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Essay on the Architecture of the Hindus

Exposition of the Mānasāra and other Śilpa-śāstras: orders, mouldings, proportions, temple storeys, gopuras, mandapas and town plans, with 48 measured plates.

Language
English
Author
Ram Raz
Extent
348 passages, 25,643 words
Text
complete digital text
Source
archive.org · London: Royal Asiatic Society 1834; scan on archive.org, OCR Gemini 3.8 Flash; chapters and sections by… · Public domain in India: every author died before 1966 (Ram Raz †1833); published before 1931: public domain…

Contents

Text

Front matter

Essay on the Architecture of the Hindús

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ON THE

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By RÁM RÁZ, NATIVE JUDGE AND MAGISTRATE AT BANGALORE; CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND.

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WITH FORTY-EIGHT PLATES.

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LONDON: PUBLISHED FOR THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND, By JOHN WILLIAM PARKER, West Strand; TO BE HAD ALSO OF MESSRS. DE BURE, BROTHERS; and MESSRS. DONDEY DUPRÉ and SON, PARIS, AND MESSRS. BLACK, YOUNG, and YOUNG, LEIPZIG, Booksellers to the Society on the Continent.

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M.DCCC.XXXIV.

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Presented by Smt. U. Rakshit

Preface

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THE introduction to the European public of an “Essay on *Hindú* Architecture,” and by a *Hindú*, would seem to mark an epoch not only in the history of the science but also in that of the *Hindús* themselves.

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Their palaces, their temples, the stupendous pyramidal gateways leading to the latter, the colonnades and porticoes with which they are surrounded; some of “a thousand pillars,” others equally remarkable for their elevations, richness, and grandeur of design, have for ages been the objects of admiration to the traveller in the East; and, though it had long been known, proverbially, that the *Hindús* possessed treatises on architecture of a very ancient date, pescribing the rules by which these edifices were constructed, it remained for the author of this essay to overcome the many, and almost insurmountable obstacles to the substantiation of the fact, and to the communication of it to the European world in a well known language of Europe.

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\* The Royal Asiatic Society is chiefly indebted to one of its members, Richard Clarke, Esq., for the accomplishment of this important and desirable object. This gentleman, then recently returned from India, suggested to Rám Ráz to undertake some work which should impart to the European world, through the Royal Asiatic Society, information not yet before them; and he recommended the "Architecture of the Hindús" as a topic worthy of the abilities and talents of his native friend. The circumstances under which he acceded to the proposition, though already brought to the notice of the public in "Rickards's India," merit and indeed claim insertion in an introduction to his work. They are detailed in two letters from the author to Mr. Clarke, extracts from which will be found in a subsequent page.

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As of most other sciences among the *Hindús*, the rules and precepts of architecture and sculpture had been, with some solitary exceptions, locked up in the Sanscrit language; and, as the study of this language was limited, in general, to the higher classes; the only means of improvement left to the artist, who in all cases would be of a subordinate class, were the verbal instructions delivered to him by these superiors, when they might happen to require his assistance; together with the impress on his mind resulting from practical experience. To reduce the knowledge thus acquired to a system, and to promulgate it in a language comprehensible by the vulgar, would, in most cases, have been thought an encroachment on the privileges of the higher orders; and being, therefore, handed down unavoidably from father to son by tradition only, it must, in the natural course of events, have been often obscured or totally lost. Moreover, the study of this, as well as of other sciences, has been very generally laid aside by the higher classes for acquirements more in unison with the tone and feelings of the times; while the treatises themselves, scattered and neglected, became nearly valueless to all but the humble artisan, who gathered up here and there a fragment, and hoarded the occult lore, sometime to be learnt by stealth, or as best might suit the purpose of his lordly and priestly master.

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To collect these remains from far and near; to read, collate, and comprehend them, with the terms and phraseology of the science, was no ordinary undertaking: the assistance of the artist on the one hand, of philologists on the other; corroboration by reference to existing edifices, and the ability to exhibit the results at length deduced, in the technical and scientific language of a foreign people, were all equally necessary to the completion of the task.

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It must, however, be understood that the author does not profess to give the whole system of architecture as known to the *Hindús* at any particular period, or indeed, a complete translation of such portions of those treatises as he was able to collect; but, from his deductions and illustrations, such an exposition as might enable the European reader to form an opinion of what that system may once have been.

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Such was the attempt of Rám Ráz.∗ How far he has been successful the public must decide. Men,† whose authority will, it is believed, be readily acknowledged, have spoken of his work in terms of the highest commendation; and if it shall appear that he has established the claim of his countrymen to the possession, in an eminent degree, of a knowledge in the art,—and this at a period when its principles were but little understood among Europeans, he will have accomplished a task which he fondly looked forward to with every confidence of success; and one, it is hoped, which cannot be uninteresting, or devoid of utility, to the followers and promoters of science in general.

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∗ It is painful to state, that ere the result of his labours has pased through the press, accounts from India have announced the decease of this most worthy member of the Royal Asiatic Society.

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† Messrs. William Wilkins, R. A., William Daniell, R. A., and Charles Cockerell, F. S. A.—(*Vide the Tenth Annual Report of the Royal Asiatic Society*, p. 29.)

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The present may not be an improper occasion, as the author of the accompanying essay is no more, to offer a few brief notices of his life. They are, however, merely such as the recollections of the writer to whom the subject of these notices was intimately known for several years, can supply, yet they may, perhaps, as a tribute to his memory, be received with indulgence.

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RÁM RÁZ was born at Tanjore, in the Carnatic, about the year 1790. He was small of stature, of a delicate frame, of a fair complexion for an Asiatic, and had a remarkably brilliant and piercing eye. On public occasions there was in his manner, though on the whole graceful and easy, a diffidence which might lead the cursory observer to undervalue his abilities; but by those to whom he was known in private, it was more justly attributed to innate modesty and humility. His name implies that he was of a superior caste; and he used to boast of being a collateral descendant of RÁM RÁJ, or RÁM RÁZ, the last of the kings of *Vijayanagar*; and as the name is often met with in the genealogy of those princes, it is not improbable that it may have thus descended to him.

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His parents, it would seem, were poor; and that he was partly indebted to fortuitous circumstances for the little education which he received when a boy; a portion of this, however, fortunately for him, consisted in learning to read and write the English language. He was first attached to one of the Native Regiments of Infantry, as a clerk, it is believed, to the Adjutant; and, subsequently, as *Vakíl*, or native agent to the regiment. While in these situations he prosecuted the study of the English language; and by acquiring a more grammatical knowledge of the several[^asterisk] vernacular dialects which he had been taught in early life, he added to a character for natural quickness of intellect and correctness of conduct, that of an accomplished interpreter. How long he remained in this situation, or whether leaving it at this period he obtained any other, is not known; but in the year 1815, we find him employed as a clerk in the office of the Military Auditor General. While in this employment a circumstance accidently brought him to the notice of the gentleman before mentioned. He had undertaken to translate from the Mahratta into the English language a code of Regulations drawn up by order of the late TIPPÚ SÚLTÁN, the sovereign of *Mysór*, for the guidance of his revenue officers. Such a work, it will be readily conceived, could not form a part of his duties as clerk in a military audit office, and it must therefore have been a voluntary task.

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Cont * *Ráj* or *Rája*, according to the Sanscrit pronunciation: *Ráz* or *Ráza*, according to the pronunciation of the same term in the vernacular languages of the South of India.

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His translation was in every respect so correct, and the notes and illustrations accompanying it exhibited so eminent a degree of knowledge in the several languages from which the terms and phrases used in the original were generally borrowed, as well as of the Mahratta and English, and at the same time displayed so much talent in the elucidation of the various parts of the subject

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[^asterisk]: It is not uncommon that in the same town or village two, three, or more vernacular languages will equally prevail; and that boys are taught, though very imperfectly, to read and write in the whole of them.

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by comparison and by contrast with the English system of revenue, as at that period to give rise to considerable doubt of its being the unassisted performance of a *Hindú*. Satisfied that it was so, this gentleman, his early patron, who besides the several offices which he held in the civil department of the Madras Government, was also Senior Member of the College of Fort St. George, gladly availed himself of so fair an opportunity to countenance and encourage talents and conduct such as he observed in our author; and procured for him, first, the appointment of Head of the College Office, and afterwards that of Head English Master to the native classes of that institution.

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It was while in the latter situation that he was, for upwards of five years, intimately known to the writer of these remarks, who, shortly before his quitting India, had the satisfaction of recommending him to the First Commissioner in *Mysór*, by which means he was placed in a sphere of action where talents such as his could not long remain unknown, and which soon raised him to the responsible and highly honourable post of Judge and Magistrate.

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By a regular course of private study while at Madras, he had added to his other accomplishments, not only a knowledge of the Sanscrit language, but also of algebra, geometry, the higher branches of mathematics, and of geography and astronomy; and at one time he had classes in these branches of science, the scholars of which were an honour to his industry and talents; by many of whom his assiduity, ability, and zeal, will be long held in grateful remembrance.

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Of his death no particular accounts have yet been received. It is said that the climate of *Mysór* was not congenial to him;

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and perhaps the duties of his situation there were too arduous for his weakly frame. He had no family, but he had adopted a daughter whom, together with his widow, an aged mother, and a brother who was in some mercantile profession at Madras, he has, it is supposed, left to enjoy the little wealth which his frugality, rather than any adequate return actually awarded to his merits, enabled him to realise. But however this may have been, his loss as a man of talents and of science, as well as a highly valuable servant of the British Government, is deeply to be regretted.

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The writer¹ of these remarks has the pleasure to announce that he expects shortly to receive from the friends of the deceased, ample materials whence a full and authentic view of the author's life may be drawn, should such a record be thought sufficiently interesting to the public, to induce its acceptance by the Royal Asiatic Society.

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¹ * After the volume was sent to press, he received from the widow of the deceased a letter, from which the following is an extract:

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*To Captain* Harkness.

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"Bangalore, East-Indies, 22d May 1833

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\* \* \* \*

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"As my late husband in his lifetime had mentioned to me the existence of a friendship between yourself and him, and which, by letters found after his decease, I feel convinced existed in your mind towards him, I have taken the liberty to address you on the subject of my misfortune, not only in the loss of one so dear, so amiable, but also in being subjected to the mercenary and avaricious views of his brother.

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"I beg to call to your remembrance the number of years my late husband was in the Honourable Company's service; first, as Vakeel to the Second Battalion of the

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whom our ancient legislators have ranked amongst the lower orders of society. This class, perhaps, jealous of the Bráhmans, whose sacerdotal authority they have always opposed with a spirit of independence, or more naturally, apprehensive of competition in their trade, took particular care to conceal the sacred volumes which have descended to them, from the rest of the people; but as they have on their own part been long denied the benefit of Sanskrit literature, these treatises could be but of little use to themselves; and the consequence has been, that while the practical part of the science continued to be followed up amongst them as a kind of inheritance from generation to generation, the theory became gradually lost to the whole nation, if not to the whole world. Even the few scattered fragments which have escaped the hand which either jealousy or the fear of competition has raised to conceal or rather destroy the science, are now quite unavailable to those who kept them to themselves and to the priests The former being compelled to refer to the latter for the interpretation of the superior dialect, and the latter to seek from the former for definitions of technical terms, which neither the one nor the other seem to have been able to explain or understand accurately. This circumstance, more than any other, has cost me considerable time and expense, without any adequate advantage. Our best dictionaries, at least the best that I have been able to procure, do not contain a single architectural term, and the best of our workmen have been so long disused to their own ancient style of building durable public edifices, that it is not to be wondered at they should now ascribe their ignorance of the art as revealed from heaven to the want of encouragement, which appears indeed to have ceased on the decline of native rule. Such is the state of knowledge among those to whom we could look for any illustration respecting an art, the study of which has been so long neglected in this country, and the few manuscripts too, which have escaped the corroding hand of time inevitably contain numerous errors and defects which it requires no small labour and time to correct and supply.

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"These difficulties, combined with want of time on my own part to surmount them, discouraged me for a long while, and it is but lately I commenced to translate and to take down extracts and notes of some parts which I have been enabled to make out. There still remains a great deal to be done; nevertheless, great reason have I to think that what I have already executed will facilitate my future progress. At all events, if it please heaven, I hope to be able to send you at least a part of the work by an early opportunity: and though I cannot promise that my performance will be such as to meet with the approbation of the Royal Asiatic Society, yet I trust it may not prove altogether unacceptable to that learned body of men, inasmuch as it may tend to draw attention to this important subject, connected as it is with the state of arts and sciences in India in early days.

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“The subject itself is curious, and highly deserving the attention of the antiquarian and the philosopher. A correct account and accurate elucidation of the art of building practised by the *Hindús*, must throw considerable light on the early progress of architecture in general. Some of the western authors have traced a certain resemblance in the leading features of the buildings in Egypt and India, and have thence concluded that there has very early been a communication of architectural knowledge between the two countries. But it is not altogether improbable that this resemblance may be merely owing to accident; inasmuch as in architecture as well as in every other art indispensably necessary to the comfort of mankind, two or more nations may possess something in common, without having any intercourse with each other, for the wants felt by man being the same, it is not surprising that the remedies resorted to for supplying them should be also similar or nearly so. If, on the other hand, however, both these countries had actually any communication in early ages, it is hard to determine which of them may have been indebted to the other. The western writers on antiquities have not placed this matter beyond a doubt. And for my own part, I will not venture to affirm any thing with certainty, until I have collected sufficient information to form an opinion as to this alleged affinity in the architecture of Egypt and India. I humbly presume, therefore, that until the *Silpa Sástra* of the *Hindús* is correctly illustrated and laid before the public, the question as to whether the art owes its origin to the one or the other of the two countries must remain problematical.

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“Whilst the subject of my present research opens upon me such a wide field of delightful prospect notwithstanding the difficulties I already anticipated, I cannot but acknowledge, with painful sensations, my own incompetency for the task which your kindness has assigned to me, and regret most sincerely that it has not fallen into abler hands. Diligence and fidelity, however, in the execution of the work entrusted to me shall not be wanting on my part; but the result of my labours can be only commensurate to the ability I possess compared with the difficulty of the subject.

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“I hope what I have already said will give you some notion of the nature of the undertaking in which I am engaged, and of the little progress which I have hitherto been enabled to make in consequence of unavoidable delays arising partly from the difficulty of the subject, and partly from the want of leisure. You are too well acquainted

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with my trifling acquirements to entertain high expectations in the performance of the task assigned to me. I only propose to write a short but comprehensive Essay on Indian Architecture from the materials I may be able to collect; to which I shall perhaps add some descriptions of a few temples and porticoes, principally taken from the Carnatic, with corresponding designs

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“Wishing you and your family every success and prosperity in life,
> “I remain,
>> “Sir,
>>> “Your most obedient and faithful servant,
>>>> (Signed) “RÁM RÁZ.”

Essay

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ON THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE HINDUS.

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It is true that the Hindus were in possession of numerous treatises on architecture, sculpture, &c., which collectively are called the *Silpa Sástra*,[^asterisk] but unfortunately few traces of them remain. There appears to have been, according to some, thirty-two, and according to others sixty-four, standard treatises on the above-mentioned arts, but of these, excepting a few scattered fragments which are occasionally to be met with among the artists themselves, nothing but the titles of the works are now generally known to the learned. Speaking of these treatises, Sir William Jones expresses it as his opinion that they contained useful information on sixty-four different arts and manufactures; but while I admire his extraordinary talents and extensive knowledge of Asiatic literature, I cannot but think that he was misinformed as to the number of subjects comprised in the *Silpa Sástra*, as from the similarity of the contents of the remains of several of these treatises, and which will be hereafter noticed, there is reason to think that

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[^asterisk]: From *silpa*, manual art, and *sástra*, science. This term, though in its general signification it comprehends the whole of the mechanical arts, is applied commonly, and perhaps by way of pre-eminence, to architecture.

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the whole thirty-two, or sixty-four, if there did exist so many, must have treated principally, if not entirely, of sacred architecture and sculpture.

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In a series of memorial verses preserved among the artists, are recorded the names of the authors or titles of the above-mentioned sixty-four treatises. Of these, thirty-two are called *Muc'hya*, or principal, and thirty-two *Upa* or subordinate. I have not been able to ascertain who was the author of these verses, but they contain little more than the titles of the works in question, and which are mostly patronymics of the deities who were believed to have revealed the particular art or arts on which each work treated, or of the authors of the treatises themselves, the renowned *Rishis* or holy men, who are said to have flourished in the earlier ages.

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Many works of acknowledged antiquity attest the existence of a number of treatises on *Silpa Sástra*; and every artist proverbially knows that there have been thirty-two principal, and as many subordinate works on this subject. In a Tamil controversial work entitled *Iru-samaya-villacam*, or "the illustration of the two systems," (i. e. of *Vishnu* and *Siva*), supposed to have been written in the fifteenth century by a *Vaishnava*,ast in refutation of the doctrines of his opponents, or rather in commendation of his own, a work which is held in high estimation, especially among the *Vaishnavas* in Southern India, the author, in the course of his arguments to prove the supremacy of *Vishnu* over *Siva*, has been led incidentally to cite certain passages from the *Silpa Sástra*, which describe the sites to be assigned for the erection of temples for *Vishnu* and *Siva*: the former to be in the middle of the town or village, as the most acceptable place for a deity whose characteristic attributes are benignity, mercy, and preservation; and the latter without the village, as proper for one possessed of opposite qualities. This work recognizes a great number of the treatises abovementioned, and enumerates twenty-nine of them by their titles, concluding the list with the words “and others;” but which of these works it was that he consulted on the point of discussion, the author does not inform us : there is reason, however, to believe that many of them had been lost long prior to the period at which he wrote.

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ast * A follower of Vishnu.
* In order that a more accurate idea may be formed of the subjects contained in this work, a particular description is given of the contents of each *adhyáya* as taken from the preface to be planted in Indra's heaven, and to supply all the wants of those who have the happiness of taking shelter under it The forty-sixth chapter treats of *Abhishécas* or ablutionary rites, by which images are sanctified, the forty-seventh of jewels and ornaments worn by the gods and mortals, the forty-eighth of statues of *Brahma* and other deities, the forty-ninth of the *Lingam* the emblem of *Siva*, the fiftieth of seats and forms raised for the reception of images, the fifty-first of the form of *Sacti* the goddess of nature, the fifty-second and fifty-third of the images worshipped by the *Bauddhas* and *Jainas*, the fifty-fourth describes the statues of *Yecshas*, *Vidyádharas*, and other choristers, the fifty-fifth those of the saints or holy men, the fifty-sixth and fifty-seventh those of the *Devas* or gods, with their respective vehicles, and the fifty-eighth concludes with rules for chiselling the eyes of the statue, and the ceremonies to be performed on the occasion.

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Some shattered remains of the treatises entitled *Mánasára*, *Múyámata*, *Cúsyapa*, *Vayghánasa*, *Sacaládhicára*, *Viswacarmiya*, *Sanatcumára*, *Sáraswatyam*, *Páncharatram*, and others included in both the lists, are still occasionally, though rarely, to be met with in Southern India; and notwithstanding that I have been able to procure considerable portions of the four works first named, and a few detached chapters or sections of each of the rest, it was with considerable difficulty; and unfortunately, the manuscripts which I have collected, are not of a very useful description. Mutilated as they invariably are in many important parts, almost every line of them is not only disfigured by gross errors, perpetuated by a succession of ignorant transcribers, but the technical terms and memorial verses with which the whole abounds, are so little understood either by the artists or the pundits of the present day, that it requires no ordinary exertion to comprehend and explain the exact import of even a single section.

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The first work, entitled *Mánasára*, is the most perfect I have seen, and perhaps the most perfect on the subject that now exists. It is stated to be the production of a sage named *Mánasára*, and is of great celebrity in the south of India, as affording copious information on every branch of the art on which he treats, but particularly on that of building sacred edifices; and it is often consulted by the artists as the highest authority for the solution of contested points in architecture. This work appears, according to an enumeration of the contents given in the preface, to consist of fifty-eight *adhyáyas* or chapters, each of which is devoted to a particular topic, but the portion I have in my possession contains no more than forty-one chapters, in which are described the measures used in architecture, sculp-

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The first chapter treats of the measures used in architecture, sculpture, carpentry, &c ; the second describes the qualification of a *Silpi*, and gives a brief account of the origin of the five different classes of artists, said to have been descended from *Viswacarma*, and to have followed respectively the occupations of sculptors, joiners, braziers, jewellers, and blacksmiths. The third, fourth, and fifth chapters explain the nature and qualities of the soil on which buildings should be erected—such as temples, palaces, and private dwelling-houses for the several classes of people The sixth contains rules and directions for constructing a gnomon, for the purpose of determining the several points of the compass. The seventh treats of the parts into which the ground-plan of the cities, towns, temples, palaces and houses should be divided The eighth chapter gives a minute description of sacrifices and other devotional rites, to be performed on various occasions in the building of temples, houses, &c. The ninth chapter treats of villages and towns, and prescribes rules for the formation of streets, and the allotment of fit places for the erection of temples, and for the residence of the different classes of people.

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The tenth contains a description of the different sorts of cities, the eleventh treats of the dimensions of the several sorts of edifices, the twelfth of the *Garbhavinyása*, or laying the foundation-stone in the centre of the intended building, the thirteenth of *Upapít'has* or pedestals, the fourteenth of *Adhisthána* or basement; the fifteenth of the several species of pillars, with their respective dimensions, the sixteenth of *Prastaras* or entablature, the seventeenth of the junction of the several parts of timber work, with reference to their points, the eighteenth of *Vimánas*, temples, or palaces in general. Twelve successive chapters, from the nineteenth to the twenty-eighth, contain descriptions of temples surmounted by pyramidal domes, consisting of from one to twelve stories, with their respective dimensions The twenty-ninth chapter treats of *Prácáras* or outer courts of temples; the thirtieth of the attendant deities, and the parts respectively assigned to each within the walls of the temple, the thirty-first of *Gópuras* or pyramidal buildings, or turrets raised over the gateways leading into the temples; the thirty-second of *Mantapás* or porticoes, or resting-places for the deity, the thirty-third of *Sálas* or halls, the thirty-fourth of cities, the thirty-fifth of private dwelling-houses, the thirty-sixth and thirty-seventh of gates and doorways, with their dimensions; the thirty-eighth and thirty-ninth of the palaces and their appendages;

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the fortieth of princes with their titles, the forty-first of the building of cars and other vehicles of the gods; the forty-second of couches, cushions, and the like; the forty-third of the thrones for the gods and for princes; the forty-fourth of ornamental arches, the forty-fifth of the *Calpataru* or the all-productive tree, which is supposed ture, &c.; the different sites to be selected for buiding temples and houses; the mode of determining the different points of the compass; the several sorts of villages, towns, and cities, with directions for building them; the different parts of an edifice, its ornaments, pedestals, bases, pillars, entablatures, &c; the various sorts of temples, consisting of from one to twelve stories high, the construction of *mantapas* or porticoes, gates, and doorways, palaces, &c. &c. The remainder of the work appears to contain ample information respecting the whole process in the construction of images, and of cars and other vehicles in which the gods are carried in procession; but these subjects are more immediately connected with sculpture and carpentry than with architecture. It may be proper to notice, however, that a considerable portion of the whole is occupied with a minute description of the mysteries, rites, and sacrifices to be performed on various occasions, in the building of temples, houses, villages, towns, and cities; the ceremonies attending the consecration of images;

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the mode of determining the propitious moment for commencing to lay the foundation of an edifice, as well as rules for predicting the future prosperity of him who causes the edifice to be raised, by the aspect of the stars, the situation of the building with respect to the cardinal points, and other astrological devices.

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The second work, entitled *Máyámata*, is ascribed to *Máya*,¹ probably the author or compiler of the *Súryasiddhánta*, a work on astronomy of the greatest repute, and who is stated in the *Rámáyana* of *Válmíc* to have prepared the altar for the sacrifice performed by *Dasáratha* the King of *Ayodhya* (Oude), and father of *Ráma*. It differs little from the *Mánasára* in the main arrangement of the subjects. It opens with the mystical rites performed in honour of the *Vástu*, or the spirit presiding over the ground on which buildings are erected, and proceeds to give rules for the examination of the soil, the preparation of it for buildings in general, the construction of a gnomon for the purpose of determining the cardinal points, the division of the ground-plan into several parts for religious as well as domestic purposes, and the performance of sacrifices previous to the commencement of the work; after which it describes the several sorts of villages, cities, and fortresses, *upapíthas* or pedestals, the *adhisthánas* or bases, the *pádas* or pillars, the *prastaras* or entablatures, the ornaments used in cavettos under the cupola, the seats raised for the reception of idols, the *sicharas* or the domes of temples, the ceremonies observed in laying the first and the last stone of an edifice, the several sorts of temples, the courts by which they are surrounded, the pyramidal gateways, the *mantapas* or porticoes, the altars to be raised in the front of temples, and concludes with instructions for the carving of images, &c.

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¹ \* *Máya* is also stated in the *Mahábhárata* to have erected a splendid palace for the residence of the five sons of *Pándú*, a poetical description of which occupies a whole book of that celebrated work. He is supposed to be one and the same person with him who erected the altar for *Dasáratha*, and the seeming inconsistency of his being contemporary with *Ráma* and *Chríshna*, in two such remote periods as the Creta and Dwapara Yugas, mythological writers reconcile by assigning a supernatural term to the life of the personage in question.
* India.

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The third work, entitled *Cásyapa*, is attributed to the sage whose name it bears, a personage celebrated in sacred writings of great antiquity. He is considered as one of the progenitors of mankind, and ranked the first amongst the seven holy men who were preserved from the universal deluge, and who peopled the earth soon after that great event. This treatise, though more succinct than the two former, contains sufficient information on the subject of sacred architecture and sculpture; the whole is composed in a dramatic form, and is stated in the preface to have been revealed to the author personally by *Siva*; and in consequence, the former is frequently addressed throughout the book by the appellation of *Dwijóttama*, "the best of the twice-born," and the like. The subjects contained in this work are nearly the same as those contained in the *Mánasára*, but the arrangement is somewhat different. It commences with the description of the several sorts of soil which are considered proper for buildings, and proceeds to the preparatory rites and sacrifices to be performed in honour of the *Vástupurusha*, or the spirit presiding over the ground appropriate for the erecting of temples and houses; thence to the mode of constructing a *sanc'hu* or gnomon for the purpose of ascertaining the points of the compass, and thence to the laying of the foundation-stone, and the ceremonies to be observed on this occasion. It afterwards describes the pedestals, the bases, the gates of the temples, and doorways of houses, pillars, capitals, and other ornaments; the seats raised on the pavements of temples, and niches for the reception of images; aqueducts or watercourses; the several sorts of *vimánás* or shrines with the pyramidal towers, consisting of from one to sixteen stories; the *tóranas* or ornamental arches erected over gateways and pillars; doors and their dimensions; statues of the gods, saints, and holy men, &c.

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The fourth treatise, called *Vayghánasa*, is the work of a sage so named, and who was the founder of a sect of *Vaishnava* priests. It is written in a sort of metrical prose, and is rather ritual than architectural; and as the author in the latter part of the work frequently cites the authority of *Cásyapa*, and as the work itself is included among the subordinate treatises enumerated in the list, it appears to be comparatively a modern performance. It opens with an encomium on the land of *Bhárata*,cont as being peculiarly sacred, and adapted for the performance of holy rites and sacrifices; and thence proceeds to describe the various sacrifices ordained in the *Véda*, to be performed when the purpose is to obtain special boons or favours, either temporal or spiritual, such as progeny, riches, wisdom, absolution from sin, purification, &c. It next treats of the mystical rites practised in honour of *Vástu*, preparatory to the building of sacred edifices, or of altars for sacrifices; of villages, towns, and cities, the fruits to be derived from building and peopling them with *Bráhmans*; the construction of temples dedicated to *Vishnu*, with rules for carving the images of that deity and his attendants, on whose attributes the author occasionally dwells with that devotion and zeal which characterize all his followers.

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The work entitled *Sacaládhicára*, an excellent but rather voluminous performance, is attributed to *Agastya*, a sage whose history occupies a conspicuous place in the *Puránas*. Some few sections only of this work are to be now met with; and the portion which has as yet come under my own observation, is exclusively on the subject of sculpture as connected with the formation of statues; but it is so diffuse, that if we suppose the whole work to be written in a similar style, it must considerably exceed the volume of *Mánasára*, the largest at present of my collection.

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As I have but a few detached pieces of the other works mentioned above, they do not appear to call for any distinct notice. Some of these pieces are descriptive of the construction of temples, some of the towers over gateways, some contain directions for laying the foundation of a building, some treat of the auspicious and inauspicious seasons for the commencement of an edifice, and others of the manufacture of images and so forth. However, as the rules contained in these fragments differ very little in substance from those laid down in the *Mánasára* and other treatises on the same subject, I shall seldom have occasion to refer to them in the course of this essay.

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The exact age of each of these treatises it is very difficult to ascertain. Tradition gives to most of them an antiquity altogether extravagant; and however diligent the endeavour to obtain authentic information on this point, success can hardly be expected to attend it, when we consider in what obscurity and oblivion the ancient history and chronology of the Hindús are involved. Of *Mánasára*,[^asterisk] the sage to whom the first treatise is attributed, I have not been able to procure any distinct historical notice, but, as has already been mentioned, the supposed authors of the other treatises, entitled *Cásyapa* and *Máyámata*, are, under these names, greatly celebrated in the *Puránas* and other sacred writings of antiquity. That all these treatises were composed in the South of India, there appears indeed no reason to doubt, for they seem to have been the standards by which the existing religious structures were reared throughout this part of the peninsula.

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The most interesting circumstance connected with these treatises, is their toleration of the worship of the *Jainas* and *Baud'dhas*, the authors of them having carefully pointed out distinct sites to be set apart in villages and towns for the erecting of their temples, and having likewise prescribed rules for constructing images of the objects of adoration by these sects. This prescription marks, though indefinitely, the age of these compositions to have been posterior to the great schism which took place between the Hindús and Jains, and which terminated in the overthrow of the latter. The contentment, too, of this latter sect with the inferior situation assigned them by their conquerors for their divine worship, in a place contiguous to that which, among Hindús, is usually appropriated to the shrines of inferior deities and malignant spirits, evinces their complete subordination at the period alluded to.

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Another circumstance in that portion of the foregoing treatises which has fallen into my hands is worthy of notice. They prove by internal evidence, that they were written at a period subsequent to the canonization

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[^asterisk]: \* Some say *Mánasára* is not the name of the author but the title of the work itself, signifying " the essence of proportion," and which, from this etymology, I am inclined to believe, but whatever may be the real name of the author, I shall make use of the word both as the name of the author and the title of the work throughout this essay.

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of *Apper*, *Sundarer*, *Sammander*, *Mánicyavásarer*, and other holy men, several of whom are supposed to have lived between the third and fifth century of *Saliváhn*. The ground on which this proof rests is, that in the chapters which prescribe rules for carving statues, directions are likewise given for carving those of the personages here mentioned, who have been admitted among the inferior divinities, and assumed their places around the temple of *Siva*, particularly in the South of India. But some learned men to whom I mentioned this circumstance, rather than concur in an opinion which detracts from the antiquity of these works, are inclined to think that the passages in question are modern interpolations.

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The small portion which has come under my observation of the work called *Sacaládhicára*, "the universal authority," does not furnish sufficient data to form any opinion of the precise time at which it was composed; and in the section which gives rules for carving statues, that is, in the only part I have seen of it, I find no mention of the saints above referred to. It is generally believed to have been composed by *Agastya*, under the auspices of the founder of the *Pándya* government, a circumstance which, if admitted, would give to this work a very high antiquity. It is, however, difficult to trace the exact period when the *Pándya* principality was originally established. Mr. Wilson, in his prefatory remarks to his catalogue of the M'Kenzie collection, places this event three or four centuries before the Christian æra, although in another place he fixes the date of the civilization of the South of India, ten centuries before Christ; but the data on which this conjecture is formed is imperfect, being derived from a source which can be no authority in matters of this nature.[^asterisk] There exists indeed a long list of the princes of the *Pándya*, and their contemporary *Chóla* and *Chéra* dynasties, many of whom appear to have reigned long anterior

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[^asterisk]: * The author, it would appear, identifies the civilization of the South of India with the establishment of the *Pándya* principality; events which Professor Wilson conjectures, on the authority of the traditional records of the South, to be distinct, and of different eras.

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to the Christian æra, and their celebrity to have attracted the notice of Ptolemy. The few facts, it is true, that have been recorded of these dynasties, or preserved by tradition, are unfortunately inadequate to the formation of a connected sketch of their history, or to trace their chronology with precision; but the various accounts which are obtainable of these ancient monarchies, though they usually commence with the earliest ages, and are blended with marvellous and extravagant fictions, would still afford ample historical proofs of the establishment of these principalities at an earlier period than what has been hitherto assigned them by western antiquarians. And as the *Mahábhárat*, which is believed to have been composed by *Vyása*, in the beginning of the *Caliyug*, makes mention of the *Pándya* and *Chóla* governments, we must give them credit for a higher antiquity.

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That the religion and literature, as well as the political constitution of the South, were derived from the North, the earliest seat of the Hindú empire as well as of arts and sciences, and that the southern peninsula was divested of all the extraneous matter with which they abound, contain little more than a dry detail of the technical names, and of the proportions of the several members of a sacred edifice. It has already been stated that considerable portions of the works above-mentioned, are replete with minute descriptions of religious rites, to be performed on various occasions from the commencement, to the completion of a building, as well as rules and aphorisms drawn from its situation, aspect, &c. for predicting the future destiny of the builder. The latter, however, form no part of the present inquiry, and they are interesting so far only as being descriptive of the customs of the ancient Hindús, with regard to their belief in divinations, omens, prodigies, &c., a belief which is still fondly adhered to by their posterity. With respect to other branches of the art on which information is wanting, it is stated by good authorities, and there is reason to believe the statement, that military architecture is treated of at length in some of the ancient treatises on *Arthasástra*, or political science, and particularly in one attributed to *Chánacya*, the well-known minister of Chandragupta.∗ The same authorities also state, that ample instruction for the building of private dwelling-houses, is contained in other works, professedly written on civil architecture:† but as these books are not at present to be met with, it has been thought advisable to restrict this research to religious architecture.

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∗ A celebrated prince who reigned in Pátáliputrá when Alexander visited the upper Hindustan; the same who is known to the Greek writers by the name of Sandracottus.

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† Since writing the above, a respectable friend of mine had the kindness to procure me, from Travancore, a copy of a work entitled *Mánushyálaya Chandrica*, which, as its name implies, treats of that branch of the art which applies to private houses, but of the description built in that kingdom.
* A treatise on civil architecture referred to in the preceding note. \* Chadira (*memosa* of Linn ), cadumba (*naseclea*), nimba (*margosa*), champaca (*michelea*), punnága (*mesua* of Linn.), amlaca (*emblica* of Linn.), pátala (*bignonia*), saptapharna (*echites* of Linn.), and some others, belong to this species of trees.

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I now proceed to a more detailed consideration of the portions of the treatises in my possession, trusting that it may serve to elucidate both the theory and practice of the art. In doing this, I purpose occasionally to introduce extracts from the authorities which I may consult, and to make my own observations regarding any affinity which to me may seem to exist between the Indian and European systems.

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The first chapter of the *Mánasára* treats of the several measurements used in architecture, sculpture, &c. In measuring space, the Hindús commonly take their reckoning from the most minute quantity or extent; and *Mánasára*, like others who have treated on the subject, begins his measure from *paramánu*, which he defines to be the particle perceptible only to the eyes of the sages, perhaps thereby importing the atoms spoken of in the writings of philosophers, while others have identified it with one of those subtile particles of substance which are seen floating in the reflected light of a sunbeam. "Eight" of these *paramánus* make one *ratharénu*, or grain of dust raised up by the wheels of carriages; eight *ratharénus* one *valágra*, the point of a hair; eight *valágras* are equal in size to a louse; eight lice to a grain of *yava*; three, three and a half, and four *yavas* make one *angula*, or finger of the inferior, middle, and superior sorts respectively. Twelve *angulas* make one *vitasti* or span; two *vitastis* one *hastha* or cubit, which is equal to twenty-four *angulas*, and is sometimes called *cishcu hastha*, lesser cubit, in contradistinction to *prájápatya hastha*, which is equal to twenty-five *angulas* Twenty-six *angulas* make one *dhanurmusti* or the grasp of a bow; twenty-seven *angulas*, one *dhanurgraha* or the handle of a bow. Thus the *hasthas* are fourfold; the first or *cishcu* is employed in the construction of couches, vehicles, and the like; the second or *prájápatya* is used in building temples, pyramids, &c.; the third or *dhanurmusti* in constructing houses; and the fourth or *dhanurgraha*, in the measurement of villages, towns, and cities. According to some, however, the *cishcu hastha* is adopted for all these purposes indiscriminately. Again, four *hasthas* make one *dandá* or staff, which is called sometimes *yesti*, and sometimes *dhanus*; and eight *dandás* are equal to one *ryju*, a cord which is employed in measuring all sorts of land. In raising sacrificial altars, a particular sort of *angula* is used, equal in size to the intermediate space between the two middle joints of the middle finger of the *carta*, or master, and which is thence called *mátrángula*.

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The second chapter of the *Mánasára* treats of the qualities of an architect (*Silpi lacshanam*); and as preliminary thereto, of the origin of artists of the several kinds, and which is traced to *Viswacarma* the heavenly architect. This personage is stated to have had four heads, probably in allusion to the supernatural talents with which he was endowed, and to his invention of so many useful arts. Another *Viswacarma*, *Twasta*, *Maya*, and *Manu* are named as his sons, and said to have left four other offspring, whose names, however, are not mentioned in any of the works under examination, but of whom the first is affirmed to have been by profession a *sthapati*, architect; the second *sútragráhi*, the measurer; the third *vardhaci*, the joiner; and the last *tacshaca*, the carpenter; and all of whom are considered as indispensably necessary to the building of an edifice. Their intermarriage, also, with the families of some noted persons of the Hindú mythology, is adverted to as a further proof of the divine origin of the artists; and the whole concludes with a short notice of their requisite qualifications, of which the following passages from the *Manushyálaya Chandrica*cont will convey some idea.

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“An architect (*sthapati*) should be conversant in all sciences; ever attentive to his avocations; of an unblemished character; generous, sincere, and devoid of enmity or jealousy.”

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“Of nearly equal qualification with him should be the *sútragrahí*; he may be either the son or disciple of the *sthapati*; he should be particularly skilled in mathematics, and be strictly obedient to the will of the *sthapati* ”

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“A *tacshaca*, who is thus called from part of his avocation being to pare the rough wood, should be of a cheerful temper, and well versed in all mechanical arts.”

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“A *vardhaci* is he who is dexterous in joining wood, and uniting other materials one with another; he should be of a calm disposition, and acquainted with drawing and perspective,”

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“As it is impossible to build houses and the like without the aid of the four descriptions of artisans, *sthapati* and so forth, let the enlightened twice-born[^asterisk] gratify them in every respect, so that buildings may be erected.”

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“Woe to them who dwell in a house not built according to the proportions of symmetry. In building an edifice, therefore, let all its parts, from the basement to the roof, be duly considered.”

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The word *sthapati* is from *stha*, that which is fixed or formed, and *pati* lord or master, and consequently, like the Greek *Αρχιτεκτων*, signifies a person who presides over the erecting of an edifice, the formation of a statue, and the construction of a chariot, &c. The principal qualifications of an architect consist in a knowledge of various branches of learning, such as arithmetic, geometry, drawing, sculpture, mythology, astrology, &c., the usefulness of all of which to a master-builder is too obvious to require any comment. Nor are these qualifications altogether unlike those which Vitruvius and other western architects have prescribed as indispensable to their profession, if we except the knowledge of medicine, music, and even anatomy, which the latter have thought proper to add to the qualifications of an architect. It is curious to observe, that among other moral qualities enumerated in the texts above cited, as requisite in the Hindú architect, is included “sincerity,” a virtue, the want of which in the artists of India is proverbial.

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