Keywords: vihara withitscentralshrinetorevealactualform. other contemporaryBuddhistdevelopments;and shrine ofthePaharpurvihara,;to of theBuddhistmonasteries;torestoredisjointedlinkinrelationformalevolutioncentral to comprehendtheformofcentralshrineanditsmorphologicaldevelopmentfrompreviousexamples for morphologicalevaluationfromtheprevioustemples. This essayhasseveralobjectives.Itisanattempt of Bengal,aninvestigationisrequiredtoknowwhatthecentralshrineandmonasterylookedlike study hasbeendonetorevealitsactualform. As thismonasteryisimportantinthearchaeologicalhistory Bakhtiyar Khiljiduringthe the othermajorcentersofBuddhisminIndia,by about fourcenturies.Itwasdestroyed,alongwith is remarkableamongthemandprosperedfor Pala periodinancientBengal.PaharpurMahavihara A numberofmonasterieswereestablishedduringthe INTRODUCTION ABSTRACT Ahsanullah UniversityofScienceand Technology, Bangladesh Dept. of Architecture, Tanzila SamadChoudhury Through ConjecturalRestoration Heritage SompurMahavihara: Reclaiming theLost Architectural dynasty around1300CE( consist ofmonastic cellsandacentralshrine for excavations ofPaharpurreveal thattheremains religious structuresinBengal. Archaeological phase ofarchitecturaldevelopment ofBuddhist Paharpur Vihara isindicativeofthemostimportant developments fromstupatotemples andpagodas. structures havegonethrough severalarchitectural Historical evidenceshowsthatBuddhistreligious Dharmapala, secondkingofPaladynastyin8 monastery, situatedinNaogaondistrictwasestablishedwhenBuddhismattaineditspeakBengalunder S the subcontinentandoneofmostimportantarchaeologicalsitesinBangladesh. This Buddhist ompur Mahavihara,presentlyknownasPaharpurviharaisthesecondlargestBuddhiston Paharpur, Vihara, BuddhistTemple, ConjecturalRestoration N. Ahmed,1966, p.73). fi ghting withtheSena fi nd therelationshipbetweencentralshrineof Paharpurviharaand th century. Butthemysteryofitsmorphologyisunknown.Little fi nally tosuggestaconjecturalrestorationof Paharpur

of 8 analysis ofcontemporaryBuddhist developments centralshrineandviharathroughthe Paharpur’s is attemptingtocomprehend theactualformof be revealed. Therefore aconjecturalrestoration in adilapidatedcondition,itsactualformcan’t extremely important. As Paharpurwasexcavated list. SothepreservationofPaharpurMahaviharais campaign, PaharpurisincludedintheWorld heritage According tothereferenceofUNESCO’s international important structures. Previously, severalconjectural by researcherstorevivethe formofhistorically a uniqueidea.Ithasbeen usedmanytimes ancient Asia ( ancient Asia in style,introducinganewstyleofarchitectureto prayer. The mainmonasteryofPaharpuriscruciform th centuryCE.Conjecturalrestoration isnot Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: monastic-asia.wikidot.com) Through ConjecturalRestoration .

Nakhara 123 Nakhara 124    OBJECTIVE OFTHEESSAY in thefollowingsections. detailed studyofPaharpurMahaviharaisdiscussed conjectural restorationofPaharpurMahavihara. A based onajustificationofformtogenerate the ambiguityofargumentspreviousresearch had beenmade. This studyisattemptingtoreveal restorations ofPaharpurcentralshrineandvihara Tanzila SamadChoudhury was Buddhismwhoseimpact on Indiansocietywas rites andrituals. Among themthemostsuccessful sects againsttheorthodoxreligion dominatedby 6th centuryBCE This enabledariseofheterodox In India,therepublicaninstitutionswerestrongin Rise ofBuddhisminSubcontinent BACKGROUND /CONTEXT study processissummarizedinthe formal conditionofthecentralshrineandvihara. The understand thesitecircumstances,surroundingsand A physicalsurveyhasalsobeenconductedto of thecentralshrineandviharaPaharpur. philosophy ofthattimetorevealtheactualform with contemporaryandlaterstructuresofBuddhist monasteries. Comparativeanalysishasbeendone morphological evolutionofBuddhisttemplesand religious contextofBuddhistdevelopmentandthe the Buddhistphilosophy, socio-politicaland A surveyofliteraturehasbeendonetocomprehend The studyhasbeencarriedoutbyseveralmethods. METHODOLOGY    form. Vihara withitscentralshrineto reveal itsactual To suggestaconjecturalrestorationofPaharpur developments. Vihara withothercontemporary Buddhist relationship ofthecentralshrinePaharpur The intentionofthepaperisalsoto of thecentralshrinePaharpurMahavihara. disjointed linkinrelationtoitsformalevolution The mainobjectiveoftheessayistorestore fi gure 1: gure fi nd outthe can Vihara intheIndianSubcontinent. built byDharmapalaisthesecond largestBuddhist Vikramashila. Paharpur(Somapura)Mahavihara well assupportedtheUniversitiesofNalandaand Pala’s createdmanytemplesandworksofartas of Buddhism(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pala_Empire). followers oftheMahayanaand Tantric schools patronage (Ahmed,1966,p.72). The Palaswere Buddhism the Pala’s empireinthispartofthesubcontinent, and prosperityinBengal. After theestablishmentof (750-1120 CE)andusheredinaperiodofstability The Buddhistdynastylastedforfourcenturies BUDDHISM INBENGAL temple design.(Moffett, et al.2003). a processionalpath,remainscentraltotheBuddhist the stupa,whichnecessitatesestablishmentof open courts. Their rituals includedwalkingaround monasteries ofindividualcellsorganizedaround monks settledinthevicinityofstupastoformsmall of laterBuddhistarchitecture.Intime, form andplacementthatservedasagenesis outskirts oftheirsettlements.Itwasthistraditional leaders wereplacedinamoundoftenlocatedonthe memorials orChaityas,wheretheashesofdeceased relics, inamannercomparabletotraditionalvillage and earthknownasa‘stupa’ waserectedoverthe To marktheseplaces,asimplemoundofrubble locations associatedwithhislifeandteachings. were dividedbyhisfollowersandplacedinten death oftheBuddha,whenhiscrematedremains to thereligion. The disciples establishshrinestogivepermanentform any particulararchitecturalsettingforworship,his Southeast Asia. Although Buddhahadnotprescribed only inIndiabutalsoSrilanka,China, Tibet and to becomeamajorin The religionfoundedbyBuddhawasdestined of numerousstupas,templesandmonasteries. philosophy wasmaterializedwiththeestablishment Buddhism gaineditsfullprominence,Buddhist remarkable. Butunderthepatronizationof Ashoka be consideredasthegoldenera ofBengal. fl ourished inBengalandBiharundertheir fi rstshrinewascreatedafterthe fl uence onarchitecture not The PalaEmpire

of wildvegetationwhichalso causesdamageto structures. Bothconditions encouragegrowth are mainlyresponsibleforthe destructionofmany Moreover, thenatureofsoilandclimate and dampnessbecameathreattothestructures. structures ofthisregioninthepast.Highhumidity rivers and and theircontributories. The changingcourseof reasons. Bengalisoften have beendamagedmanytimesduetotheclimatic mentioned earlier. Lateronthismahaviharamight by BakhtiyarKhiljibetween1200-1300CEas ultimate destructionoftheMahaviharawasdone many timesbytheforeignrulers.Butprobably destruction ofPaharpurMahaviharahadtakenplace From manysecondarysourcesitisevidentthatthe Summarization ofthestudyprocess. Figure 1: fl oods hascauseddestruction tomany fl ooded byrivers,streams geoscienceworld.org) most ofthehistoricalmonumentsBengal( earthquake in1897wasresponsiblefordestroying vegetation. Moreover, itisalsoevidentthatan area, especiallythecentralshrine,wasfullofwild excavation ofPaharpurmahavihara,thewhole many structures(Brown,1965,p.149).Duringthe about itsmorphology, formandstructure. these countries,thusgivingthe authorssomeclues with thecontemporaryandlater developmentsof Indonesia. SotheMahaviharaofPaharpurislinked of India, Tibet, Bhutan,China,Myanmar, Cambodia, introduction ofMahayanaBuddhisminotherparts the otherhand,Palakingswereresponsiblefor for thetotaldamageofPaharpurMahavihara.On Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: . So there can be many reasons . Sotherecanbemanyreasons Through ConjecturalRestoration bssa.

Nakhara 125 Nakhara 126 THE SUBCONTINENTFROM624BCETO THE12 TIMELINE OFBUDDHISTHISTORY AND MAJORDEVELOPMENTSON Tanzila SamadChoudhury development. Therefore, theanalysisof Buddhist evolved intomanyforms during theyearsof From thebeginningBuddhist architecturehas TRANSFORMATION ITS ARCHITECTURE AND ANALYSIS OF BUDDHIST 11 8 7 12 0- BE BuddhismestablishedinCambodiaandVietnam (150C.E).Buddhismenters EstablishmentofGreatStupaatSachi,India. 3 100- BCE 100- BCE ReignofKing Asoka inIndia,whoconvertedtoBuddhismandbecamean 200- BCE 268-232 BCE EnlightenmentoftheBuddhainBodhgaya.introducedworldto 544-480 BCE 589-525 BCE 624-560 BCE 5 5-5 C Guptaempire,duringwhichBuddhism 350-550 CE th th th rd h cn. E EstablishmentofGreat Amaravati Stupa, Andhra Pradesh,India.Expansionof cent. CE th et C EstablishmentofPaladynastyinBengal,underwhichBuddhistreligious cent. CE BuddhistmonasticuniversityfoundedatNalanda,India.Establishmentof cent. CE cent. CE et C Establishmentof Ananda Temple atPagan,Myanmar. cent. CE -13 th et E TheMoslemsattackedandconqueredMagadhaotherpartsinBengal and CE cent. complex builtinJava. Establishment ofShalbanVihara, MainamatiinBengal.Borobudurtemple of PaharpuratRajshahi,BengalandVikramashila Vihara atBihar, India. structures reachedtheirpeak.Beginningof“Sharvatavatratype”,establishment to thedevelopmentofNalandamonasterywhichwassituatedinMagadha. India. Buddhism Establishment offamousstupa,shrineandmonasteryatSarnath,Benares, Immigrants. Mahayana BuddhismwasintroducedintoJava,SumatraandBorneobyIndian Buddhist famousreligiousstructure-MahabodhitempleatBudh-Gaya,India. wiped out.Establishmentof Angkor Wat, Cambodia. with thedestructionofBuddhistmonasteriesanduniversities Buddhismwas central Asia andChina. Beginning ofMahayanaBuddhism. and establishedHinayanaBudhistviharasmonasteries. national level,andBuddhistrock-cutarchitecture,beganHinayanaBuddhism important patronofthereligion. Asoka establishedBuddha’s dharmaon Passing awayofGautamaBuddha. “Dhamma vinaya”. Four Noble Truths andcommencinghiscareerofteachingthereligionhecalled Birth ofBuddha Buddhism toBurma,Cambodia,Laos,Vietnam andIndonesia. fl ourished inBengal.BuddhistscholarsofBengalcontributed viharas. its surroundingcellsforBuddhist monksknownas a studyofthedevelopment Buddhistshrinesand affecting itsalterations. The second stageincludes to understanditstransformation offormandforce Buddhist monumentfromstupa totempleinorder stages. The architecture forthispaper, canbeexplainedintwo fl ourished throughthe subcontinent. fi rst stage studiestheevolutionof TH CENTURY Figure 2:FirstformofStupa. of developmentthestupawasenlargedtodoubleits path towalkaroundthemound.Inlaterphase superstructure. Pilgrimsandworshippersusedthis Buddha andacircumambulatorypathbuiltintothe a spaceleftforthereceptaclecontainingrelicof ( and totalformofstupawerederivedfromthecircle hemispherical inform. The plan,elevation,section of Buddhism. The The stupaistherudimentofarchitecturalform TEMPLE TEMPLE: FROMSTUPA TO EVOLUTION OFBUDDHIST fi g.02).Inthecentreofthisdomicalmoundthereis 5 MahabodhiTemple, Budh-Gaya, Figure 6: th century CE fi rst appearanceofastupawas 1 StupaatSanchi, Figure 3: st centuryBCE Chaitya hallsarecovered,rectangularbuildingsor for worship.SotheChaityahallwasdeveloped. to thesky, Buddhistsdecidedtobuildindoorplaces Eventually asthecircumambulatorypathwasopen remarkable exampleofthistype( at thecardinalpoints. The StupaatSanchiisa was introducedandatorana(gateway)added or chhattrayasti. The uppercircumambulatorypath This wassetinsideanenclosureofalowstonefence middle ofwhichroseathreetieredstoneumbrella. to makeaplaceforcircularplatformfromthe size. The topofhemisphericalmoundwas Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: 3 AmaravatiStupa,Madras, Figure 5: Karli, Stupaatrock-cutChaityaHall, Figure 4: 1 rd centuryCE st century BCE Through ConjecturalRestoration fi g.03). fl attened

Nakhara 127 Nakhara 128 path ( regular intervalsalongalowercircumambulatory toranas werereplacedbystambhasandplantedat by clustersoffreestandingpillarsoraryakas. The points ofuppercircumambulatorypathweremarked richly ornamentedwithintricatedetails. The cardinal with rubblestoneandcoveredamarblecasing stupa inIndia. This stupahasahollowcore was erectedat Amaravati andisprobablythebiggest mini-stupa ( rock cutcaveswithasemi-circularwallbehind Tanzila SamadChoudhury iue7 GpaTml,45C.Fgr : ahKa epe 5 E iue9 DeogarhTemple, 500CE. Figure9: LadhKhanTemple, 450CE. Figure8: GuptaTemple, 415CE. Figure 7: Unkal1200CE. Figure 12: fi g. 05). g. fi Chandramaulisvara, g.04). Duringthe3 rd century CE. a stupa century CE.astupa 1000 Figure 11: CE. fi lled Vishwanatha Temple, Indian subcontinent.Startinginthe6 remarkable MahayanaBuddhisttemplesonthe temple atBudhGaya( was venerated(Grover, 1980,p.95).Mahabodhi of worshippingthestupa,imageBuddha that werefashionedafterHindushrines.Instead prominence. Emphasiswasthenshiftedtotemples century A.D, MahayanaBuddhismhadacquired In thenextphaseofdevelopment,around5 continues untiltoday. A.D., Buddhisttemplearchitecture 710-720 Figure 10: CE. fi g. 06)isoneoftheearliest, Vaikunthaperumal Temple, fl orse and ourished th century th

was eliminatedandtheupperportionofsanctum rudimentary andineffective conventionofa Deogarh Temple dating500CE.Inthisexamplethe Gupta templesreachedtheirculminationinthe row, pillaredhallwithaporticoinfront( create thegarbhagriha. The mandapaisadouble of themainhall,asquareportionwaspartitionedto the LadhKhan Temple. Inthemiddleofrearwall roofed withslopingstoneslabs,asintheexampleof small hallwastransformedintoalargesquarehall, structures. Inthenextphaseofdevelopment, was enlargedtoformapillaredporticoinlaterGupta In frontofthiswasashallowporch( chamber, havingnoopeningexceptthedoorway. Figure 13: of stonecalledgarbhagriha,a period, Hindutemplesappearedasasanctum In theearlystagesofdevelopmentduringGupta discussed. the formalevolutionofHindutempleisbriefly the genericelementsofHindutemples. Therefore, In itsevolution,theBuddhisttemplelargelyadopted understand theformsandfeaturesofHindutemples. evolution ofBuddhistshrines,itisnecessaryto In ordertoidentifyandcomprehendtheformal SHRINE EVOLUTION OFBUDDHIST 5 Mahabodhi Temple atBodhGaya, th centuryCE. fl at roofedsquare fi g0) which g.07) fi fl g 08). g. at roof at four columns( of thecentralstructurewitha one, therearefourporticosprojectingfromeachside feature isthearrangementofportico.Instead in thecentreofasquareterrace. The mostnotable The baseoftheshrinewaselevatedbybeingplaced was carriedupwardintheformofpyramidaltower. direction andencircledbyanenclosurewall(N.K. plan”. Itfeaturedhavingfourdoorways,oneineach was developedandnamedthe“Sarvatobhadra the sanctum.Later, anewplanforHindutemples from thelowest,overporchtoloftyspire its separatepyramidalroofrisinginregulargradation the ardha-mandapa( placed aroundthegarbha-griha,mandapaand as maha-mandapa.Circumambulatorypathswere was atranseptoneachsideofthiscentralhallknown to themandapawasanardha-mandapaandthere intermediate chambercalledanantarala.Leadingup sanctum, mandapaand[?]inarow;thusformingan phase ofdevelopmentincludesuni by acontinuousrangeofcells( enclose thetemplewithinarectangularcourtyard Later, during700CEitbecamethepracticeto Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: fi g.09). 7 Figure 14: fi g. 11). Inthisclasseachhas Sarnath atBenaras, th centuryCE. fl at roofsupportedby Through ConjecturalRestoration fi g. 10). The later fi cation ofthe

Nakhara 129 Nakhara 130 occupation formthe8 of thecentralshrinerevealfourclearperiods archeological digsofinsideandoutsidecells edifice arrangedaroundacentralshrine.Deep is builtroughlyonasquareandmonumental located. The planofShalban Vihara isuniqueasit in theareaofBengalwhereShalbanVihara is Signi cardinal pointsareadornedwithprojectedporticos. were mountedattheapexofpyramid.Thefour temple, aminiaturestupaandharmikapinnacle Hindu shrines.To distinguishitfromaHindu the elongatedstupasofGandharaandSikharas’ temple. InspirationforSarnathwasderivedfrom rises toaremarkableheightsimilartheMahabodhi Sarnath’s tower, withitssevenrecedingstories, of Sarnathisanothergreatcentreforpilgrims. plan ofa were builttoconformtheHindu Corner towers,echoingtheshapeofmainspire, turret, acopyonsmallerscale,ofthecentraltower. smaller square. At eachcorneroftheterraceisa lofty pyramidaltower, eachsectionaprogressively consists ofahighandbroadplinth,onwhichrises 1965, p.41). The ground is the with theBhitargaontemple,nearCawnpur;which For example,theMahabodhitemplehassimilarities the contemporaryHindutemplesduring5 prominence. Buddhiststooktheirinspirationfrom fl As statedbefore,Buddhisttemplesbeganto 1200 CE. of Candramaulisvara,Unkalconstructedduring of thenotableexamplesthisplanistemple Singh, EncyclopediaofHinduism,Volume 7).One Tanzila SamadChoudhury arms. building, accessingthechapels intheprojecting ambulatory passage,whichsurrounded theentire The approachwasfromthenorth, leadingtoawide that thestructureattaineda considerableheight. facing cardinalpoints.Fromits size,itisestimated cross withchapelsbuiltintotheprojectingarms and recessedcorners,itsplanresemblesaGreek Ringed byanembellishedplinthwithpointingangles shrine wasbuiltonastupendousscale. the lastDevarulerSriBhavaDeva;earlyperiod ourish afterMahayanaBuddhismhadacquired fi cant Buddhistdevelopmentscanbeseen fi rst bricktemplehavingashikhara(Brown, fi ve-shrined temple.TheBuddhisttemple th to12 fl oor ofMahabodhitemple th centuriesCE.Builtby panchayatana th century. during the8 Vikramashila vihara,constructedbyDharmapala Another contemporaryBuddhistviharais structure. to theoverallconceptualplansforthisspectacular placed hollowsquareonthetopterracegivesaclue the structureisstillunknown.Perhapscentrally decoration thatadornsthewalls. The terracotta plaquesandstonereliefsformacomplex of thesquare.Carvedbrickcornices,friezes of theterracedwallsareeliminatedateachcorner chamber andamandapaoneachface.Portions they risewiththethirdterracecontaininganante- threeterracesgraduallydiminishas Paharapur’s shape withanglesofprojectionbetweenthearms. of otherstructures.Itisdistinguishedbyitscruciform stupas, minorchapels,areservoirandmultitude monastic cellsandincludesgateways,votive shrine, thehugecomplexissurroundedby177 king Dharmapala.Dominatedbyasoaringcentral the ShalbanVihara andwasconstructed byPala Paharpur Vihara wasbuilt inthesameeraas original shape. last periodweretooscantytogiveanideaaboutits rooms alsoechothechapels. The remainsofthe hall surroundedbythepradakshinapath. The side a tieredpedestal,isonthesouthernsideof with theChaityahall. The worshipchamber, with a pillaredpavilioninthecentre.Itwasconnected on thenorthsideleadingtoanentrancehallwith The revealedstructureindicatesabroadstaircase the oblongplanwasretainedonareducedscale. chambers andoblongpassages.Inthethirdphase, pavilion inthecentreandanumberofspacious It consistsofasquareentrancehallwithpillared being replacedbyanoblongone,alsofacingnorth. in theplanofshrinewithcruciformshape The secondbuildingphasesawacompletechange the fourcardinaldirections. The architectureof separate pillaredmandapa,are placedinfrontof each withapillaredantechamber thathasa steps onthenorthside.Four protruding chambers, two terracedshrineisaccessible througha and aclusterofvotivestupas. This cruciformed, stupa laidinmudmortaritscentre,plusalibrary a huge,squaremonasterywithbrickcruciform Archaeological SurveyofIndia(1972-82)revealed th centuryinBhagalpur, Bihar. The fi nal shapeof fl ight of ight 7 Figure 15: Figure 20: 12 CentralshrineofShalbonVihara, th /8 AngkorVat, Cambodia th centuryCE. th century A.D. Figure 16: Paharpurvihara,8 Figure 19: 11 CentralshrineofSampura/ AnandaTemple atPagan th century CE. Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: th centuryCE Figure 17: at 8 Figure 18: 8 Vicramashila Vihara Through ConjecturalRestoration Temple ofBorobudur th centuryCE. th centuryCE

Nakhara 131 Nakhara 132 been placed,recallingthePanchayatana planning the entrancehalls,smalldetached shrineshave In theopenpartsofthisterrace, oneachsideof symmetrically groupedonthe wideraisedterrace. courtyards, oneateachangle. Entrancehallsare the rectangleofcentralspaceleavingfouropen pillared hallswithtwodiametricalcorridorscrossing interior porticosresolvesitselfintoasquareplanof gathers itselfupintoatoweringturretedmass. The temple issquareandinthecentreofit in existence. The immensestoneplatformofthe largest andmostimpressivestoneBuddhisttemple Angkor Wat inCombodia,isconsideredtobethe variation ofthestupa. lower andsubsidiaryturretsmaybetermedapagoda is derivedfromtheIndo-Aryansikhara,while elements representtwotraditions;thecentralspire the recedingroofsandaboveporticos. These other supplementarypinnaclesovertheanglesof rises abovethecentreofbuilding,thereare central shrines.Inadditiontothemainspire,which a GreekcrosssimilartoPaharpurandVikramashila four extensivearms,thusconvertingthewholeinto shape anditsextendedporticosreachouttoproduce truncated toproduceawide but abovethethirdterracethispyramidbecomes The stupa’s generalcon by a formation ofthebuildingandeachisapproached three elevatedterraces,whichmakeupthesquare Buddhist development.( The Ananda templeinPaganisanotherunique rises aseriesofsmallerstupas circular terraces,eachdiminishinginsize,onwhich is introduced.Overthesquareplatformarethree square systemceasesandacircularformation its of Borobudur( fl Eventually otherBuddhisttemplesofvariousforms (vikramshilauniversity.com). is largerandhasfortlikeprojectionsonitsouterwall very similarexceptthattheVikramasila monastery Somapura Mahavihara,Paharpur. Bothplansare of Vikramasila Mahaviharaarecomparableto the stupaandthemesofterracottaplaques Tanzila SamadChoudhury ourished inSouth-East Asian countries. The Temple fl at lines are interrupted by projecting faces. It has at linesareinterruptedbyprojectingfaces.Ithas fl ight ofsteepstepsthrougharcheddoorways. fi g. 18)inJavaisasquareplan,but fi guration isalowpyramid, fi g.19) Itiscruciformin fl at surface.Herethe 5 Ellora appeartohavebegunabout themiddleof The MahayanaBuddhistmovements at Ajanta and Next wasthedevelopmentofMahayanaviharas. of developmentwasveryshortlived. Takht-e-Bahi isoneofsuch examples.Butthisperiod is knownas“Gandhara”style. The monasteryof motifs istheembryoofarchitecturalstylewhich style. The mixingofRomano-GreekandIndian the architectureofviharasfollowed“Gandhara” Eventually duringtheperiodof250BCEto450CE also someevidenceofdoublestoriedviharas. Hinayana viharasaresinglestoried,butthereis corresponded totheopencourtyard.Mostofthese from tothreeinteriorsides.Herethecentralhall or colonnade( its spaceuninterruptedbyanyformationofpillars assembly hallwasalargesquarecompartment, by theopensimplicityofcentralhall. This phase. The viharasofthisphase arecharacterized two distinctmovements. The earliest istheHinayana Rock-cut BuddhistviharasinIndiaresolvesitselfinto example, (fig22,top)thedesign offourpillars by thearrangementofpillars inthemainhall.For 2 and focusesonstructuresfromthebeginningof studied fortheirrelevancytothePaharpurVihara enclosing anopen-to-skycourt. The viharasare viharas consistsoflargehallsandchambers chaitya hallswithmonasteriesandviharas.Generally cut architecturecanbedividedintotwocatagories; Buddhist monasticestablishments.rock- parts ofthesub-continent. This tooktheformof another architecturalstylewasdevelopinginother Along withtheBuddhiststupasandtemples, EVOLUTION OFTHEVIHARA above arethemostrelevantexamples. Paharpur centralshrine,thosewhicharediscussed have Many otherremarkableBuddhistdevelopments level higherthanthelast. rectangular galleriesrisingtoacentraltower;each of temples. The templeconsistsessentiallyofthree th nd centuryCE.Mahayanaviharas arecharacterized centuryBCEtothe8 fl ourishedformanyyearsbutinrelationtothe fi g.21) andhadcellsopeningout th centuryCE.

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system adoptedinallsubsequent viharahalls( on allfoursides,whichisasatisfactory andlogical dimensions. Laterthisdevelopedintoacolonnade by sidebecamenecessaryinastructureoflarger the courtyard.Placementoftwosuchshedsside suggests asquareshed,occupyingthecentreof 8 Figure 26: AjantaXII,2 Figure 21: storied vihara, storied viharaswereprominent inadditiontotheone 22, bottom).IntheMahayana phase,twoorthree Bhasu vihara, vihara, Hinayana of Example th / 9 th century CE. nd centuryCE 8 Figure 25: VI450 A.D-642 CE vihara, Ajanta VIIand Figure 22: Sampura /Paharpurvihara, th centuryCE. Example ofMahayana fi g. an outercellwithopenveranda. The important The generalplanformedarectangle boundedby The viharasofNalandaused acommonlayout. university, ithaddormitories for10,000students. of them.Nalandwastheworld’s (modern Bihar)andBengal.Nalandawasone grew upduringthePalaperiodinancientMagadha Eventually, from5 Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: th century CE a range of monasteries centuryCEarangeofmonasteries 5 Nalanda University Figure 23: Figure 24: 7 Through ConjecturalRestoration th Shalbon vihara, century CE th /8 fi th rt residential rst century CE.

Nakhara 133 Nakhara 134 Shalban Vihara (fig.24),Bengal,builtduring7 almost identical. and dispositionsofroomswithinmonasteriesare is sometimesoccupiedbyshrines. The dimensions the monasterieswest,widespaceinbetween are intwoparallelrows,thetemplefacingeastand one whole( sections beingenclosedbywallsandthusforming shrines, pavilions,andcourtsontheother;two during thisperiod. like SitakotVihara andJagaddalaVihara were single gateway. Manyothersimilarly plannedviharas around anopencourtyard,access wasprovidedbya Monastic cellsaresetatthe backofaveranda of Monastery1andwasbroadly similarinplan. square courtyard.Monastery2liestothenortheast monastic cellswerearrangedonthefoursidesofa this wasroughlyarectangularplan. A seriesof Monastery 1 a semi-cruciformshrineofthePost-Guptaperiod. is acomplexoftworectangularmonasteriesand monastic blocksarrangedinaline feature ofthisviharawasacollectionsmaller Tanzila SamadChoudhury 8 Another mentionableviharaisBhasuofthe the foursides. by a around andisapproachedfromtheinnercourtyard by aspaciousverandahrunningcontinuouslyall high enclosurewalls. The wholeareaisconnected establishment, occupyingaquadrangularcourt,has was providedforprivateentrance. The entire small passageinthemiddleofeasternblock the southernandwesternsides,butpossiblya end. There wasnoarrangement ofingresson through thenorthernenclosurenearitseastern there wasaquadrangularsubsidiaryentrance In Paharpur, besidesthemaingatewaytonorth, Similiar toShalbanisPaharpur(Sompura)vihara, period. of theseestablishmentsandtheinsecurity of acitadelnecessitatedbytheincreasingwealth outer wall,hasgivenittheappearanceandutility its guardroomsandthedrearylookofmassive middle ofthenorthwing. The singlegateway, with central shrineanditssingleentranceisplacedinthe sites. This viharaisarrangedin four wingsarounda century CE,isthemostimportantofexcavated th centuryCE;locallyknownasNarapatirDhap.It fl ight ofstepslocatedinthemiddleeach fi is builtofburntbrickssetinmudmortar g. 23). The templesandmonasteries

on onesidewith

built th

terraces ( is largeranditscentralshrinehastwoprojecting shrine ofPaharpurexceptVikramashila Vihara Dharmapala, issimilartothedesignofcentral The centralshrineofVikramshila Vihara, madeby either identicalorstrikinglyalike(Mainamati,p.11). the terracottaplaquesfoundatbothsitesare the monastery, thecruciformplanofshrineand shrine ofShalbanVihara. The squarelay-outof designmaybein Paharpur’s the sitelocationsareclose,itmaybeassumedthat built abouthalfacenturyafterShalbanVihara and shown in the centralshrineofShalbanVihara ( antechamber atthecardinalpointsofcruciformlike placement ofthesanctumwithMandapaandan Angkor Wat. plan has acomparable Paharpur’s shrine andvihara central to surmisetheactualformofPaharpur’s Buddhist developmentsareanalysizedinthispaper similarities withPaharpurVihara. Therefore, these Nalanda, BhasuVihara, SitakotVihara havesome central shrine. with Paharpur’s Again theviharaslike Angkor Wat inCombodiahavesomesimilarities developments like Ananda Temple inPaganand contemporary ofPaharpur. Moreover, latterBuddhist shrine ofShalbanVihara andBorobodur Temple isa like thecentralshrineofVikramashila Vihara, central revealed yet.ButotherimportantBuddhiststructures a dilapidatedcondition,itsactualformcan’tbe Since thePaharpurmonasterywasexcavatedin MAHAVIHARA ANALYSIS OFPAHARPUR in Paganof11 Vihara, Kalasan Temple inJavaand Ananda Temple the centralshrineofShalbanVihara, Vikramashila shrine ofPaharpuritisrealizedthatsimilarto analyzing theformandmorphologyofcentral the templeofBorobuduror Angkor Wat. Butin the centralshrineofPaharpurhassimilaritieswith In somesecondarysources,ithasbeensaidthat CENTRAL SHRINE FORM AND MORPHOLOGY OFTHE

points andwithanante-chamber oneachside, square shrinewithfourentrances atthecardinal shrine isalsosimilartothe central On theotherhand,plan of Paharpur’s ( fi g. 35). g. fi g. 34)whilePaharpu’s hasthreeterraces fi g. 28). As thePaharpurmonasterywas th century. ItisunlikeBorobudurand .

sarvatobhadra fl uenced bythecentral fi rst phaseas type-a 1 Shalban vihara st Vihara, 7 Figure 28: phase of Figure 31: (Nagara syle)950CE CentralshrineofShalban Plan ofMukteswaraTemple th /8 th century CE. Figure 27: Paharpurvihara,8 CentralshrineofSompura/ Figure 29: 8 Figure 32: Unkal1200CE Temple ofBorobudur th centuryCE. Candramaulisvara, Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: th century CE Figure 33: 778 CE Figure 30: Pagan 11 Kalasan, CentralJava Through ConjecturalRestoration Ananda Temple, th centuryCE

Nakhara 135 Nakhara 136 to havesigni for inspiringIndiantemples,atypethatmaybefound iconographic motif,seemstohavebeenresponsible temple style.Inadditiontothat,adistinctiveJaina to theCentralIndianexpressionofNagara Moreover, theJainatemplesofKhajurahobelong Asia ( from 7 As thedevelopmentofNagarastyletookplace are alsocarriedupwardstothetopofshikhara. inclining inwardsinaconvexcurve. The projections side. Inelevationitexhibitsatowergradually shape withanumberofre-entrantanglesoneach of eachside. These projections giveitacruciform a numberofgraduatedprojectionsinthemiddle According tothisdesign,thetempleisasquarewith also supportstheideaofNagarastyle( chatuhshala griha Cruciform projectionsofVikramshila’s Central shrine Figure 34: Tanzila SamadChoudhury The name sarvatobhadra for the architectural design The namesarvatobhadraforthe architecturaldesign a four-facedJainaimage,pratima sarvatobhadrika. a sarvatobhadratempleadmirably suitstheneedsof from thefourdirections. The fundamentaldesignof is naturallyandlogicallyexpected tobeapproached Jainas hadconceivedafour-facedvotiveobjectwhich four facesorsides.Itisimportanttoobservethatthe of solidsquareobelisquewithimagesoneachits centuries oftheChristianera.Ittakesshape Pratima Sarvatobhadrikaininscriptionsfromearly early times.Suchanimagehasbeendescribedas been averypopularJainaiconographicthemefrom usually knownasChaturmaukhaorCaumuha,has in

fl centralshrine. uenced thedesignofPaharpur’s jainology.blogspot.com) th to13 th fi centuryCEthisstylealsocouldhave cant reverberationsinSouthEast . Inadditiontothattheshrine . A four-facedimage, fi g. 31). g.

Buddhist elementsduringthe7 of religiousarchitecture;thesynthesisHinduand signifying thedevelopmentofanindigenousstyle to assumethatthiswasanoriginalconception, dated laterthanPaharpuritisnotunreasonable at Kalasan.Butsinceboththeexamplesare to thearchitecturalstyleexistonCentralJava housing theirchaturmukhaimages.Closeparallels have startedwiththeJainasforpurposeof notable exampleofafour-facedshrinethatmight In the Ananda templeinPagan,onefinds,a served asthemodelforimitationbyBuddhists. The Jainamotifofafour-facedaltarappearstohave and reproducethedesignofafourentrancedshrine. spread ofBuddhism.(Mainamati, p.11). Bengal totheSouth-East Asian countrieswiththe parts ofthecountrythisstyle alsotravelledfrom Paharpur andothersareknown toexistindifferent similar groundplanlieburiedin theneighborhoodof Additionally, sincealargenumberofshrineswith Paharpur’s centralshrinewithcruciformprojections Paharpur’s Figure 35: af fi the cubicalblockinlowersectionhavingfour each ofthemisashrinesurmountedbysikhara, like Paharpur, ShalbanandVikramashila vihara.In sarvatobhadrika isexpressedinvotivetemples early date. Among theBuddhists,ideaofJaina placement oftheirsarvatobhadrikaimagesatafairly appears tohaveevolvedbytheJainasforproper type ofshrinewithfourdoorsoncardinalfaces sarvatobhadra usedfortheiconographicmotif. The appears tohavesigni gures inniches. These votiveofferings ofBuddhist fi liation echo the motif of the Jaina sarvatobhadrika liation echothemotifofJainasarvatobhadrika fi cant relationswiththeterm th -8 th centuriesBCE. Mahabodhi is square whereasPaharpurhave a and Sarnatharenotsimilar to Paharpur, plansof it isalsoobservedthatthe plans ofMahabodhi Mahavihara (S.M. Akbar, 84). Butatthesametime temple tobuildthesuperstructure ofPaharpur Dharmapala wasinfluenced bytheMahabodhi Mahabodhi templeseveraltimes. Soitseemsthat place forBuddhists.PalaKingDharmapalavisited The Mahabodhitemplewasawellknownholy superstructure ofashikharastyleroo small spancanonlybecreatedbytheoverhead of overheadplanes. This kindofloadonsucha of theinnercellsareindicativeahugeload a considerableheight. The abnormallythickwalls is anexampleofashikharatyperoo At Paharpur, thehugemasonryofcentralshrine ROOFS OFMANDAPA CENTRAL SHRINE AND THE CROWNING TOWER OVER Perspective of Ananda templeatPagan Figure 40: Mahabodhi, 500CE. Figure 36: Sarnath, 700CE Figure 37: fi ng attaining ng fi ng. Bhitargaon, 400CE Figure 38: the rooftreatmentofsanctumandmandapa. assumed thattheremighthavesomesimilaritiesin to thatofthe Ananda templeatPagan,itcanbe As theplanningprinciplesofPaharpuraresimilar of Shikhara,notintheplanning. Mahabodhi isonlymaintainedinthecaseofform Deogarh. Therefore, thesimilarity ofPaharpurwith have asimilarkindofshikhara,likeBhitargaonand has similarprojectionsfromfoursidesitmight shown in similar; bothhaveprojectionsfromallfoursidesas forms ofshikharasBhitargaonandDeogarhare because bothhaveprojectionsinallfoursides. The centralshrinesome similaritieswithPaharpur’s planning ofBhitargaonandDeogarhtempleshow on theMahabodhiasBhitargan. Again, the one canseeasimilartypeofvast,heavyshikhara to havesimilaritieswiththeBhitargaontemple,as cruciform plan. Again theMahabodhitempleissaid of guestsandexternal students. structures outsidethemaincomplex fortheshelter like Vikramashila Vihara alsohave thesecells-like many othersecondarysources, othermonasteries walls intheiroriginalpositions. Butaccordingto orthogonal supportswereneeded toretainthe they mightbelateradditions whensomekindof not seemtobethepartsoforiginalscheme, of thesecellsarenotknownyet.Butdo and easternside. The useandlogicaljusti has someexteriorcell-likestructuresinnorthern The raisedplatformoutsidethemaincomplex FORM AND VIHARA Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: fi g. 38and39.SincethePaharpurtemple M ORPHOLOGY OF Deogarh, 500CE Figure 39: Through ConjecturalRestoration

fi cation

Nakhara 137 Nakhara 138 Through thisplanningitseemsthatmonksusedto structures placedinthecentresofvihara’s sides. steps tothecourtyardareonlythroughgate-like much higherthantheopencourtyardofviharaand is notde approach fromthecellstowardscentralshrine the cellsandcorridors.Onotherhand, were coveredandthewallcarriedloadofboth cell walls.Itmightbethatboththecellsandcorridor 43) revealthatitcarriedmoreloadsthantheother The thickwallbetweenthecorridorandcells( Tanzila SamadChoudhury walls. Thickness ofmonastery Figure 42: Plan ofPaharpurVihara. Figure 41: the presenceofcolumnsalongcorridor( courtyard side,asnoevidenceisfoundindicating the cellsmightbeenclosedbyathickwallon structures isnotde the northerngateway, thepurposeofthreecardinal but wasfoundatthebaseofwall.Exceptfor fi ned. Itseemsthatthecorridorbeside fi ned. The plinthofthecorridoris and opencourtyard. Corridor betweenthecells Figure 43: fi g. 44) g. fi g. g. of Vihara. Exterior celllikestructures Figure 44: storied structure. so itcanbeassumedthattheviharawasasingle evidence ofverticalcirculation,likestairs,isfound, vihara ofPaharpurmightbemultistoriedbutasno Moreover, somesecondarydatarevealsthatthe the easternsideofviharathanwesternside. most oftheancillarystructurescanbefoundnear (Naqi andMallick,p.76).Itmightbethereasonthat concentrated onallthethreesidesexceptwest longer spanoftimeandthelaterdevelopments earlier. The easternportionhadbeeninusefora The westernpartofthecomplexwasabandoned why thecorridorwasenclosedbywalls. like structures,notfromallsidesofthecorridor, that’s get downtothecourtyardonlythroughthesegate- Vihara of Angkor Wat. Figure 45: Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: Anti-chamber Mandapa Central blindcell Covered Pradakshinapath Upper levelPradakshinpath Lower levelPradakshinpath Through ConjecturalRestoration

Nakhara 139 Nakhara 140 Tanzila SamadChoudhury Reclaiming theLost Architectural HeritageSompurMahavihara: Through ConjecturalRestoration

Nakhara 141 Nakhara 142 www.archaeology.gov.bd Singh, N.K., p. 87-88. Satish, G.(1980) UNESCO, Dhaka Dep. of Archaeology, MinistryofCultural Affairs and World HeritageSiteanditsEnvironment(Bangladesh), of an Archaeological ResearchStrategyfor Paharpur In ProceedingsoftheInternationalSeminaronElaboration of PaharpurVihara: A Conjectural Virtual Reconstruction.” Naqi, M. A. andFalguni,M.(2004) “FormandMorphology Academy Dhaka. Momtazur, R. T. (1995)“ItihasO Aitihasik”. Bangla Companies, Inc.,p.70. reconstruct thelostheritage. It looksintothehistoryinamoredynamicwayto contesting narrativesregardingitsarchitecture. into opportunitiesthatwouldaccommodatedifferent of SompurMahaviharabyalteringtheseconstraints is anattempttogenerateaconjecturalrestoration historians appearasthemainconstraint. This study epigraphic recordsatthedisposalofarchitectural archaeological resource,literaryevidencesand strategic location.However, thelimitedamountof because oftheiruniquearchitecturalfeaturesand structures atthebeginningoftwentiethcentury, Southeast Asia fromthediscoveryofruins of thearchitecturalhistoriansSouthand ancient Buddhistmonument,drewtheattention Sompur MahaviharaorPaharpurvihara,the CONCLUSION Tanzila SamadChoudhury Lawrence. Moffett, M.et.al (2003)Fazio,Michael,Wodehouse, “Mainamati”. Dept.of Archaeology inPakistan,p.11. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pala_Empire bssa.geoscienceworld.org p. 43. Brown, P. (1969)”Indian Architecture”. Bombay. pl-xxxviii, Bengal Asiatic SocietyofBengal REFERENCES , Volume 34,Part1,Issues1-4,p.142. A WorldHistoryof Architecture.

Encyclopedia ofHinduism The Architecture ofIndia,NewDelhi . Journalofthe Asiatic Societyof , Volume 7. McGraw-Hill .

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