ASKiIMAN™ REALM 14 / POST-MAURYAN & GUPTA ARCHITECTURE
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From Cave to Temple

The Birth of Free-Standing Structural Architecture

REALM 14 — POST-MAURYAN & GUPTA

MICRO-REALM 01

Rock-Cut Chaityas

  • Prayer halls excavated into solid rock.
  • Apsidal plan with a central nave and side aisles.
  • Rock-cut stupa at the far end for worship.
  • Prominent at Karle and Bhaja.
MICRO-REALM 02

Rock-Cut Viharas

  • Monastic residential complexes.
  • Central pillared courtyard.
  • Surrounded by small, austere sleeping cells.
  • Early Ajanta and Nasik caves.
MICRO-REALM 03

The Chaitya Arch

  • Horseshoe-shaped window (Gavaksha).
  • Allowed light to fall directly on the stupa.
  • Directly imitated wooden architectural forms.
  • Became a standard decorative motif later.
MICRO-REALM 04

Stupa Expansion

  • Ashokan brick stupas were enlarged.
  • Encased in dressed stone slabs.
  • Addition of stone Vedika (railings) and Toranas.
  • Transition seen clearly at Sanchi.
MICRO-REALM 05

Stage 1: Flat Roof

  • Earliest free-standing structural temples.
  • Square Garbhagriha (sanctum).
  • Flat roof with a shallow pillared porch (Mandapa).
  • Example: Temple 17 at Sanchi.
MICRO-REALM 06

Stage 2: Ambulatory

  • Addition of Pradakshina Patha.
  • Covered circumambulatory path around the sanctum.
  • Temples built on a raised platform (Jagati).
  • Example: Parvati Temple, Nachna Kuthara.
MICRO-REALM 07

Stage 3: Shikhara

  • Emergence of the curvilinear tower (Shikhara).
  • Initially low and stubby, evolving to greater heights.
  • Marks the birth of the Nagara style.
  • Example: Dashavatara Temple, Deogarh.
MICRO-REALM 08

Panchayatana Style

  • Quincunx plan.
  • Main shrine in the center.
  • Four subsidiary shrines at the corners.
  • Crucial layout for later Hindu temple architecture.
MICRO-REALM 09

Brick Architecture

  • Structural temples built entirely of terracotta/brick.
  • Used the true arch and vault system.
  • Example: Bhitargaon Temple (Kanpur).
MICRO-REALM 10

Udayagiri Caves

  • Gupta-era rock-cut sanctuaries (Madhya Pradesh).
  • Primarily Hindu (Vaishnava and Shaiva).
  • Features the monumental Varaha avatar relief.
MICRO-REALM 11

Nalanda Origins

  • Mahaviharas (Great Monasteries).
  • Foundations laid by Gupta emperor Kumaragupta I.
  • Massive brick complexes, courtyards, and stupas.