CHAITYA , VIHARA &

STUPA

INTRODUCTION

• BUDDHIST ARCHITECTURE IS MAINLY CONSIST OF CHAITYAS, VIHARAS, STUPAS & STAMBHAS.

• MAJOR PART OF BUDDHIST ARCHITETURE IS STUPA

• LORD BUDDHA,(563 B.C 488 B.C) DIDN’T BELIVE IN IDOL WORSHIP

• THEIR DECIPLINES NEEDED SOMETHING TO WORSHIP OR PRAISE.SO AFTER HIS DEATH HIS MORTAL REMAINS LIKE TOOTH, HAIR, NAIL, ETC. WERE SENT IN SOME EIGHT CITIES & THEY WERE PRESERVED BY BURYING THEM UNDER THE HEAP OF MUD OR BRICK WHICH WERE CALLED AS “ STUPA ”

CHAITYA

THE PRAYER HALL OR BUDDHIST TEMPLE & USUALLY REFFERED TO AS THE CHAITYA HALL

CHAITYAS ARE THE HALLS ENCLOSING THE STUPAS.

A CHAITYA-GRIHA BUDDHIST CAVE (STUPA HALL) IS A MEETING OR ASSEMBLY CHAMBER OFTEN USED FOR PURPOSES SIMILAR TO A STUPA.

ARCHITECTURALLY THEY SHOW SIMILARITIES TO ROMAN DESIGN CONCEPTS OF COLUMN AND ARCH.

A LARGE HORSESHOE-SHAPED WINDOW, THE CHAITYA-WINDOW, WAS SET ABOVE THE ARCHED DOORWAY.

THE WHOLE PORTICO-AREA WAS CARVED TO IMITATE A MULTI-STOREYED BUILDING WITH BALCONIES AND WINDOWS.

THE COLUMNS SLOPED INWARDS IN THE IMITATION OF WOODEN COLUMNS THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN STRUCTURALLY NECESSARY TO KEEP A ROOF UP. HORSESHOE-

SHAPED WINDOW

VIHARA

•AN ARRANGEMENS OF THE APPARTMENTS FOR THE ACCOMODATION OF THE MONKS ARE KNOWN AS VIHARAS.

• SQUARE CENTRAL HALL ENTERED BY A DOORWAY, IN FRONT OF WHICH WAS A VERANDAH OR PORTICO.

STUPA

• STUPA IS MOUND OF THE EARTH ENCLOSING A RELIC CAN BE COMPARED WITH THE MASSIVE FORM OF THE

GREAT PYRAMIDS OF EGYPT

• THEY ALSO CALLED AS THUPPA IN PALI, DAGABA IN SIMBALI, TOPE IN ENGLISH & DHATUGRABH IN SANSKRIT. (DHATUGRABH=RELICS PRESERVED IN VESSEL)

• CLASSIFIED INTO THREE TYPES

1. SARIKA STUPA2. PARIBHOJIKA STUPA3. UDDESHIKA STUPA

• THE STUPA WAS PART OF A COMPLEX OF RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS.

AMARAVATI STUPA

KNOWN AS MAHA CHAITYA STUPA

LOCATION : AMARAVATI, ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA

STYLE : SATAVAHANA DYNASTY

CREATION TIME : 2ND CENTURY B.CE

DISCOVERED BY : A BRITISH ARCHAEOLOGIST, COLONEL COLIN MACKENZIE IN 1797.

• AMARAVATI IS FAMED FOR ITS GREAT STUPA LARGER THAN THE ONE AT SANCHI.

• LOCALLY CALLED, THE ‘MAHASTUPA’ AND IS ALSO KNOWN AS 'MOUND OF LAMPS‘

• THE PERFECT PROPORTIONS OF THE BUDDHA’S BODY CORRESPONDS TO THE DESIGN OF RELIGIOUS MONUMENTS. • THESE DOME SHAPE REGARDED AS HOLY PLACES.

•THE STUPA IS 95 FT. HIGH.

  • IT WAS A BRICK BUILT CIRCULAR ‘VEDICA’ AND PLATFORMS PROJECTING IN FOUR CARDINAL DIRECTIONS.

• IT IS 6 FT. HIGH AND IS MADE OF MARBLE.

• CARVED RAILINGS SEEM TO HAVE BEEN ERECTED AROUND A BRICK-CORED CHAITYA OR TEMPLE.

• THE DOME HAS A DRUM WHICH IS 192 FEET DIA. WITH AN OUTER RAILING.  

STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS OF STUPA

PLAN HARMIKA

ANDA

MEDHI

UPPER PRADAKSHINA PATH

LOWER PRADAKSHINA PATH

• THE ENTRANCE OF AMRAVATI STUPA IS DIRECT AS COMPARED TO SACHI AS SHOWN IN FIGURE

• THERE WERE NO TORANS IN AMRAVATI STUPA

• THE LOWER PRADIKSHNA PATH IS 11 FEET 3 INCH WIDE & PAVED WITH THE SLAB OF GREY LIMESTONE

• STAMBHAS ARE DECORATED BY THE FIGURES OF LIONS

• RAILING AT ENTRANCE ARE OF 25 FEET WIDE

• IN THE RAILING OF THE UPPER PRADAKSHINA PATH THE BALUSTERS WERE DECORATED WITH THE MARBLE PANALS

BALUSTERS

•A SQUARE SHAPE HARMIKA ENCLOSING THE CHHATRAVALLI / UMBRELLA IS DIFFERENT FROM THE SACHI STUPA

•THIS STUPA DOES NOT EXIST ANYMORE BUT SOME OF THE RELICS ARE KEPT AT VARIOUS MUSEUME IN INDIA & BRITAIN.

•MAD ELEPHANT CHARGING BUDDHA ON LEFT, BOWING DOWN TO BUDDHA ON RIGHT.

•LIMESTONE PANEL DEPICTING THE ‘BUDDHAPADA’

DETAIL FROM THE PILLER FACE

•THE INSCRIPTION ON THE PILLAR IS WRITTEN IN THE ‘PRAKRIT’ LANGUAGE USING THE BRAHMI SCRIPT.