Shikhara

For the wooden boats of Jammu and Kashmir, see Shikara.
For other uses, see Shikara (disambiguation).
Shikhara of Adinath Jain Temple, Khajuraho, India.

Shikhara (IAST: Śikhara), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India.[1] Shikhara over the sanctum sanctorum where the presiding deity is enshrined is the most prominent and visible part of a Hindu temple of North India.[2][3]

In South India, the equivalent term for "shikhara" is "vimana".

These are not to be confused with the elaborate gateway-towers of south Indian temples, called "gopurams", which are perhaps the most prominent features of those temples.

Major styles

Among several styles of shikharas that can be seen in Hindu temple architecture, the three most common ones are:[2]

In every style of shikhara/vimana, the structure culminates with a "Kalasha", or sacred brass receptacle, at its peak.

In the vesara style, the dome tends to be highly ornate and emerges from the Sukanasa or richly carved horizontally treated outer walls of the temple.

The three main styles
Nagara Shikhara of Rameshwar Temple in Bhubaneswar 
Dravidian Shikhara (vimanam) of Murudeshwara Temple 
Vesara style of Keshava Temple, Somanathapura. Towers are in 16 pointed star plan. 

Urushringas

Homogeneous Shikhara (but with rathas) of the Lingaraja Temple in Bhubaneswar
On the left, the heterogenous Shikhara of the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple in Khajuraho

Originally, the shikharas were homogeneous. But with time, secondary shikharas (sometimes called urushringas), smaller and narrower, were plated on the sides of the main shikhara : they are heterogeneous shikharas.[5]

Some tertiaries shikharas sometimes exist near the ends of the side or in the corners.

One of the most notable examples of heterogeneous shikharas is those of Kandariya Mahadeva Temple in Khajuraho.

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.indoarch.org/arch_glossary.php
  2. 1 2 http://www.msc-sahc.org/upload/docs/new.docs/2008_SVardia.pdf
  3. ↑ "Shikhara". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 4 August 2015.
  4. ↑ http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/scholar?q=cache:U7OOSQCdIWsJ:scholar.google.com/&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5
  5. ↑ Volwahsen, Andreas (1968). Inde bouddhique, hindoue, jaïn (Architecture universelle ed.). Fribourg (Suisse): Office du Livre. pp. 143–147.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Shikharas.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 1/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.