In the context of temple design, Shilpa Shastras were manuals for sculpture and Hindu iconography, prescribing among other things, the proportions of a sculptured figure, composition, principles, meaning, as well as rules of architecture. Sixty-four techniques for such arts or crafts, sometimes called bahya-kala (external or practical arts), are traditionally enumerated, including carpentry, architecture, jewelry, farriery, acting, dancing, music, medicine, poetry etc., besides sixty-four abhyantara-kala or secret arts, which include mostly erotic arts.
All the various parts of the temple structure correspond to various parts of the human body. The temple is used as a reminder that our inner spiritual journey is through internal yoga to realize the indweller God. This analogy is shown through the representation of various chakras namely Moolaadhara to Sahasraara in the body to various locations in the temple.
All temples are constructed to geometry and symmetry. When the Druid temple worship entered the Vedas in the Athava Veda period after the Great Civil War at Kurukshetra, Temples evolved from a place of worship into a Yantra or tool for spiritual upliftment. They thus became an integration of a very large number of empowering attributes comprising an entire ladder.
Everything is governed by one law. A human being is a microcosmos, i.e. the laws prevailing in the cosmos also operate in the minutest space of the human being. The vast Hindu canonical literature on Agamic texts, Devalaya Vastu (Temple Vastu astrology) and sacred geography describe the temple as a cosmic man, the ‘Vastu Purusha’ (cosmic man). The science of Vastu is believed as part of the Indian architecture.
The temple built like a mountain is associated with the highest elevation on earth and points towards the sky which is infinity. The Gods of all religions always live on the top of mountains, or appear on mountains or preach from mountains. So it is a universal symbol of the sacred place in all mythologies. The chariot is a metaphor for the body the passenger is you, the driver is your mind and the horses are your senses. This is also the symbolism behind the Gita being taught in a chariot on the field of battle.
So in the temple the deity is reflection of You (hence it is called a bimba which means reflection) your higher Self and so when you enter a temple to have darshan (a vision) you are coming face to face with your true Self - I. The ‘Aham Brahmasmi’ (“I am Brahman. I am part of the Universe.”) is the great sayings (Mahavakya) mentioned in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.4.10. of Yajur Veda. The meaning is that ‘Whatever is in the Universe, is present in me’ (and ‘whatever is in me, is part of the Universe’).
The form and meanings of architectural elements in a Hindu temple are designed to function as the place where it is the link between man and the divine, to help his progress to spiritual knowledge and truth, his liberation it calls moksha. Indian temples represents the macrocosm of the universe and the structure of the human body represents the microcosm. Veda also says “यत्पिण्डे तद् ब्रह्माण्डे” It means what is going on within human being is the same as what is going on in universe.
The concept of chakra features in tantric and yogic traditions of Hinduism. In Yoga, Kundalini Shakti means the ‘coiled power.’ It is compared to a serpent that lies coiled while resting or sleeping. Chakras are vital energy points (Kundalini energy) in the human anatomy, i.e. breath channels, or nadis, and the winds (vayus), that are centres of life force (prana), or vital energy.
The concept of temple developed from yajna sala, the premises of a fire sacrifice. There are four entrances (like any classic Hindu abode), each with an entrance decorated with leaves of a particular tree (nyagrodha, audumbara, aswattha, plaksha), at the center being the consecrated place for deity (where fire is invoked in a yajna, and where the image is installed in a temple), the place where offering is made and so on.
Another Correspondence we have is of a sitting human whose heart center corresponds to where deity is installed. The temple tower (vimana) is also associated with the body of the deity. So the temple itself is the deity as well as the icon in the sanctum (garbha-griha) analogous to the cosmos being the “body” of the Divine as it were as well as being the inner-Self (antaryamin). Konark Sun temple is an excellent example of the temple built like a chariot.
Each of these temples was conceived, planned and executed as a single project, albeit over time. In truth, these Yantra s (Temples) represent the creation of the Cosmos, expanding in intricacy from the simple primordial vibration of consciousness to the delightful, terrifying and intimidating illusion of the full manifest reality.
As one moves through the Seven enclosures (Prakaras) sampling the beauty, the variety, the complexity of existence, often incorporating food stalls, boutiques, and bazaars towards the simplicity, stillness, and darkness of the center (Garbhagruha), one mimics and prototypes one’s own spiritual voyage towards the center of spirituality and truth from the periphery of materialistic illusion
The hidden message of the Indian temple is the conception of spiritual progress. Of passing from the heat and glare of work-a-day life to the dark chamber of mystery where the Human Spirit contacts its Soul and Reality. This last emerges from the naked form of the image in a dimness only sharpened by lights, with the worshipper, in poised contemplation, in which the self is forgotten, and the travails of pilgrimage and devotion are already behind, beholding the Glory and Power of Light contrasted in the shroud of darkness.
Vastu Shastra developed during the period of 6000 BC and 3000 BC and the ancient Indian text Mayamatam represents Vastu Purusha as the presiding deity for all land structure meant for temples or houses. Directions in Hindu tradition are called as Disa, or Dik. There are four primary directions and a total of 10 directions: East, South-East (Agneya), West, North-West (Vayavya), North, North-East (Isanya), South, South-West (Nauritya), Zenith (Urdhva), Nadir (Adho). There are ‘Guardians of the Directions’ (Dikpala or Dasa-dikpala) who rule the specific directions of space.
Vastu Purusha Mandala is the metaphysical plan of a temple incorporating course of the heavenly bodies and supernatural forces. This Mandala square is divided into (8×8 = 64) 64 metaphysical grids / modules or pada for temples. (For dwelling places 9×9 = 81 metaphysical grids / modules or pada). At this square Vastu Purusha is shown lying with his chest, stomach and face touching on the ground his head is shown at Ishanya (north-east) and his legs shown at Nairutya (south west).
The center point is known as Brahmasthana and at this vital energy point Lord Brahma presides over the temple site and protects it. The vastu-purusha-mandala represents the manifest form of the Cosmic Being; upon which the temple is built and in whom the temple rests. The temple is situated in Him, comes from Him, and is a manifestation of Him. The vastu-purusha-mandala is both the body of the Cosmic Being and a bodily device by which those who have the requisite knowledge attain the best results in temple building. Stella Kramrisch; The Hindu Temple (Vol. I).
In a temple the feet represents Rajagopura, the hands represent Praakaara, the abdomen represent Mandapa, the heart represents Antaraala and the crown of the head represents the sanctum sanctorum (garbha griha). Garba-griham (main sanctum) is equated with human head; antarala (vestibule) is equated with human neck; ardha mandapam (half-hall) is compared with human chest; maha mandapam (main hall) is equated with the stomach; flag-post is viewed along with human male organ;and gopuram or temple gateway tower is viewed along with human feet.
Since ancient Rig Vedic times, the Aryan novitiate repeats sacred mantras in sets of 108 till it becomes an integrated inner vibration that can be evoked at will. The symbolism of number is explained in various passages of the Yajurveda and in the Tantra texts. Everything that exists in the cosmos has some size and structure perceivable or conceptualized in subliminal, astronomical or intermediate dimensions. Even the invisible subtle entities have ‘shapes’ which could be ‘seen’ through mental eyes.
The sagacious minds of the Vedic Age had deeper insight to ‘see’ the invisible or sublime elements of nature and express them in a universal language of symbols. They had thus invented a coding system of symbols, signs and alphabets (including digits) to represent the syllables of the seed mantras associated with the sublime fields of divine powers (devatas), natural tendencies of consciousness, emotional impulses in a being, etc; and the five basic elements (pancha-tatvas), their etheric vibrations and energy fields, and the states and motions of the enormous varieties of sub-atomic, atomic, and molecular structures generated thereby. Specific configurations of these codes were then incorporated in different yantras.
Thus, by meditating on the yantras, and using particular mantras to invoke their potencies, would also awake higher powers within the mind and consciousness of the sadhaka, or practitioner, if done properly. Three denotes the attributes of matter and spirit ; the proclivities (guna s) of Rajasa (Activity, extremism and materialism), Tamasa (Inertia and negativism) and Satvica (Truth, moderation and positivism); the aspects of Brahman (Shankara :destructive, Narayana, preservative and Virinchi: Creative) and their Shakthis (manifestations/energies of Parvathi :power, Lakshmi: prosperity and Saraswathi: wisdom) etc.
Seven refers to the orifices in the head, the structure of creation (loka and tala) and the spiritual or subtle (sukshma) layers of manifest reality (sthula). Eleven indicates the mind, the sense organs, and the senses. Twelve refers to the power of light. The Vimana, thus, traditionally represents the head over the region of the heart (garbhagruha). There is a detail, more prevalent in the South, significantly called the neck (kantha) between the two spaces. The terms used by traditional architects, sculptors and masons (sthapathis) are full of allusions to the human body.
Authored by Anadi Sahoo
