DOCSLIB.ORG

Lesson: Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles (North India) Lesson Developer: Anisha Saxena College/ Departm

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Lesson: Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles (North India) Lesson Developer: Anisha Saxena College/ Departm Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Lesson: Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles (North India) Lesson Developer: Anisha Saxena College/ Department: History , Lady Shri Ram College , University of Delhi Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Table of Contents Chapter 19: Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Introduction 19.1 Metaphysical origins of a Brahmanical temple 19.2 Plan and elevation of an early medieval temple 19.3 Schools of North Indian Style of Architecture 19.3.1 Western Indian School of Architecture 19.3.2 Central Indian School of Architecture (Khajuraho) 19.3.3 Kalinga Style School of Architecture (Orissa) 19.3.4 Architecture of Kashmir 19.4 Sculpture 19.5 Exercise 19.6 Glossary 19.7 Further Readings Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Introduction The early medieval period (750-1200 CE) witnessed a remarkable growth in the development of regional art and architecture. Each region developed its own style of architecture and sculpture under patronage of different political dynasty in different parts of India. The Chandellas in Madhya Pradesh created their own vocabulary of sculpture and architecture, while a different style of art and architecture flourished in Rajasthan and Gujarat under the patronage of various Rajput dynasties. Pallavas, Pandayas and Cholas in the southern India created large edifices that were completely different in style and form the temple architecture of northern India. Regional style of architecture also developed in Orissa, Bengal and Kashmir. In the Deccan under the patronage of the Chalukyan rulers a synthesis of both north Indian and south Indian temple styles emerged and hence, art and architecture of this period should be understood in terms of dialogues between different regional styles. Temples in the early medieval period were not merely places of worship; they were important social, economic and political institutions. R. Champakalakshmi in her Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India 300 BC to AD 1300 while discussing the growth of urbanization in the region of Tamilakam discusses the importance of Brahmanical temple as a ceremonial center and symbol of concentration of social and political power derived from a sacral authority. According to her temples were royal projects undertaken by the rulers for legitimization of political authority. B.D.Chattopadhyaya in his Studying Early India has suggested that temples acted as social, cultural and political institutions in the early medieval India. A number of architectural texts or vastu texts were also composed during this period. Samaranaganasutradhara was composed in the tenth century CE in central India, Aparajitapriccha was composed in the twelfth-thirteenth centuries in western India. The period also witnesses growth in temple building activities among the Jains, especially in western India (Gujarat and Rajasthan). From the available architectural texts the style of architecture that prevailed in this period can be divided into three styles- Nagara, Dravida and Vesara. Nagara or the North Indian style of architecture flourished from the Himalayas to Vindhyas. The Dravida architecture essentially refers to the temple built in south of Krishna River and Vesara or Karnata-Dravida is the term used to describe temples built in the Deccan and was a confluence of styles of Nagara and Dravida architecture. 19.1 Metaphysical origins of a Brahmanical temple A Brahmanical temple is conceived as a cosmos in miniature, it brings alive the cosmic man or purusha. The plan of each temple is based on vastupurushamandala. The essential plan of a vastupurushamandala is a square-divided into further smaller squares. Each square in the mandala is reserved for a deity, a planet, a star or the guardians of the directions. The minor deities occupy the periphery squares of the plan and the central space or squares are reserved for the central deity, his/her avataras or form or rupa and family. Like the mount meru the structure of a Brahmanical temple rises from this square. Largely, a Brahmanical temple faces east- direction of the rising sun, but there are exceptions like vastupurushamandala Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 temples dedicated to Vishnu might sometimes face west. 19.2 Plan and Elevation of an Early Medieval Temple The essential elements of an early medieval temple were-a garbhagriha (sanctum sanctorum), a pradakshinapath (circumambulatory path) running along the garbhagriha, a mandapa (hall) or a series of mandapas and a porch. By the early medieval period the temples in India had become grand both, in its elevation and plan, patrons and architects adding several mandapas between the garbhagriha and the porch like the-nrittya mandapa (dancing hall), sabha mandapa (meeting hall), maha-mandapa (the great hall) and ranga- mandap(color hall). Like in its plan, even in its elevation a temple was conceived as a man, a standing man, the prasada or the main shrine composed of a pada (wall), leading to a shikhara (curvilinear superstructure)which stood over the garbhagriha. The shikhara was composed of a griva (neck), amalaka and a finial. Some of the significant stylistic differences that appeared between the Dravida and Nagara style of temple architecture are: A Dravida temple is surrounded by a wall (prakara). Dravida temples are also known for their massive gateways or gopurams, missing in the Nagara architecture. The shikhara of a Dravida temple is of pyramid shaped composed of kuta (square), sala (rectangle) and chandrasalas (arched window motif). The Nagara temple shikara is curvilinear in nature. Temple plan A Source: M.A.Dhaky Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Temple plan B Source: http://www.kamit.jp/02_unesco/08_khajuraho/kha_eng.htm Compare carefully the two temple plans, plan A is a Gupta period temple and consists of a sopanam (staircase), a porch, a mandap and a garbhagriha. Plan B is of Kandariya Mahadeva temple, Khajuraho, the temple was constrcted in tenth century CE and is a mature Nagara style architecture and its plan consists of a staircase, porch, followed by a mandapa and a maha-mandapa, a garbhagriha and a pradakshinapath. SLIDE MISSING, WILL BE SCANNED FROM M.A.DHAKY’S WORK Temple Elevation B Exercise 1. Similar to the two temple plans given above, can you make out the difference between the two types of elevations? Can you point out the Gupta period temple out of the two? 19.3 Schools of North Indian Style of Architecture 19.3.1 Western India school of Architecture Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Grand temples were created in Gujarat and Rajasthan in the early medieval period under the patronage various Rajput dynasties that emerged in the western Indian from the seventh century CE. Both the Brahmanical and the Jaina temples were constructed under the patronage of the Guhilas of Mewar, the Gurjara-Pratiharas and the Solanki (Chalukyas of Gujarat). Undertaking projects of temple construction was not limited to kings, Jaina merchants got several temples constructed in western India. Jaina merchant brothers Tejapala and Vastupala patronized the famous marble temples of Mount Abu in Rajasthan. Samar Shah, a Jaina merchant from Patan is also credited with construction and repair of several Jaina temples. Eminent art historian M.A.Dhaky has studied in detail the architectural style of the western Indian temples and have divided them into three-sub categories- the Maha-Maru and Maha- Gurjara style of architecture that existed in western India between the eighth and tenth century CE. The Maha-Maru refers to the architectural style that flourished in the region on Marwar and is recognized by their high and moulded terrace or jagati and multi turreted spire and ornamental sculpture (examples can be seen at Chittor, Osia, Sikar and Mandor), the Maha-Gurjara style of architecture flourished in Gujarat and was characterized by pyramidal roof and sparse sculptural ornamentation (examples can be seen at Roda, Kutch and Shamalaji) and lastly the Maru-Gurjara style of architecture that evolved by the eleventh-twelfth century and combined the architectural styles of Maha-Maru and Maha- Gurjara. The rang mandapa of the Luna Vashi temple, one of the Jaina marble temples at Dilwara marks the zenith of the Maru-Gurjara style of architecture. Eleventh century Nagara style Shiva temple, Roda (Gujarat) shikhara of Sacchiya Mata temple, Source: http://www.william- Osian. (Jodhpur, Rajasthan) voirol.ch/In/10/10/0/G.html?lng=0 Source: Author Institute of Lifelong Learning, University of Delhi Regionalism: Art and Architecture of the Regional Styles 750 AD to c.1200 Shiva temple at Roda is an example of Maha-Gurjara style of architecture, notice the pyramidal roof and amalaka on the top. The Sun temple at Modhera was constructed in the eleventh century CE under the patronage of Solanki ruler Bhima I (1022-63). The temple faces east, where lies a large kunda or water tank. On the western end of the tank stands an ornamented freestanding torana, which acts as a transition between the tank and the temple. The temple itself consists of a porch followed by an assembly hall (gudhamandapa), a grabhagriha and a pradakshinapath. Sun Temple, Modhera (Gujarat) Source:http://www.esamskriti.com/photo-detail/Sun-Temple-Modhera.aspx 9.3.2 central India school of architecture (Khajuraho) Constructed under the patronage of the Chandella rulers between the tenth and the twelfth century, the temples of Khajuraho represent the epitome of Nagara style of architecture.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • India-Pakistan Conflict: Records of the Us State Department, February 1963
    http://gdc.gale.com/archivesunbound/ INDIA-PAKISTAN CONFLICT: RECORDS OF THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT, FEBRUARY 1963-1966 Over 16,000 pages of State Department Central Files on India and Pakistan from 1963 through 1966 make this collection a standard documentary resource for the study of the political relations between India and Pakistan during a crucial period in the Cold War and the shifting alliances and alignments in South Asia. Date Range: 1963-1966 Content: 15,387 images Source Library: U.S. National Archives Detailed Description: Relations with Pakistan have demanded a high proportion of India’s international energies and undoubtedly will continue to do so. India and Pakistan have divergent national ideologies and have been unable to establish a mutually acceptable power equation in South Asia. The national ideologies of pluralism, democracy, and secularism for India and of Islam for Pakistan grew out of the pre-independence struggle between the Congress and the All-India Muslim League, and in the early 1990s the line between domestic and foreign politics in India’s relations with Pakistan remained blurred. Because great-power competition—between the United States and the Soviet Union and between the Soviet Union and China—became intertwined with the conflicts between India and Pakistan, India was unable to attain its goal of insulating South Asia from global rivalries. This superpower involvement enabled Pakistan to use external force in the face of India’s superior endowments of population and resources. The most difficult problem in relations between India and Pakistan since partition in August 1947 has been their dispute over Kashmir.
    [Show full text]
  • Construction Techniques of Indian Temples
    International Journal of Research in Engineering, Science and Management 420 Volume-1, Issue-10, October-2018 www.ijresm.com | ISSN (Online): 2581-5782 Construction Techniques of Indian Temples Chanchal Batham1, Aatmika Rathore2, Shivani Tandon3 1,3Student, Department of Architecture, SDPS Women’s College, Indore, India 2Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, SDPS Women’s College, Indore, India Abstract—India is a country of temples. Indian temples, which two principle axis, which in turn resulted in simple structural are standing with an unmatched beauty and grandeur in the wake systems and an increased structural strength against seismic of time against the forces of nature, are the living evidences of forces. The Indian doctrine of proportions is designed not only structural efficiency and technological skill of Indian craftsman to correlate the various parts of building in an aesthetically and master builders. Every style of building construction reflects pleasing manner but also to bring the entire building into a a clearly distinctive basic principle that represents a particular culture and era. In this context the Indian Hindu temple magical harmony with the space. architecture are not only the abode of God and place of worship, B. Strutural Plan Density but they are also the cradle of knowledge, art, architecture and culture. The research paper describes the analysis of intrinsic Structural plan density defined as the total area of all vertical qualities, constructional and technological aspects of Indian structural members divided by the gross floor area. The size and Temples from any natural calamities. The analytical research density of structural elements is very great in the Indian temples highlights architectural form and proportion of Indian Temple, as compared to the today's buildings.
    [Show full text]
  • General Introduction to Odishan Temple Architecture
    Odisha Review May - 2012 General introduction to Odishan Temple Architecture Anjaliprava Sahoo INTRODUCTION Sastras recognize three main styles of temple architecture known as the Nagara, the Dravida Temple is a ‘Place of Worship’. It is also called 1 the ‘House of God’. Stella Kramrisch has defined and the Vesara. temple as ‘Monument of Manifestation’ in her NAGARA TEMPLE STYLE book ‘The Hindu Temple’. The temple is one of Nagara types of temples are the typical the prominent and enduring symbols of Indian Northern Indian temples with curvilinear sikhara- culture: it is the most graphic expression of religious spire topped by amlakasila.2 This style was fervour, metaphysical values and aesthetic developed during A.D. 5th century. The Nagara aspiration. style is characterized by a beehive-shaped and The idea of temple originated centuries multi-layered tower, called ‘Sikhara’. The layers ago in the universal ancient conception of God in of this tower are topped by a large round cushion- a human form, which required a habitation, a like element called ‘amlaka’. The plan is based shelter and this requirement resulted in a structural on a square but the walls are sometimes so shrine. India’s temple architecture is developed segmented, that the tower appears circular in from the Sthapati’s and Silpi’s creativity. A small shape. Advancement in the architecture is found Hindu temple consists of an inner sanctum, the in temples belonging to later periods, in which the Garbha Griha or womb chamber; a small square central shaft is surrounded by many smaller room with completely plain walls having a single narrow doorway in the front, inside which the image is housed and other chambers which are varied from region to region according to the needs of the rituals.
    [Show full text]
  • Temples Name Sates Vaishno Devi Jammu & Temple, Kashmir Dedicated to Shakti, Mata Rani Badrinath Temple Uttarakhand Kedarnath Temple Uttarakhand
    Temples Name Sates Vaishno Devi Jammu & Temple, Kashmir Dedicated to Shakti, Mata Rani Badrinath Temple Uttarakhand Kedarnath Temple Uttarakhand Golden Temple Amritsar, Punjab Markandeshwar Temple Haryana Hadimba devi Temple Himachal Pradesh Laxminarayan Temple ( New Delhi Birla Mandir ) Dilwara Temple Mount Abu, Rajasthan Kashi Vishwanath Temple- Varanasi, Uttar Dedicated to Lord Ganesha Pradesh Swaminarayan Akshardhan Delhi Temple Mahabodhi Temple Bodhgaya , Bihar Dakshnineswar kali Temple Kolkata Jagannath Temple - Puri, Odisha Dedicated to Jagannath God Kandariya Mahadev Madhya Temple- Part of Pradesh Khajuraho Temple Somnath Gujarat (Saurashtra ) Temple Siddhivinayak Temple- Located in Dedicated to Lord Ganesha Prabhadevi, Mumbai Maharashtra Balaji Venkateshwara Andhra Swamy Temple- Dedicated Pradesh to Lord Venkateshwara Lord Karnataka kalabhairah wara Temple Shi Dharmasthala Karnataka Manjunatheswara Temple Shi Dharmasthala Karnataka Manjunatheswara Temple Mureshwar Temple Karnataka Virupaksha Temple Karnataka Gomateshwara Bahubali Karnataka Temple Nataraja Temple- Tamil Nadu Dedicated to Lord Shiva Brihadeshwara Temple Thanjavur,Ta mil Nadu Jumbukeshwarar Temple Tamil Nadu Ranganathaswamy Temple- Tamil Nadu Dedicated to Lord Shiva Ekambareswarar Temple Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu Sripuram Golden Temple- Vellore, Tamil Dedicated to Lord Shiva Nadu Padmanabhaswa Kerala my Temple Richest Temple of the world Sabarimala Temple Kerala Sukreswar Temple- Dedcated Assam to Lord Shiva Kamakhya Temple Assam Angkor Wat Temple- Largest Cambodia
    [Show full text]
  • Circumambulation in Indian Pilgrimage: Meaning And
    232 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC & ENGINEERING RESEARCH, VOLUME 12, ISSUE 1, JANUARY-2021 ISSN 2229-5518 Circumambulation in Indian pilgrimage: Meaning and manifestation Santosh Kumar Abstract— Our ancient literature is full of examples where pilgrimage became an immensely popular way of achieving spiritual aims while walking. In India, many communities have attached spiritual importance to particular places or to the place where people feel a spiritual awakening. Circumambulation (pradakshina) around that sacred place becomes the key point of prayer and offering. All these circumambulation spaces are associated with the shrines or sacred places referring to auspicious symbolism. In Indian tradition, circumambulation has been practice in multiple scales ranging from a deity or tree to sacred hill, river, and city. The spatial character of the path, route, and street, shift from an inside dwelling to outside in nature or city, depending upon the central symbolism. The experience of the space while walking through sacred space remodel people's mental and physical character. As a result, not only the sacred space but their design and physical characteristics can be both meaningful and valuable to the public. This research has been done by exploring in two stage to finalize the conclusion, In which First stage will involve a literature exploration of Hindu and Buddhist scripture to understand the meaning and significance of circumambulation and in second, will investigate the architectural manifestation of various element in circumambulatory which help to attain its meaning and true purpose. Index Terms— Pilgrimage, Circumambulation, Spatial, Sacred, Path, Hinduism, Temple architecture —————————— —————————— 1 Introduction Circumambulation ‘Pradakshinā’, According to Rig Vedic single light source falling upon central symbolism plays a verses1, 'Pra’ used as a prefix to the verb and takes on the vital role.
    [Show full text]
  • In the Name of Krishna: the Cultural Landscape of a North Indian Pilgrimage Town
    In the Name of Krishna: The Cultural Landscape of a North Indian Pilgrimage Town A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA BY Sugata Ray IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Frederick M. Asher, Advisor April 2012 © Sugata Ray 2012 Acknowledgements They say writing a dissertation is a lonely and arduous task. But, I am fortunate to have found friends, colleagues, and mentors who have inspired me to make this laborious task far from arduous. It was Frederick M. Asher, my advisor, who inspired me to turn to places where art historians do not usually venture. The temple city of Khajuraho is not just the exquisite 11th-century temples at the site. Rather, the 11th-century temples are part of a larger visuality that extends to contemporary civic monuments in the city center, Rick suggested in the first class that I took with him. I learnt to move across time and space. To understand modern Vrindavan, one would have to look at its Mughal past; to understand temple architecture, one would have to look for rebellions in the colonial archive. Catherine B. Asher gave me the gift of the Mughal world – a world that I only barely knew before I met her. Today, I speak of the Islamicate world of colonial Vrindavan. Cathy walked me through Mughal mosques, tombs, and gardens on many cold wintry days in Minneapolis and on a hot summer day in Sasaram, Bihar. The Islamicate Krishna in my dissertation thus came into being.
    [Show full text]
  • Page-6-Editorial.Qxd
    SUNDAY, APRIL 11, 2021 DAILY EXCELSIOR, JAMMU Excelsiordaily Established 1965 Emperor Lalitaditya Muktapida of Kashmir Founder Editor S.D. Rohmetra Autar Mota MARTAND SUN TEMPLE Lalitaditya established many cities and towns . " If I had sent against you the King of King Lalitaditya built the Martand Sun These could be listed as under:- Kashmir on whose royal threshold the other Celebrations at CRPF alitaditya Muktapida (r.c. 724 CE-760 Temple in Kashmir on the plateau near Mattan 1. Sunishchita-pura. rulers of Hind had placed their heads, who sways CE) was a powerful Kayastha ruler of the town in South Kashmir. The location of the tem- 2. Darpita-pura. the whole of Hind, even the countries of Makran LKarkota dynasty of Kashmir . Kalhana , ple proves the skill and expertise of Kashmiri 3. Phala-pura. and Turan, whose chains a great many noblemen commando's house the 12th century chronicler ,calls him universal artisans of the period. It is said that from this M. A. Stein has identified this place with near and grandees have willingly placed on their monarch or the conqueror of the world, crediting on of the soil and a courageous CoBRA com- temple, one could see the entire Lidder valley present-day Shadipura town in Kashmir. knees." him with far-reaching conquests from Central and the Shikhara of the demolished 4. Parnotsa. The king of Kashmir referred to here is none mando of the CRPF, constable Rakeshwar Asia to shores of Arbian sea in India. According Vijeyshawara Shrine near the present-day M. A. Stein has identified this place as pres- other than Lalitaditya.
    [Show full text]
  • The Temple Architecture in Odisha
    ISSN 0970-8669 Odisha Review The Hindu temple architecture reflects a synthesis is concentrated in the city of Bhubaneswar where of arts, the ideals of religion, beliefs, values and there are over thirty of them. the way of life cherished under Hinduism. The temple is a place for pilgrimage. All the cosmic The main temples of this style consist of elements that create and celebrate life in Hindu the Lingaraja Temple at Bhubaneswar th pantheon are present in a Hindu temple from fire (11 century), the Jagannath temple at Puri th to water, from images of nature to deities, from (12 century) the Great Sun Temple at Konark the feminine to the masculine, from karma to (13th century), Rajarani Temple (10th century), artha. The form and meanings of architectural Mukteswar (10th Century), Parshuram Temple elements in a Hindu temple are designed to (8th Century) etc. function as the place where it is the link between The Kanlingan style consists of three man and the divine, to help his progress to spiritual distinct types of temples Rekha Deula, Pidha knowledge and truth, his liberation is called Deula and Khakhara Deula. The former two are Moksha. associated with Vishnu, Surya and Shiva temples The Temple Architecture in Odisha Sujata Routray The Indian temples are broadly divided while the third is mainly with Chamunda and Durga into Nagara, Vesara, Dravida and Gadag styles temples. The Rekha Deula and Khakhara Deula of architecture. However the temple architecture houses the sanctum sanctorum while the Pidha of Odisha corresponds to altogether a different Deula constitutes outer dancing and offering halls.
    [Show full text]
  • India in the Indian Ocean Donald L
    Naval War College Review Volume 59 Article 6 Number 2 Spring 2006 India in the Indian Ocean Donald L. Berlin Follow this and additional works at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review Recommended Citation Berlin, Donald L. (2006) "India in the Indian Ocean," Naval War College Review: Vol. 59 : No. 2 , Article 6. Available at: https://digital-commons.usnwc.edu/nwc-review/vol59/iss2/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Naval War College Review by an authorized editor of U.S. Naval War College Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Color profile: Generic CMYK printer profile Composite Default screen Berlin: India in the Indian Ocean INDIA IN THE INDIAN OCEAN Donald L. Berlin ne of the key milestones in world history has been the rise to prominence Oof new and influential states in world affairs. The recent trajectories of China and India suggest strongly that these states will play a more powerful role in the world in the coming decades.1 One recent analysis, for example, judges that “the likely emergence of China and India ...asnewglobal players—similar to the advent of a united Germany in the 19th century and a powerful United States in the early 20th century—will transform the geopolitical landscape, with impacts potentially as dramatic as those in the two previous centuries.”2 India’s rise, of course, has been heralded before—perhaps prematurely. How- ever, its ascent now seems assured in light of changes in India’s economic and political mind-set, especially the advent of better economic policies and a diplo- macy emphasizing realism.
    [Show full text]
  • Medieval India
    A History of Knowledge Oldest Knowledge What the Jews knew What the Sumerians knew What the Christians knew What the Babylonians knew Tang & Sung China What the Hittites knew Medieval India What the Persians knew What the Japanese knew What the Egyptians knew What the Muslims knew What the Indians knew The Middle Ages What the Chinese knew Ming & Manchu China What the Greeks knew The Renaissance What the Phoenicians knew The Industrial Age What the Romans knew The Victorian Age What the Barbarians knew The Modern World 1 Medieval India Piero Scaruffi 2004 2 What the Indians knew • Bibliography – Gordon Johnson: Cultural Atlas of India (1996) – Henri Stierlin: Hindu India (2002) – Hermann Goetz: The Art of India (1959) – Heinrich Zimmer: Philosophies of India (1951) – Surendranath Dasgupta: A History of Indian Philosophy (1988) – Richards, John: The Mughal Empire (1995) 3 India • 304 BC - 184 BC: Maurya • 184 BC - 78 BC: Sunga • 78 AD -233: Kushan • 318 - 528: Gupta • 550 - 1190 : Chalukya • Hoysala (1020-1342) • 1192-1526: Delhi sultanate • 1526-1707: Moghul • 1707-1802: Maratha 4 What the Indians knew • Tantra – Ancient practice to worship the mother goddess through sexual intercourse – Group intercourse 5 What the Indians knew • Tantra – Esoteric Hinduism – Dialogues between the god Shiva and his wife Parvati – Reversals of Hindu social practices (e.g., incest) – Reversals of physiological processes – Forbidden substances are eaten and forbidden sexual acts are performed ritually – ”Five m's": maithuna ("intercourse"), matsya ("fish"),
    [Show full text]
  • The Pakistan, India, and China Triangle
    India frequently experience clashes The Pakistan, along their shared borders, espe- cially on the de facto border of Pa- India, and kistan-administered and India-ad- 3 ministered Kashmir.3 China Triangle Pakistan’s Place in The triangular relationship be- the Sino-Indian tween India, China, and Pakistan is of critical importance to regional Border Dispute and global stability.4 Managing the Dr. Maira Qaddos relationship is an urgent task. Yet, the place of Pakistan in the trian- gular relationship has sometimes gone overlooked. When India and China were embroiled in the recent military standoff at the Line of Ac- tual Control (LAC), Pakistan was mentioned only because of an ex- pectation (or fear) that Islamabad would exploit the situation to press its interests in Kashmir. At that time, the Indian-administered por- tion of Kashmir had been experi- t is quite evident from the history encing lockdowns and curfews for of Pakistan’s relationship with months, raising expectations that I China that Pakistan views Sino- Pakistan might raise the tempera- Indian border disputes through a ture. But although this insight Chinese lens. This is not just be- (that the Sino-Indian clashes cause of Pakistani-Chinese friend- would affect Pakistan’s strategic ship, of course, but also because of interests) was correct, it was in- the rivalry and territorial disputes complete. The focus should not that have marred India-Pakistan have been on Pakistani opportun- relations since their independ- ism, which did not materialize, but ence.1 Just as China and India on the fundamental interconnect- have longstanding disputes that edness that characterizes the led to wars in the past (including, South Asian security situation—of recently, the violent clashes in the which Sino-Indian border disputes Galwan Valley in May-June are just one part.
    [Show full text]
  • The Krishna Temple Complex, Hampi: an Exploration of Its Identity As a Medieval Temple in the Contemporary Context
    THE KRISHNA TEMPLE COMPLEX, HAMPI: AN EXPLORATION OF ITS IDENTITY AS A MEDIEVAL TEMPLE IN THE CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Cornell University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Ashima Krishna January, 2009 © 2009 Ashima Krishna ABSTRACT Hindu temples in India have been in abundance for centuries. However, many have lost their use over time. They lie vacant and unused on vast tracts of land across the Indian subcontinent, in a time when financial resources for the provision of amenities to serve the local community are hard to come by. In the case of Hampi, this strain is felt not only by the community inhabiting the area, but the tourism sector as well. Hampi’s immense significance as a unique Medieval-city in the Indian subcontinent has increased tourist influx into the region, and added pressure on authorities to provide for amenities and facilities that can sustain the tourism industry. The site comprises near-intact Medieval structures, ruins in stone and archaeologically sensitive open land, making provision of tourist facilities extremely difficult. This raises the possibility of reusing one of the abundant temple structures to cater to some of these needs, akin to the Virupaksha Temple Complex and the Hampi Bazaar. But can it be done? There is a significant absence of research on possibilities of reusing a Hindu Temple. A major reason for this gap in scholarship has been due to the nature of the religion of Hinduism and its adherents. Communal and political forces over time have consistently viewed all Hindu temples as cultural patrimony of the people, despite legal ownership resting with the Government of India.
    [Show full text]