BRICS Young Scientist Forum Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

Hampi Splendours of a World Heritage Site

Department of Science & Technology National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Government of , New Delhi Indian Institute of Science Campus, Bengaluru

BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

Hampi: The note on the back cover is written by Splendours of a World Heritage Site Prof Sundar Sarukkai. The main essay is Edited by written by Prof Sharada Srinivasan on Baldev Raj behalf of the NIAS Heritage, Science and Society Programme and Department of Baldev Raj is Director, National Science and Technology– India Digital Institute of Advanced Studies. Heritage Hampi team (DST-IDH Hampi): NIAS, IIT-D, NID, IIT-B, IIT-M, IIACD, KU- Sharada Srinivasan is Hampi, IIT-KGP, KSCST, IIIT-H, CCK, ISI- Professor and the Kolkata, IIT-M, BVBCET, DAIICT and IGCAR. Dean of NIAS Heritage, Science and Society Programme. Sources: DST-IDH project, www.digitalhampi.in with NIAS as a Sundar Sarukkai is Professor coordinating institution, www.nias.res.in. of philosophy at the NIAS. The DST-IDH Hampi project is a multi- institutional collaboration bringing BYS Conclave Steering Group together technologists and cultural Prof Baldev Raj, Director, NIAS (Chairperson) practitioners across leading institutions Prof DD Sarma, IISc, Bengaluru for exploring the use of digital Prof S Hassan, Bengaluru technologies in the representation of art Dr Sadhana Relia, DST, New Delhi Dr RK Sharma, DST, New Delhi and architecture of the UNESCO World Dr Shubra Priyadarshini, Nature India, Gurgaon Heritage site of Hampi. NIAS is a major Prof Sundar Sarukkai, NIAS coordinating institution and is also Prof Anindya Sinha, NIAS working towards a Hampi Knowledge Prof D. Suba Chandran, NIAS Bank.

BRICS-STI Coordinating Ministries PMAC Chair: A. Jhunjhunwala (IIT-M) Brazil: Ministry of Science, Technology and Inno- DST Coordinator: K. Murali Mohan vation (Contact Person: Mr. Danilo Zimbres, Senior International Advisor to the Minister, Ministry of Knowledge Bank PIs: S. Settar (NIAS) & Science, Technology and Innovation); V. Chandru (IIACD) Russia: Department of Science and Technology, Coordinators: S. Chaudhury (IIT-D) (Contact Person: Dr.Andrey Polyakov, Deputy Di- (Technology), Sharada Srinivasan & S. rector of the Department, Ministry of Education Ranganathan (NIAS) (Culture) and Science of the Russian Federation); Technology PIs: S. Chaudhury (IIT-D), A Mittal India: Department of Science and Technology, (IIT-M), A Rajagopalan (IIT-M), P. Kalra (IIT-D), (Contact Person: Ms. Sadhana Relia, Adviser/ P.K. Biswas (IIT-KGP), J. Mukhopadhyay (IIT- Scientist G and Head, International Multilateral & KGP), P. Chaudhuri (IIT-B), B. Chanda (ISI-K), S. Regional Cooperation Division); Chaudhury (IIT-B), U. Mudengudi (BVCET) & U. China: Ministry of Science and Technology, Vijay (KCST) (Contact Person: Ms. Wang Rongfang, Coordina- tor, Division of International Organizations & Con- Culture PIs: S. Srinivasan (NIAS), V. Chandru ferences, Ministry of Science and Technology); (IIACD), M. Rao (NID-B), Chaluvaraju (KU- South Africa: Department of Science & Technolo- Hampi), V Rangachar (CCK), A Garimella gy, (Contact Person: Dr. Neville Arendse, Chief Di- (ART), M. Joshi (DAIICT), A Namboodri (IIIT- rector Overseas Bilateral Cooperation, Department H), M. Natampally (NIAS) & K. Kumari of Science & Technology) 2 National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site

Vijayanagara: The City of Victory spanning temples, forts, tanks, irrigation networks, palatial complexes and mauso- The World Heritage Site of Hampi in Kar- leums. Apart from this tangible heritage, nataka, India encompasses the spectacu- the site boasts of a vibrant intangible her- lar ruins of the medieval metropolis of the itage of crafts traditions, performing arts, Empire which flourished rituals and festivals. While taking the from the 14th to 16th century AD in south- reader through the rich panorama of Vija- ern India. Ruled by powerful Hindu kings yanagara art and architecture, this essay etc. such as Krishnadeva Raya (early 16th also attempts to highlight and contextual- century), Vijayanagara (City of Victory) ise new facets brought to light through was compared in beauty and size to Rome the use of digital technologies in the by the Portuguese traveller Domingo study, documentation and representation Paes. Abdul Razzak, the Persian ambassa- of art and architecture. dor wrote that ‘the eye had never seen a place like it’. Sacked and abandoned in 1565 after its fall in the Highlights of Vijayanagara Art and to the , it was ‘re- Architecture discovered’ by around 1800. In 1986, Hampi with its ruins sprawl- A captivating feature of Hampi for the visi- ing over an area of 4187.24 hectares was tor is the sheer variety that the site offers, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site of representing not just one or two monu- ‘universal value’. ments but a wide array of architectural and cultural remains from the sacred to Set within a dramatic landscape of granite the secular, from the royal to the every- hillocks snaked by the , day, and set within a pristine natural land- its ruins comprise an array of built edifices, scape of haunting beauty. These include urban, royal and sacred ensembles such as forts, riverside features and shrines, royal and sacred complexes, tem- ples, shrines, pillared halls or mandapas, pavil- ions, monumental and memorial structures, gateways, defense check posts, stables, tanks and water struc- tures.

The rich repertoire of architecture in the southern Indian Dravidi- Achutaraya complex, Hampi from Matanga hill an style includes the Virupaksha temple with 3 BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

its imposing temple tower, the Vittala ic style domes, the watch towers and the temple, the temple, the Hajara charming space of the Queen’s bath with temple, Achyuta Raya temple, the Islamic arches. The Queen’s bath is Hemakuta group of temples and others. thought to date to Achutaraya’s time and The typical Dravidian style of temple archi- seems to have been the private bathing tecture inspired by the Tamil Chola coun- chamber of the royals. The Hajara Rama, try included a central sanctum where a is a stately temple dedicated to the wor- stone image of the deity to be worshipped ship of Rama, exiled prince of Ayodhya would have been kept, surrounding sub- and one of the incarnations of . sidiary mandapas or pavilions, and an out- er walled and colonnaded enclosure with Pre-Vijayangara heritage of He- four entrance towers or gopuras at the makuta Hill cardinal points. Many of these temples were also flanked with long colonnaded The Hemakuta Hill in the northern part of passageways which may have served as the City of Vijayanagara has some of the places for vendors in much the same way earliest structures of the site, dating back as in modern bazaars and shop fronts lin- to pre-Vijayanagara times. We know from ing temples where flowers and ritual ac- inscriptional records that this spot on the cessories for worship are sold amongst banks of the River Tungabhadra had other things. gained status as a pilgrimage spot at least Though a staunchly Hindu dynasty, the by the 8th century CE. One of the earliest catholic Vijayanagara court employed temples that came up on the spot is the Muslim officers in the court and military, shrine to Goddess Pampa, another name whose mausoleums and tombs are also for Tungabhadra. This was followed by a seen. In the secular and courtly architec- clutch of monuments that appeared on ture, influences from the northern Deccan the flanks of the Hemakuta Hill, mostly Muslim Sultanate provinces of and memorial temples commemorating dead Golconda can be seen. These include the members of the royal families of Kampili. defense and military architecture such as Later, when the city of Vijayanagara was the expansive elephant stables with Islam- established, Hemakuta formed the nucle-

Fortification around Mahanavami Dibba, Hampi

4 National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site

around the Kishkinda mountains which are said to be connected with the mythol- ogy of the , the popular Hindu epic about the victory of the valorous prince Rama over the demon Ravana. Kishkinda is said to been the kingdom of the vanara (i.e. half-human, half-monkey View of banks of Tungabhadra river beings) ruled by, , with the help of the venerated , who is said to The riverine setting amidst the splendor have helped Rama to vanquish Ravana of the Tungabhadra who had abducted his wife . Founded The spectacular natural heritage of Ham- by the chieftains, Hakka and Bukka around pi, where its several monuments are dot- 1336 AD, four dynasties ruled Hampi (1336 ted along the expanse of the meandering – 1565 AD). Several temples and monu- Tungabhadra river, is one of its major at- ments came up along the expanse of the tractions. The name Hampi is thought to Tungabhadra river, which separates the derive from Pampa, the old name for the old capital of Anegondi from the later me- river Tungabhadra. tropolis of Vijayanagara. Emperor Krish- nadeva Raya (1509-1530 AD), poet and great patron of several edifices such as us of the sacred centre of the city. A the Krishna temple, won wars against the grand temple to Virupaksha, a form of the Deccan Muslim Sultanates and the Hindu god and the tutelary deity of the Raja of Orissa. The Tungabhadra river Kingdom, was erected near this place. In along with the rocky and hilly terrain, course of time, Pampa was established in served to make the Vijayanagara domin- a sub-shrine within the precincts of the ions relatively impregnable to northern Virupaksha Temple and her former shrine incursions, until the decisive battle of Tali- is a Devi temple. The Virupaksha temple with its imposing entrance tower or has remained a living temple where annual festivals are still held with images of the god Virupaksha and his consort, the goddess Pampa, being taken out in procession.

Major Hampi landmarks and sacred geography

The landscape surrounding Hampi has been replete with folklore and myths, im- buing it with a very special sacred geogra- phy. The Tungabhadra weaves its way Hemakuta hill with some pre-Vijayanagara era monuments 5 BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

kota in 1565 to the north of Hampi won by ic of the Ramayana, where Rama is depict- the Bijapur and Golconda Sultans. ed as the archer with a bow and Ravana as the ten-headed demon. Another splendid Range of Architectural Styles and feature of Hampi is the range of tanks in- Edifices cluding a stepped tank and octagonal tank, while the pushkarni is a lovely tank Hampi boasts of a range of utilitarian, near the Vittala complex which has been courtly and military architecture. The Ma- more recently unearthed. The intriguing hanavami Dibba is an impressive granite Elephant Stables represents a series of platform in many courses, some with carv- Islamic styled domed constructions in an ings. It was used as a stage for the king to elongated row which are said to have watch the performance of the nine-day housed elephants who were used in the Mahanavami or Dussera festival, which army, for festival processions and other included war games, royal processions such activities. and dance performances. The Dussera festival is still celebrated in com- Digital Technology in the Study of memorating the victory of the God king Culture Rama over the demon Ravana. The Hajara Rama temple has panels depicting the ep- Robert Sewell in 1900 as district collector

Vignettes of Vijayanagara Art and Architecture

Virupaksha Temple Tower Archer, Vittala temple

Queen’s Bath (Right Above)

Stepped Tank (Right) 6 National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site

Mahanavami Dibba platform & Hajara Rama temple with reliefs depicting the Ramayana

Pushkarni tank near Vittala temple & Elephant Stables of district surveyed Hampi to write tion of tangible and intangible heritage. the oft quoted ‘A Forgotten Empire’. The The IDH-Hampi project with numerous 19th century photographs of Colonel Alex- participating institutions (see ander Greenlaw who took over 60 images www.digitalhampi.in), has imaginatively in 1856 have been important in gaining elucidated aspects of the rich architectur- earlier visual perspectives of the site. al, artistic and cultural legacy of the World Hampi came under the Archaeological Sur- Heritage Site of Hampi. Emerging technol- vey of India in 1904 and gained im- ogies in computer vision, graphics, audio portance as a major heritage site and cul- and video technologies and user interface tural landscape in independent India. design offer exciting prospects of creating vivid experiences of heritage. At the same The Indian Digital Heritage project has time, scientific studies can also have impli- been a unique endeavour of DST cations for enhancing our understanding (Department of Science and Technology, of art history, archaeology and history of Government of India) bringing together technology by providing diagnostic tools. researchers in the areas of technology and While on the one hand, techniques of ma- humanities and arts for the digital docu- terials characterization are increasingly mentation, representation and interpreta- 7 BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

used in archaeology to understand the drawn from Hindu and Islamic traditions, manufacturing techniques of artefacts of pyramidal superstructures, akin to Hin- ranging from metals to pottery and pig- du temples, converging with Islamic-style ments, the use of space-based applica- arches. 3-D Laser scanning reveals the tions in archaeological reconnaissance is complex arrangement of the superstruc- also becoming very important, including ture not readily visible to the visitor. geospatial techniques, satellite imagery, remote sensing, GIS and GPS recordings. The Vittala temple The Hampi master plan uses satellite infor- mation to document the site in terms of The Vittala temple complex is one of the monuments, settlements, land cover, irri- architectural marvels of Hampi which is gation networks etc. dedicated to the Vittala, a form of Vishnu. Amongst the interesting shrines is the The Lotus Mahal ‘stone chariot’ at the entrance to the main sanctum. However, this was not intended The Lotus Mahal is one of the finest and as a chariot but is in fact a shrine thought most intact of monuments at Hampi. It to have housed an image of Garuda, the was part of the Zenana enclosure, a se- eagle, and vahana or vehicle of Vishnu. cluded area for royal women of the Vijaya- British explorer and photographer Alexan- nagara court. In its architectural vision, der Greenlaw’s 19th century photograph the Lotus Mahal is quite unique, an inno- indicated the presence of a domical super- vative fusion of architectural elements

Google earth view of sites of Hampi

8 National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site

structure on top of the stone chariot. Dig- perb murals of the earlier part of the 16th ital conjectural reconstructions have been century Vijayanagara period century are attempted for the damaged and missing seen of themes from the epics of the Ra- portions such as the brick tower or gopu- mayana and Mahabharata. The 16th centu- ram at the entrance and the stone chariot. ry Virupaksha temple at Hampi has fine murals of the theme of Girija Kalyanam, Vijayanagara Murals the of Siva and . To get a better visual sense of what the original A delightful aspect of the Vijayanagara ar- mural might have looked line, the digital tistic legacy is the wealth of mural paint- restoration of damaged murals can be at- ing. It represents one of the few surviving tempted using techniques like patch- medieval traces of a rich Indian mural based texture synthesis. painting tradition going back to the great mural art of the Buddhist . At A fascinating Vijayanagara feature is the the Veerabhadra temple at in ‘bazaars’ or colonnaded structures or ar- of , su- cades which lined the streets leading to temples. These would once have formed

Vittala temple, stone chariot with recon- struction based on Greenlaw’s 19th cen- tury photograph

Gopuram or temple tower with conjectural reconstruction

9 BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

the emporia which are described in ac- counts of European travelers. The Virupaksha and Vittala temples have had an impressive legacy of bazaars stretching along the approaches to these temples. The experience of meandering through medieval bazaars can still be savoured to some extent in the hustle and bustle lead- ing up to the Virupaksha temple. The halls. The Mahamandapa is the main cen- Hampi Jatre represents one of the lively tral pillared hall is built on a sculptured or- aspects of the intangible heritage of Ham- nate plinth. The numerous monolithic pi. The Virupaksha temple has an interest- composite pillars are amazingly designed, ing feature in the inverted gopura due to a which although they are hewn out of mas- pinhole camera effect. sive granite blocks, are nevertheless in- credibly delicately crafted as a series of clusters of slender pillars. The Vittala tem- Sculpture ple, Hampi, is famed for its fifty six colon- nades, some carved with sculpture. Some A most imposing sculptural marvel at of these have yielded musical effects, Hampi is the granite colossus of Narasim- which is also partly due to the resonant ha, one of the ten incarnations of the Lord properties of the particular granite stone Vishnu as man-lion, seated below the ser- of the region. However no inscriptional pent vasuki with seven hoods. 3-D laser evidence has yet come to light to confirm scanning revealed the modeling of this that these pillars were intentionally made sculpture towering over 6 metres. that way to be musical. Tonalities akin to sounds of bells and drums have been re- ported, although the unmindful damage to the pillars over the years has led to the banning of the tampering with the pillars. Studies are exploring ways of replicating the musical effects by virtual and digital means using haptic renderings.

Investigations on nearly a dozen pillars using vibration analysis suggest that sound may have been produced in a set of colonnades by collective vibrations, Vittala temple ‘Musical pillars’ and whereby the vibration in one colonnade also generated vibrations in other colon- acoustic studies nades in a composite pillar set.

The Vittala temple, an iconic architectural masterpiece of Hampi, consists of a sprawling compound with four gateway towers and several mandapas or pillared 10 National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site

Digital conjectural reconstruction and 3-D Hampi in the Imagination… model generation Beyond the timeless tales of the rise and In the IDH-Hampi project, the use of a fall of empires that lie behind its sprawling range of technologies was made in at- ruins, there is something truly inspiration- tempting digital restoration of architecture al in the extraordinary cultural landscape and art, such as inpainting and 3-D conjec- of Hampi that could ignite young minds. tural reconstructions, using a range of soft- At one level it represents a triumph of hu- wares and approaches including AutoCAD, man endeavour, in the mastery over the kinect-based models and Google sketch crafting and sculpting of one of the least up, while laser scanning was also em- tractable of rocks, granite. We could just ployed. 3-D data acquisition and genera- step back in time to consider the skills of tion of point clouds were undertaken the sculptors of yore, who created poetry which could be digitally rendered. Physical into stone by generating an array of intri- models were also attempted to be printed. cate shapes, that ranged from the highly An interactive ‘walk-through’ was attempt- geometric to the most fantastical of fig- ed in the physical model of the Vittala tem- urative forms that throb with life. These ple complex. range from the ordinary musician to an exalted deity, from anthropomorphic to zoomorphic representations, from the abode of gods to those of animals such as elephants...

These provide an extraordinary testament to humankind’s ability to create an aes- thetic environment even in the most deso- late and inhospitable of locations, where- by the barren rockiness of Hampi has in- Digital Restoration stead been transformed into a backdrop 3-D print of Hampi Vittala temple complex of surreal and Daliesque beauty for its art and architecture. At the same time, an Laser scanned image of Lotus Mahal extraordinary feature of Hampi is its rich intangible heritage which also needs to be savoured and preserved, the serene river- ine life of the Tungabhadra where the cir- cular coracle boat has been used for gen- erations as a means of transport, the rich festivals and customs and throbbing ba- zaars full of the flower sellers and bangle sellers, and the street performers who have made this a timeless living heritage site, rather than merely a lovely, but dere- lict relic, from the past…

Photographic and textual inputs are by Sharada Srinivasan with 11 Krupa Rajangam, Uma Krithika, Srikumar Menon, Meera Natampally and MB Rajani BRICS Young Scientist Forum Bangalore Conclave 2016 25 Sep—01 Oct

Vijayanagara Empire: Intellectual Movements to Technological Innovations

Vijayanagara empire was one of the most important empires in the Indian subcontinent. It was also a representative of great cultural and intellectual movements in at that time. The Southern part of India was home to many important intellectual movements. The three great Acharyas of the Vedantic tradition, Sankara, and Madhva, came from the South. The influence of these thinkers on the socio-political systems of South India was deep. , where Hampi is situated, was also home to one of the greatest Bhakti move- ments, the Veerasaiva movement. This movement was one of the foremost social reform movements with its radical interpretation of religion and critique of social hierarchy.

Karnataka was also home to a flourishing Jaina community. These Jaina scholars not only were pioneering philosophers who, among other things, created a new system of logic, but were also scholars in other traditions such as grammar and literature. They were also ex- tremely influential in promoting non-violence and principles of tolerance both in the social as well as in the political domain. Thus, the time of the Vijayanagar empire had already seen the presence of influential philosophical, mathematical and scientific schools.

The was also home to some of the earliest technological innovations including production of very high quality steel and alloys. Many pioneering technological and artistic contributions in early India came from innovative artisans, craftsmen, artists and thinkers who came from many diverse castes and communities. These practices contributed to a flourishing trade and led to vibrant economic exchange between India and Arabic countries as well as those in Asia. It is within this larger world of philosophical, scientific and political excellence that one can imagine the world of Hampi in its heyday.

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