior somewhat congested.
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From the design of this temple it is possible to understand the constructional principles adopted by the builders in other large temples of this class, as for instance the Rudra Mala at Siddhapur, that fragment of a one-time immense structure in Gujarat. It reveals to us how these temples in several stories were produced without arches or other scientific methods, but solely by means of the pillar and the beam, a system which had limitations as the interiors of these buildings plainly demonstrate. For they could have no large halls uninterrupted by pillars, no spacious covered courts in their internal arrangements; their plans were restricted by the length of the stone lintel that could safely carry the required loads, and that this was occasionally miscalculated is shown by the cracked beams in a number of temples, including the Sas-Bahu now described. But there is something more to be learned from this example at Gwalior, not connected with temple construction, but with that of some of the mosques which began to be built a little later. It was on the principle of the Sas-Bahu interior that those pillared naves forming the central feature of the Islamic prayer halls at Ahmedabad and Champaner were evolved, but with more grace, more space, and more refinement than that ever produced in the assembly halls of the temples. Yet it was from these temple mandapas that the mosque builders developed those noble central spaces surrounded by pillars and carried up in stages to the vaulted roof, a conception of rare beauty and one which gives its prevailing character to the *masjids* of Gujarat.
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Passing now to the series of Brahmanical buildings at Brindaban of a much later date, this town, although small in itself, figures very large in the minds of many on account of its association with Krishna, as it was the scene of some of this popular god's most notable exploits. Here is a group of five temples, all built of red sandstone, and in a style of architecture different from any others of their kind; these temples are (1) Gobind Devi, (2) Radha Ballabh, (3) Gopi Nath, (4) Jugal Kishore, and (5) Madan Mohan. The mode adopted in their design is a purely local development, confined solely to Brindaban, and was the outcome of an exceptional concurrence of circumstances. In the first place these temples are relatively late in date, as they were all produced towards the end of the sixteenth century or the beginning of the seventeenth, a period corresponding approximately to that covered by the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (1556-1605) By this time the Islamic style of architecture introduced and fostered by the Muhammedan rulers, had obtained a firm hold, although hitherto confined entirely to the buildings belonging to that creed. Owing however to the "Great Mogul's" notable toleration, the temples at Brindaban were allowed to be erected in the heart of his dominions, being in most instances built to the order of certain Hindu princes who had allied themselves to the Mughal power. The reason for the selection of this site is explained by the fact that just previously there had been a widespread revival of the Krishna cult, brought about by the preachings of the famous Vaishnava reformer, Chaitanya (1486-1534).
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The largest and most important of the temples at Brindaban is that of Gobind Devi, built in 1590, now a truncated composition, as its sanctuary was completely destroyed during the reign of Aurengzabe. (Plate CXV, Fig. 2). What remains therefore is the assembly hall or *maha-mandapa* which takes the shape of a spacious cruciform structure, with the eastern arm converted into an extemporary sanctuary in place of the one which originally extended out of this and has disappeared. The present building differs but little in the proportions of its plan from a Greek cross, as its arms from east to west measure 177 feet and it is 105 feet in breadth; when the sanctuary existed the whole composition may have been as much as 175 feet in length. Externally the principles on which this temple has been designed are not dissimilar from those of other large temples in the Indo-Aryan style, as for example the Sas-Bahu at Gwalior described above, its elevation being formed of several stories containing open arcades. But the manner in which this traditional arrangement has been treated, shows that during the intervening period the builders had acquired an entirely new orientation in the field of temple architecture. The Gobind Devi temple signifies, as comprehensively as any building could do, the change that had taken place in the constitution of this part of the country, owing to the conditions brought about by the Islamic domination, a change, in the case of the building art, from the aesthetically natural to the ordered conventional, from architecture produced largely by rule of thumb, to that resulting from the application of certain well-defined structural principles. One noticeable fact in this temple is the almost entire absence of figure-carving, a circumstance not improbably due to the Islamic usage prohibiting any display of imagery, and communicated to the guilds of artisans by the Emperor Akbar, although that monarch himself was no bigot in this respect. The consequence of these various influences is that while the Gobind Devi temple is an architectural composition of no little formal beauty, consisting as it does of a combination of balconies and loggias, of bracketed archways and moulded buttresses, wide eaves and ornamental parapets, all carefully disposed so as to be in perfect accord with one another, there is at the same time an almost complete absence of that quality of humanism, together with a deficiency in that supreme spiritual content which one has learned to expect incorporated in the design of all Hindu temples of the more orthodox type. In this building more than in any other we see the effect of the imposition of Islamic ideals on those of the Hindus, perpetuated in stone. Even more pronounced is the outcome of this impact on the structural treatment of the interior, which except for the fact that the entire conception appears to be an anomaly, is a very fine architectural effort of great mandapa, instead of being the low curved ceiling usual in the temple design, consists of a high vaulted dome formed of intersecting pointed arches, in its structural procedure not unlike what is known as the four-part pointed vaulting of the Gothic style. This system of roofing in the temple is an illustration of the influence of the contemporary construction of the Mughals being copied and adapted from that used in several of the mosques of this period, as for instance in the aisles of the Jami Masjid (c. 1580) at Fatehpur Sikri, the state capital of the Emperor Akbar. (Plate CXVI, Fig. 1).
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Of the remaining temples, that of Jugal Kishore is the most prominent, as its shrine, octagonal in plan, is intact and attached by one of its sides to a rectangular assembly hall. (Plate CXIV, Fig. 2). Although externally the sanctuary is an octagon of 35 feet in diameter, the cella in its interior is a square of only 17 feet side The interior of the assembly hall is also a square of dimensions differing but little from those of the cella, leaving therefore a great thickness of wall around both compartments. In the case of the assembly hall within this mass of masonry small chambers have been introduced, as well as recesses for images. Around the main eastern entrance there is a considerable amount of carving which has a noticeable Islamic flavour. But the most distinctive portions of several of these Brindaban temples are the sikharas which in style and shape are unique, as they bear little or no resemblance to any other kind of Indian temple spire. They rise from an octagonal plan and taper into a tall conical tower (that of Madan Mohan being as much as sixty-five feet in height) with a broad band of mouldings outlining each angle. At intervals throughout their height are similar bands of mouldings placed transversely, so that the surface effect is that of a series of diminishing rectangular panels. Overhanging the whole at the apex is a ponderous finial, or *amasila*, a flat circular disc, its outer edge ornamented with a border of massive knob-like petals or flutes. The attempt by means of this unusual treatment to achieve something original has been successful, but as a work of art this form of sikhara has not much to commend it
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Cunningham, A, *Archaeological Survey of India*, Vol. II, 1864-65.