Vastu-shastra (Vol. I: Hindu Science of Architecture; Vol. II: Hindu Canons of Iconography and Painting) v1.c48.s2.8

v1.c48.s2.8

The standard manuals of Hindu Science of architecture expound a large number of canons of architecture. This we have already seen. But a selection has to be made to bring home to the readers, the unique character of our Vāstu-śāstra, which, though on par with many an ancient cognate treatises like the one attributed to Vitruvius, the great Greek-architect-writer, has its own character which gives to it a unique importance in the context of cultural content of Hindu civilization which has always been glorified (or more correctly damned) as a spiritual civilization and hence devoid of any civil sense in the matters of house-planning. We are misrepresented that we could only build great temples and there was no civil or popular or secular architecture in India. A brief exposition of all these fundamentals must dispell the darkness shrouding our vision. Let us take these one by one.