M. A. Schnabel (ed.), Back to the Future: The Next 50 Years, (51st International Conference of the Architectural Science Association (ANZAScA)), ©2017, Architectural Science Association (ANZAScA), pp. 261–270.

“Back” to the Future

Parametric in an Ancient Treatise on Architecture

Neena Singh Zutshi School of Planning & Architecture, New Delhi [email protected]

Abstract: Ancient treatises on architecture in India form a knowledge system which is intertwined with historical architecture in a complex manner. The content cloaks issues in architectural issues with philosophy, religion and other contextual references which leads to some practitioners’ contention that the treatise is “religious mumbo‐jumbo” while others attempt to employ it as a technical construction manual. This paper submits that the treatise is primarily about architectural theory and practice and its focus is design processes for different building types set out in the form of textual guidelines detailing the stages involved in the generation of the built form. This finds resonance in parametric design viewed as a set of instructions establishing relationship between objects controlled by variables which renders the treatise relevant to contemporary architecture in general and computation design process in particular. The utility of the treatise is enhanced in conservation efforts, especially reconstruction of ruined historical buildings, and post‐colonial scholarship in indigenous knowledge systems. Also, by premising correlation with contemporary processes in computation design, this paper informs their historical location and contributes towards their place as integral to design systems. It is premised that by going “back” in history in the form of an ancient treatise, the future, envisioned as parametric design, is informed.

Keywords: Parametric design process, historical treatise on architecture in India, Samranganasutradhara.

1. Introduction Ancient treatises on architecture in India form a knowledge system which is reflected in historical buildings in a complex manner. Most practitioners refer to treatises in a peripheral and technical manner while acknowledging their latent influence on historical monuments like temples and palaces. This paper suggests that the treatise is in the realm of theory and practice and submits that their relevance to contemporary architecture is significant. A compilation of earlier texts from inter‐disciplinary sources, Indian treatises are written in regional languages whose authorship is ambiguous, given the paucity of scholarship on ancient India. From the Mayamatam to the Samranganasutradhara, each treatise builds on the knowledge base of earlier texts and spans across the sub‐continent in origin and language including Pali and regional Sanskrit.

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Content includes philosophy and science along with theory, practice and construction processes in architecture. As most scholars are from fields outside architecture, the full import of its architectural merit is lost which, when combined with factors including translation and cultural distance, lowers the intelligibility of the text for architects. The tone is conversational as most text is in the form of instructions, stages of architectural process interspersed with philosophical insights. The censorial genre discourages the casual reader and the uninitiated from using the text irresponsibly. Favourable and unfavorable attributes of the built environment associated with implications on the user/client/owner have been analyzed by this study and it is premised that they are based on aesthetical principles of form and space and user experience in the built environment. Fraught with cultural and gender biases, social hierarchy and contextual issues, the study removes this encrustation to arrive at the architectural core of the writing.Sacred associations’ cloaks content rendering it esoteric and obscurantist to the casual reader, therefore, all superfluous implications of religion require strict sieving such that architectural content is not sacrificed at the cost of religious bias. This results in some practitioners’ contentions that the treatise is “religious mumbo‐jumbo” while others use it as a technical construction manual and attempt to apply the text literally without conducting an abstraction exercise to arrive at principles which may be relevant to theory/practice/construction. By conducting a grounded theory research methodology, data from the text has been interpreted architecturally and formulated into a theoretical construct with a particular focus on design process. The treatise selected as the case study in this paper is the Samranganasutradhara, attributed to the polymath King Bhoja ‐ which dilutes its religious intent‐ around the 10th century, locating it in pre‐colonial India. Narrated by the celestial architect Vishwakarma to his children, it raises questions pertaining to all aspects of architecture which are answered in subsequent chapters. The core reading is a Hindi translation of the original treatise in Sanskrit (Jugnu 2011) which minimizes loss of meaning in translation. After interpreting the Hindi and Sanskrit text for architectural implications, an English interpretive translation is rendered comprehensible to the modern scholar by associative correlation with contemporary paradigms. Finally, this study focuses on the design process aspect as this is relevant to theory and practice and forms the majority of the content. During successive readings, it became apparent that the process set out in the text is analogous to generative and computation process. Simultaneously, a critical analysis of generative, computation and parametric design processes is conducted to explore associative layers and discover correlation with the treatise. िशालैकशालिशालचयोगत: II 25.05 II षटशालमंजायतेवेभेदातुषोडशI In this manner, combination of bi‐hall, uni‐hall and tri‐hall dwellings Hexa‐cell dwelling are assembled and these are 16 in number

2. Parametric Design Process for Architecture and the Treatise The focus of this study is the instructions to generate built forms in the treatise – dwellings, palaces and temples‐ which resemble text algorithms in a generative parametric design system is employed as a tool to design with (Leach 2009), which is at variance with its popular connotation as a style and a representation technology. Parametric is referred to as a set of instructions to generate a form utilizing algorithms which are an explicit statement of a sequence of operations needed to perform a task. The logic and structure of the design process is the focus of parametric design and the end product is an “Back” to the Future 263 infinite set of solutions which, according to Eisenman, are made finite by the individual intellect of the architect. समशीषदातोयथाशोभयथािच I ेभागसम: काय: कलशूिलकावधे: II 30.18 II Roof/skyline (of the palace) should be made as aesthetically appropriate and accordingly to the personal inclination of the architect Finial and molding should be created in proportion to the parts of the site Here, the focus is on requirements of the process instead of its product which is generated from the textual instructions is in the form of a three dimensional object – parameters and schema. Parametric design process is an iterative activity which involves continuous generation of a design artefact, evaluation of its ability to satisfy requirements efficiently, which if unacceptable to the architect is followed by a new iteration which involves either a radical reformulation of design concept and/or a modification of design parameters. The linguistic parametric design lists a finite set of instructions, analogous to cooking recipes and furniture assembly instructions, where the individual stage needs to be explicit, detailed and adaptable. “In a field made quadrangular, divide into four parts” (56.45.1) assumes that the architect interprets this as all sides of the quadrangle are divided into four parts based on the premise of three dimensional spatial construct. “The wall should on all sides’ measure one part, and the remainder should be the sanctum” (56.45.2) signifies the demarcation of void by the solid while “With a projection of two parts, a width of three parts, and adorned by pillars” (56.46.2) highlights that the adornment of the pillars is left to the designer. Flexibility and adaptability is built into the system as only ratio and proportion and not absolute numbers are employed in the generation of the form. The following text from the treatise gives guidelines on the design process to generate the form for a temple. चतुरीकृ तेेेचतुभागिवविजते I भािगकासवतोिभि: शेषंगभगृहंभवेत् II56.45 II तात: पुन: कायभागयिविनगत: I िवारेणिभागाीव: भूिषत: II 46 II पीठोेघभागेनभवेािभािगका I भागाधवारंपपादेनादवरका II 47 II सपादांतुरोभागाशखरेृतः I िगुणेनचसूेणपकोशंसमािलखेत् II 56.48 II In a field made quadrangular, divide into four parts The wall should on all sides’ measure one part, and the remainder should be the sanctum Moreover, in front of that, one should build a pillared porch With a projection of two parts, a width of three parts, and adorned by pillars According to the parts of the height of the base, the wall should be two parts The antarapatra should be half a part and the varandika should be one part The height of the shikhara is known to be four parts and a quarter With a cord of three guna, one should draw the profile as a lotus petal

264 A. Janus, R. Contractor, Y. Patel and P. McPherson

Across the width of the shoulder, sub‐divide into three parts The neck should be half a part and the finial should be one part. Based on Adam Hardy (2015)

Figure 3: Stages of generation of the temple from text instructions of 56.45‐48 (source: Author, 2017)

3. Stages In conventional design process, a solution is generated, evaluated against criteria and modified in reaction to the evaluation. On the other hand, in generative design, several options are generated and the designer chooses the most appropriate one. अपररसाधांवृतेिववृतैरिप II 19.39 II गृहभेदा: सूयेयेषांसांानिवते II 19.40 II On inverse juxtaposition the creations may expand or contract Types of dwelling are infinite in number Generic stages of a generative design process involve identifying the critical points which impact the product during the process and at the end of it.

3.1. Start This highlights the importance of marking the beginning – the start conditions‐ as the foundation on which subsequent stages are built upon and is written as “Acquired area is to be made quadrangular and divided into ten parts.”

Figure 3: Architectural interpretation of text (source: Author, 2017) “Back” to the Future 265

3.2. Generate Generate an object which is the modified by an earlier stage and a receptacle for modification by the next instruction, for instance “In the centre of this, four parts are a platform with four columns. Outside this platform, create one concentric porch with 12 columns.”

Figure 3: Architectural interpretation of text (source: Author, 2017)

3.3. Output The final output of an accretive process offers no single best solution but a class of satisfactory solutions. अिलवीथीीविनयूहकगवाकै :II 19.38 तमङभिवासरचनािभरनेकधा I In this manner, porch, gallery, boundary wall, projections and fenestration And their features and attributes result in numerous creations.

4. Types of parameters Parameters are correlated with the Vitruvian triad of Firmitas (Solid), Utilitas (Useful), Venustas (Beautiful).

4.1. Venustas Aesthetic considerations are integrated into the parameter by its formulation based on proportional measurements categorized as formal as set out in the following text: 30.19 Difference in height between plinth and height of storey is half of total height of building. Plinth may be ornamented with whatever is aesthetically pleasing.

4.2. Utilitas Building is rendered useful by incorporating performative criteria like ergonomics, climate and culture among others. (बृहंिहता – 54.39‐41(as text of Samranganasutradhara is missing) यााेमवृकरनृणांतथापुफलदम पराांशालाांधनधाफलदम I

266 A. Janus, R. Contractor, Y. Patel and P. McPherson

यमसूयचिवेयंपिमोशालकम II राजागभयदंनृणांकु लयकरंचयत् I This beneficial and bestower of sons for humans building Is composed of two halls in south‐west location This is the giver of wealth & prosperity Building composed with North –west location of halls is called yamsurya This leads to fear/danger from king and fire and destroys the clan. Architectural interpretation of the text is based on climatic and cultural considerations of solid and void relationship as the text assumes the generation of the courtyard by enclosing built volume. The importance of the courtyard in the Indian context includes privacy for women and children, protection against enemies and wild animals, warm climate allowing outdoor living, large composite family units requiring open space for social interaction as well as sacred considerations for the centre used for water bodies or specific plants like the tulsi (holy basil). The orientation of the courtyard has implications on its usage as the primary consideration for an open court to increase its usability is comfort of its user which in the Indian climate is reducing the heat factor of solar impact. This performative parameter is integrated in the text algorithm above based on the technical performance of the building as interacting with its user and the designer needs to explicitly describe and resolve both the parametric schema and the performative parameters prior to form exploration.Early performance integration ensures that all subsequent form explorations are viable. Multi‐disciplinary thought including ergonomics, aesthetics, climate, philosophy, sustainability, efficiency, religion, spirituality, cultural and social issues infuse parameters as required. An attribute is declared as favourable based primarily on its performative effect as is displayed below.

Table 1: Graphic performative interpretation of text (source: Author, 2017)

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4.3. Firmitas This is interpreted as referring to the construction parameters to ensure buildability भूरनाादनािभातचेकाःI 41. िवषमथाःकु ठारेणाताःकयेमाः II 27 II During masonry, be aware that for the wall, do not use excess mortar Or break bricks to use in masonry But if the brick is asymmetric/disproportionate/odd Then use an axe/scalpel/chisel to make it even in appearance. 5. Components Parametric design process for architecture requires integration of the following aspects:

5.1. Form Form is integrated into parametric design in different ways as demonstrated by the shape grammar of Palladio and the catenary arch of Gaudi. The Samranganasutradhara incorporates form depending on the typology of the building – residence, palace or temple. In public housing, a single cell increases in complexity additively and by 90 degree rotation, in palaces by using the grid as an ordering principle while the temple generates form by sculptural addition of three dimensional objects like cuboid, parabolic cuboid, doughnut among others.

Figure 3: Architectural interpretation of text (source: Author, 2017)

5.2. Design variables By subjecting the form to different schemas, specific options are chosen which may be useful for the design problem or not. Choice of variables by the architect allows individual creativity and choice and the Samranganasutradhara instructs about favourable and unfavourable variables based on performative indices. 21.03,04: The (trishala) dwelling with no building in the north direction is named hiranyanabha.

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Such a building generates wealth for its owner. The dwelling without building in the south is named chulli This destroys financial wealth. Hiranyanabha is favourable as the internal court is in the rear of the building affording privacy ‐ a desired aspect in the cultural context ‐ to its inhabitants and its location on the north side shields it from the strong and perpetual south sun making it comfortable as an outdoor activity space – a cultural and social requirement. The converse disposition of chulli makes it an unfavourable option.

5.3. Data structure Data may be presented as numbers or text setting out an algorithm. For public dwellings, the text calculates that for an eight‐cell enclosure, there are 65536 options based on number, location and orientation of the porch/transition space. To arrive at a particular type, say 15204, a mathematical computation process, the prastara, is employed and the specific configuration of built form and porch is generated.

5.4. Mathematical expressions Operations involved in executing the instructions instructed by the algorithm include simple calculations like proportional relationships between building elements as well as complex geometric ones like generating the parabolic form of the spire on top of the sanctum. Multiply the length of the site with its width. Divide this by 8. The remainder is termed “aaya”. (26.17)

5.5. Logical methods Systems proposed by the algorithm are required to be based in logic and accessible to the informed practitioner to minimise the contra‐indications of insufficient and inaccurate employment by uninformed users.

Table 2: Variable analysis (Source: Author, 2017)

No Variable Description Relevance Architectural attribute Interpretation

1 Spatial unit एकशाला(Ekshala) Uni‐cell, bi‐cell, tri‐cell Additive built

िशाल (Dvishala) unit volume, िशाल (Trishala) Built form enclosing Inside‐outside positive,

space relationship. negative, Solid ‐ void

2 Orientation of Based on built volume Comfort of denotes

िसाथ (Sidharth) spatial unit यमसूय (Yamsurya) response to climatology inhabitant in

built favourable/ Name environment. “Back” to the Future 269

3 Interaction of वसुधार (Vasudhara) Effect of orientation and Functional and space and built िसाथक location of open space in meaningful form (Sidharthak) relation to usability of court entrance/front of the to the dwelling. dwelling.

4 Additive sub‐ इर(God), Location of additive Response of built space वृषभ(Bullock) volume to the primary volume to form and its orientation climatology.

5 Proportion of 2X2, 2X3, 4X6,6X8 Associated with Correlation site astrological chart of between physical owner/user and metaphysical

6 Correlation Height 2X4 4X7 Relationship between 2 Increase in between height Site 2X3 4X5 and 3 dimensional height of building and attributes accompanied by site dimensions increase in size of site

6. Representation Representation of algorithmic computations is in the form of graphics categorized as analog and symbolic based on the output. Form based representation like drawing, sketch, model and other medium of representing reality denote the formal output of parametric design process while data based graphics like graph, chart and table, indicating technical performance issues like loading, heat transfer and other such issues, constitute symbolic representation(Ipek Dino, 2012). Symbolic systems inform the analog outputs for evaluation as well as contribute to the knowledge system of performance criteria for built environments.

Figure 6: Graphic generation of a palace from text instructions (source: Author, 2017)

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6. Conclusion Textual instructions in the design process increases productivity by rejecting unviable options, extends functionality, enhances precision levels, evaluates conditions and reacts efficiently within constraints like budget and context (Dino 2012). Therefore, it is viable to explore the treatise as a traditional knowledge system interpreted for relevance to architecture. Parametric design methods are evolving from a representational tool to a thinking aid which lends credibility to the treatise, by association, as based in theory and practice of architecture instead of an obscurantist manuscript. It is inferred that on one hand, computation based design process has historical lineage and simultaneously, historical design process, as evidenced in a treatise, is relevant to contemporary explorations in alternative paradigms. Therefore, this paper submits that going back in history provides links to the future.

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