The Architecture
What would the Hoysalas have done next if they had built another great royal temple near Belur and Halebeedu? The answer to this question is the thought dictating the design of the temple. The task is to surpass the largest Hoysala works in scale and magnificence.
Hoysala temples belong to the school of South Indian temple architecture called 'Karnata Dravida', which began around the seventh and eighth centuries under the early Chalukyas and continued to grow under the Rashtrakutas and the later Chalukyas, which is around late tenth to twelfth centuries. The Hoysala temple architecture is a late development of this tradition and hence Prof Hardy chooses to use the term 'late Karnata Dravida'. The figure here shows the development of Vimana types in the Karnata Dravida Tradition from the seventh to the thirteenth centuries CE. The last type is the one that will be used for the present temple.
The Karnata Dravida tradition, in contrast to the Tamil Dravida tradition, which is the temple architecture of Tamil Nadu and connues all dates, died out in the 14th century itself. Which is why, despite all the regional pride and its manifestation evoked in the form of souvenirs and the like, there has been no new Hoysala temple since the 14th century, as there are no Karnata Dravida sthapathis, nor is there any shastra from this tradition that can be referred to. So the only form of learning this tradition is by studying the temples that exist. And this is precisely what Prof. Hardy has been doing for decades. Also, to be kept in mind is that this is not one that can be solely designed by the architect's whims or his knowledge. The patron's vision, and more importantly, the dictats or the prescriptions of the agamikas or the members of the agama (traditional school of thought of Hindu spiritual practice) along with the architect's erudition of the Hoysala architectural works are the ones that are designing the temple, which is in Hardy’s work a 'swayambhu'. As Yeshaswini Sharma, whose firm Estheque Architects is collaborating on the project explains, 'Adam calls it Swayambhu as the temple is designing itself, it is manifesting itself. No design is being imposed on it. It is rather being channelled and let create itself'.
And the most unique aspect is that the temple, which is touted to be the next in the tradition, is also set to bring in or accommodate all the unique aspects of each of the temples that have been built so far.
INITIAL TEMPLE PLAN
As Ms Sharma explains, in terms of the overall structure, the main temple will have a stellate construction (star-shaped) and the biggest one to date amongst the Hoysala temples is the one in Belur, which is a 16-point one. “But the client wanted the Vishnu's Chaturvimsha depicted, i.e. the 24 forms of Vishnu, and Bhadra projections like the ones in Belur, which is how Adam came up with a 24-point star structure.”
The other requirements were that the Bhadra projections, which are the central relief or projected part on the side of the body of the vimana (the whole shrine structure from the base to the finial), were to be like the ones in Belur and the panels of the mantapa, as Mr Reddy envisions should sport the Dashavatara (ten incarnations of Vishnu). The temple is also to have a rangamantapa, the likes of the one in Arasikere, which is a stellate structure but a bigger one, with a dome whose diameter is 40 feet.
“So the design follows all this. When it comes to design, the theme can inform, the intention can inform - for e.g our client wants a Kalyana Venkateshwara temple, which itself lays down certain rules for us. It is a Venkateshwara temple and it is informed by the Vaikhanasa Agama (the school of thought associated with the rituals at the Tirupa Balaji temple), unlike the other Hoysala temples which are being handled by the Pancharatra Agama.
These agamikas have certain requirements and set rules about how certain aspects of the temple should be, and we have to adhere to that,” explains Sharma, adding that all these factors are ensuring that the temple is in reality manifesting itself.
With a garbagriha of 60 feet, which with the bhadra is 90 feet in width, the mantapa is 120 feet by 120 feet. “That apart, we are trying to see how we can be innovative with light and ventilation. Also, we have additional issues to handle, given the mess we live in. Probably when the Hoysalas built their temples, they didn't or didn't have to think of disabled access, but we are. Since it is a public project with public money funding it, we cannot ignore any such aspects,” explains Sharma.
ARCHITECTURAL CHALLENGES
Given the scale, the challenges too are not few. For instance, technically the beam lengths are very long, more than 17 feet, while the longest till date is the one in Belur which measures around 10-12 feet. “That kind of length is not available in any of the quarries; moreover, that kind of length means we can't cast it in soapstone. So for this median beams, we need a granite core and clad soapstone on it, which means we need good structural expertise, due diligence, etc.,” explains Sharma elaborating on the challenges. The Vimanashikhara is 109 tall, which means the walls of the garbagriha will be carrying so much dead weight. Also, it is a stellate plan, which means we also have to ensure the angles don't open up,” she adds. These are technical issues apart from which there are other logistical issues to be dealt with, which make the project a really long-winded one, as there is no scope for compromise. Be it sourcing the stones or deciding where the sculptors will work, ferrying the sculpted porons, or the other legal issues that arise, the architectural magnum opus has many a ny issues that are being dealt with as they come. And the biggest one is definitely the moolah.
