A small Hindu Temple Architecture consists of an inner sanctum, the garbha griha or womb-chamber, in which the image is housed, often with space for its circumambulation, a congregation hall, and possibly an antechamber and porch.

Contact us for all tour Tourism / Travel Needs Email id : info@southindiatourtravel.com

The sanctum is crowned by a tower-like shikara. At the turn of the first millennium CE two major types of temples existed, the northern or Nagara style and the southern or Dravida type of temple. They are distinguishable by the shape and decoration of their shikharas (Dehejia 1997).

* Nagara style: The tower is beehive shaped.
* Dravida: The tower consists of progressively smaller storeys of pavilions.

We arrange tours all over India / Across the Globe. For car rentals, Hotel & Bookings contact us at info@southindiatourtravel.com

The earliest Nagar temples are in Karnataka (e.g. Galaganath at Pattadakal) and some very early Dravida-style temples (e.g. Teli-ka-Mandir at Gwalior) are actually in North India. A complex style termed Vesara was once common in Karnataka which combined the two styles.

This may be seen in the classic Hindu temples of India and Southeast Asia, such as Angkor Wat, Brihadisvara Temple, Khajuraho, Mukteshvara, and Prambanan.

Hindus believe that their lives are merely stages in the progression to ultimate enlightenment. The Hindu Temple Architecture is a place where God may be approached and where divine knowledge can be discovered. All aspects of the Hindu temple focus on the goal of enlightenment and liberation - the principles of design and construction, the forms of its architecture and decoration, and the rituals performed. And all of these are determined by ancient texts called shastras compiled by the priests, the brahmins. The vastushastras were theoretical and idealised descriptions of the architectural traditions and conventions to be followed.

The temple is designed to dissolve the boundaries between man and the divine. Not merely his abode, the temple ‘is’ God. God and therefore by implication the whole universe is identified with the temple’s design and actual fabric.

The ground plan is perhaps the best example. The vastushastras describe it as a symbolic, miniature representation of the cosmos. It is based on a strict grid made up of squares and equilateral triangles which are imbued with deep religious significance. To the Indian priest-architect the square was an absolute and mystical form. The grid, usually of 64 or 81 squares, is in fact a mandala, a model of the cosmos, with each square belonging to a deity. The position of the squares is in accordance with the importance attached to each of the deities, with the square in the center representating the temple deity; the outer squares cover the gods of lower rank.

The construction of the temple of the temple follows in three dimensional form exactly the pattern laid out by the mandala. The relationship between the underlying symbolic order and the actual physical appearance of the temple can best be understood by seeing it from above which was of course impossible for humans until quite recently.

Continue

For Travel Bookings / Tour arrangements all over India / across the globe , Contact us on the following mobile Nos  ( 24 Hours support desk) :  +91-98422 - 55573 / 99760 - 07770 Email us: info@southindiatourtravel.com