The Hindu Temple v2.c12.202

v2.c12.202

In plan (p. 256), the Prāsāda has in each of the main directions—the west or back of the temple being shown on Pl. XLIII—a widely projected Bhadra whose main face is parallel to the corresponding wall of the Garbhagṛha; its sides are perpendicular to it. All the other buttresses however, between the main Bhadras (śālās) are laid out within a circle which connects their indented apices. The walls of these buttresses ('karṇa'; 'pallava'; pallavikā', the latter meaning 'bud') form a right angle. When drawing a plan of this kind, the square of the Prāsāda is not subdivided into a given number of parts, but is rotated around its centre and made to stop at regular intervals. The points of the rotating square perform a circle in which the original square of the Prāsāda is inscribed.—The Bhadras or Śālās facing the main directions do not result from the rotation of the square but are planned in the usual way, parallel to the square of the Garbhagṛha. The front face of the Śālās is also circumscribed by the same circle, or it may exceed it. It is therefore said that the projection (nirgama) of these buttresses either lies within the circle or else is measured by aliquot parts of the square of the Prāsāda (S.S. LXV. 1-2). Prāsādas having this plan are classified as "Bhūmi-ja", "country-born" and are said to be "both square and circular" in plan.