Urban India: Cultural Heritage, Past and Present 3031237366, 9783031237362

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Cities, Heritage and Transformation

Renate Bornberg

Urban India Cultural Heritage, Past and Present

Cities, Heritage and Transformation Series Editor Fatemeh Farnaz Arefian, Bartlett Development Planning Unit, Silk Cities, University College London, London, UK

This book series addresses contextual and global urban challenges and opportunities that cities in historic regions face within the process of urban transformation, linked with their historic past. It publishes peer reviewed books on the relationships between the built environment, urban transformation and cultural heritage, whether to be tangible or intangible, overarched by the notion of resilience and sustainable development. Special attention is given on real-life under-explored topics. Challenging existing assumptions and disciplinary divides, the series takes an interdisciplinary position and brings together innovative researches from different areas within Geography, Social Sciences and Humanities. The aim is to create a knowledge hub for academics and practitioners, researchers and research organisations, as well as managers and policy makers worldwide, presenting advances and case studies, which connect academia to practice. The series benefits from the existing and growing Silk Cities’ network, as well as ongoing collaborative activities Silk Cities undertake as part of its intellectual leadership on the subject matter. The series is open for empirical, theoretical, and methodological high-quality contributions, which advance the global understanding on the subject matter. The areas covered in the series include but are not limited to the following subjects: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Cities and intangible cultural heritage Community participation in managing urban heritage Urban history Urban heritage Cultural memory, society, and the built environment Development management in historic contexts Disaster management in historic cities Disaster risk reduction and resilience of historic cities and societies Disaster recovery and reconstruction Environment and historic cities Governing historic cities Geotourism and geoheritage Historic contexts and complex urban systems Post-crisis reconstruction and recovery Smart historic cities Sustainable heritage tourism Urban Silk Roads Urban economy in historic cities Sustainable urban heritage Urban conservation Urban design and public spaces in historic context Urban planning of historic cities Urban morphology Urban transformation of historic cities Urban connectivity and Silk Roads Historic cities, urban policies, and territorial planning

Renate Bornberg

Urban India Cultural Heritage, Past and Present

Renate Bornberg buTa-Bornberg Urban Theory and Architecture Heidelberg, Germany

ISSN 2731-5363 ISSN 2731-5371 (electronic) Cities, Heritage and Transformation ISBN 978-3-031-23736-2 ISBN 978-3-031-23737-9 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9 © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland

And so powerful was her destiny that she was called India…. India, India to you could mean a peaceful place that you find within yourself …an abode for the many, people and cultures Woven seamlessly to create unique patterns, together in one endless garment, for all In the same way, India, when you meet conflicting emotions or situations remind yourself, your name is about balance, Treading on a slender thread that holds us together With a firm hand and keen eye forging ahead India, India is about tradition, belief, faith and wisdom Remind yourself in your hour of need Ancient wisdom that is anchored deep within us, Cloaked as instinct, intuition, common sense Rushing to our rescues on many a stormy eve India, India is about colour, celebration, festivity and flavour As a reminder to you to be one with others’ moments of joy

And to remember to include others in your own… India is about its textiles, its sarees, That simple length of fabric, devoid of form, size or cut, Humble like water one that can fill or drape any size or shape A beautiful garment lending poise and grace It suits any, and all occasions and place India, recall this resilience of your name to face any situation or time that comes your way India, India is about its people Diverse backgrounds, and geographies And different names, each with a meaning as deep as yours India, India is about its children, the few who have and many that do not Making their way towards possibilities, through the haze of the impossible India, your destiny is unique You bear the name of an ancient land Boundless in its love, zest, mystique and miracle. Nupur penned down these thoughts for a young girl in Stockholm, named India, when asked to describe the meaning of her name. (Nupur Prothi is a Board Member of ICOMOS International)

To Adrian, Isabella, and most of all Erich

Contents

1

India in Nine Episodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.2 Place Identity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.3 Space as a Social Entity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.4 On Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.5 Building on the Cultural Heritage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.6 Methodology and Analytical Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.7 Nine Episodes—The Structure of the Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 1 3 5 6 11 14 16 17

2

India: Some Insights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 Climate and Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 An Overview of India’s History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.1 Early Historic Traces (5000 BCE–300 BCE) . . . . . . . . . 2.3.2 Development of the North (300 BCE–1200 CE) . . . . . . 2.3.3 Development of the Peninsula (1000 BCE–1200 CE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.4 Kingdoms of the South (800 CE–1200 CE) . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.5 The Delhi Sultanate (1206 CE–1526 CE) . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.6 The Mughals (1526 CE–1712 CE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.7 Maratha Empire (1674 CE–1818 CE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.8 Western Colonialism (1500 CE–1947 CE) . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.9 India’s Independence (Twentieth Century) . . . . . . . . . . . 2.4 Religions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5 The Pantheon of Hindu Gods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.1 Brahma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.2 Shiva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.3 Vishnu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.4 Devi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.5.5 Durga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

21 21 22 24 24 25 27 28 29 31 31 32 33 34 35 35 37 38 38 39

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2.5.6 Ganesha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.6 The Caste System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

40 41 46 46

3

Episode 1: Planning Theories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2 Mandalas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.1 The Geopolitical Meaning of Mandalas . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.2.2 The Mandala as a Planning Tool for Cities . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 Indian Planning Treatises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.1 The Puranas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.2 Arthashastra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.3 Mansara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3.4 Mayamatam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 Some Theoretical Types of Settlements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.5 The Profession of the Town Planner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

49 49 51 53 55 57 59 59 61 63 65 68 69 69

4

Episode 2: Of Ancient Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Religious and Cultural Traces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3 Economic and Ecological Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4 Some Examples of Cities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.1 Kalibangan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.2 Lothal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 Mohenjo Daro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.5 Harappan Town Planning: A Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

71 71 73 74 76 77 79 83 88 90 91

5

Episode 3: At Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Rules for Building a House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.3 Spatial Hierarchy in the House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 Rules for Different Castes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 Examples of Indian Residential Houses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.1 The Bhungas of Kutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.2 The Haveli of Rajasthan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.3 The Nalukettu of Kerala . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.4 The Newar Houses of the Himalayas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.5 The Khang Pa Houses of Ladakh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5.6 Contemporary Homes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

93 93 94 96 102 104 104 107 109 113 116 119 119 120

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Episode 4: Public Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 Purity and Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.3 On Streets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.4 The Quarters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5 The Neighbourhoods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.6 The Central Manram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.7 Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.8 Main Public Buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.9 Gateways and Walls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.10 Water Tanks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.11 Stepwells . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.12 Ghats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.13 Places of Worship: Natural Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.13.1 Community Shrines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.13.2 Village Temples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.14 The Underworld . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.15 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

123 123 124 125 126 127 129 129 131 132 134 136 138 139 141 142 144 147 148

7

Episode 5: Gods and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Gods and Their Place on Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.3 Constituents of Temples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.4 Temple Rites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5 Ancient Gods and the City: Kashi, Varanasi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.1 Goddess Ganga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.2 The Sacred Divisions of Varanasi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.5.3 Spatial Elements of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 Goddess and the City: Madurai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.1 Meenakshi Myths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.2 The Townscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.3 Spatial Elements of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.4 The New City Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6.5 Ritual and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.7 The Ideal City: Srirangam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.7.1 The Townscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.7.2 The Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.7.3 Temple Festival and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.8 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

151 151 152 152 157 159 160 162 163 166 167 169 171 173 175 176 176 180 182 183 183

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Episode 6: Kings and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.2 The Ramayana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 Planning of Royal Cities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4 The Royal Palace and the City: Udaipur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.1 Planning Ideas of the Mewars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4.2 The City Palace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5 A New Capital: Bhaktapur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.1 Spatial Elements of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5.2 The Adjacent Town . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6 A Planned City: Jaipur . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.1 Planning of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6.2 The palace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

187 187 188 190 193 194 195 197 198 204 206 207 209 210 213

9

Episode 7: Muslims and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.2 Islamic Principles of Town Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.3 Persian Influences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4 Defining Elements of Muslim Cities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.1 The House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.2 The Quarter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.3 Facilities for Trade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.4 The Friday Mosque and Related Buildings . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.5 The Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.4.6 The Palace Fotification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5 A Muslim City in India: Fatehpur Sikri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.1 The City Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.5.2 Elements of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6 A Muslim Fort in India: Lal Qila, Agra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7 A Persian Garden in India: Shalimar Bagh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.8 A Muslim Tomb Garden in India: Taj Mahal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.9 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

215 215 216 219 220 220 224 225 228 229 232 234 236 237 241 244 246 250 251

10 Episode 8: The British and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 European and British Planning Ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3 The British Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.1 Civil Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.2 The Cantonment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3.3 Official Buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.4 The Hill Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.4.1 Simla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.5 Spatial Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

253 253 254 256 257 258 259 261 261 265

Contents

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10.5.1 Imperial Delhi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.6 The British Built Legacy in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

269 272 275 275

11 Episode 9: Outsiders and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 Untouchability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.3 Dalit and the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.4 Haussmann in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.5 Neoliberal Architecture and Urban Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.6 On Slums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.7 Slum Clearance in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.8 The Largest Slum of Asia: Dharavi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.9 Dharavi: A Cosmos on Its Own . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.10 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

277 277 278 280 282 285 286 287 290 294 299 299

12 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309

List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Fig. 1.2 Fig. 1.3 Fig. 1.4 Fig. 1.5 Fig. 1.6 Fig. 1.7 Fig. 2.1 Fig. 2.2 Fig. 2.3 Fig. 2.4 Fig. 2.5 Fig. 2.6 Fig. 2.7

Fig. 2.8

A street in New Delhi designed for motorised traffic. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An example of a central European cemetery. Friedhof Neuenheim, Heidelberg, Germany. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . The meadows along the riverbanks of the Neckar, Heidelberg, Germany. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An example of a main entrance door in Albanina. Berat, Albania. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The threshold between private and public space. Kathmandu, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The threshold in the narrow environment of a slum. Worli, Mumbai, India. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Women drying coffee beans on a neighbourhood square. Awasa, Ethiopia. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Map of India with today’s states and their capitals, not scaled. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Indus valley civilisation, not scaled. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Chola empire on the Indian subcontinent, circa 800 CE, not scaled. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Delhi Sultanate, circa 1320 CE, not scaled. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Colonial settlements and regions, eighteenth century, not scaled. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bust of Brahma. Pura Dalem, Desa Adat Selat, Bali, Indonesia. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shiva with trident, drum and fire, in the background the Himalayan mountanis. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vishnu holding his insignia. Behind him is Shesha, the world serpent. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . .

4 8 9 10 11 12 13 22 25 29 30 32 36

37 39 xv

xvi

Fig. 2.9

Fig. 2.10

Fig. 2.11 Fig. 3.1 Fig. 3.2

Fig. 3.3

Fig. 3.4

Fig. 3.5

Fig. 3.6

Fig. 3.7

Fig. 4.1 Fig. 4.2 Fig. 4.3

Fig. 4.4

List of Figures

Durga, with 18 arms. Gilt copper statue with inlays of semi-precious stones, fourteenth-fifteenth century BC. Source https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Durga_ as_Slayer_of_the_Buffalo_Demon_Mahishasura_MET_ DT5236.jpg. Accessed: 31.07.2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ganesha with his insignia, standing on his mount animal, the rat. Relief at the Sundhara Chowk, Patan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vishnu explaining the caste system. Relief in Changu Narayan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Sri Yantra. Source Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . The Newar king represented with the insignia of Vishnu: the lotus flower, the world serpent, a canopy. Bhupatindra Malla statue, Bhaktapur, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . Durbars Square, Bhaktapur. The centre of the city is occupied by the royal palace, around which the most important temples are situated. Source Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vastu Purusha Mandala: the cosmic man is inscribed in a square, with his head lying in the north-east corner, and his feet in the south-west corner. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diagram of the main gods protecting the cardinal directions (In India these are eight), and with the central area of Brahma, the creator. Source Author compilation . . . . . . The Dandaka—town mandala. the long side of the village following the Dandaka diagram should be twice as long as the short side. A Vishnu temple should be located at the western corner of the village, and a Shiva temple should be located in the north-east corner. Source Author compilation after Pieper 1974, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Sarvatobhadra town mandala, that is, complaisant on all sides. There are entrances in the centre of each side, and has square shape. Therefore, it is the ideal city form for Brahmins and gods. Source Author compilation, after Pieper 1974, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scheme of Kalibangan. Source Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scheme of Lothal. Source Author compilation, not scaled . . . . A typical residential area as it can be encountered in Iran and Pakistan. Chahu Shargi, Keshm Island, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The ancient water channel system is used until today. Bam, Kreman, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

40

41 42 51

53

54

55

56

66

67 77 79

87 90

List of Figures

Fig. 5.1 Fig. 5.2 Fig. 5.3 Fig. 5.4

Fig. 5.5 Fig. 5.6 Fig. 5.7

Fig. 5.8 Fig. 5.9 Fig. 5.10 Fig. 5.11 Fig. 5.12 Fig. 5.13

Fig. 5.14 Fig. 5.15 Fig. 5.16

Fig. 5.17 Fig. 5.18 Fig. 5.19 Fig. 6.1 Fig. 6.2

xvii

Front porch of a Brahmin house in Srirangam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Front porches of lower caste people. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reception room in a merchant’s house. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Small passage into the house. On both sides there are doors that are closed at night. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Central courtyard. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Erich Lehner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Second courtyard, which is used for domestic duties. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Homes of peasants and low caste people near Gangaikona—Cholapuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schematic drawing of a typical Bhonga. Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schematic drawing of a cluster of Bhongas. Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Haweli in Jodpur. Source Rutvi Patel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An entrance to a Haweli in Jodhpur. Source Rutvi Patel . . . . . . A Mashrabya, Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Varikkasseri Nalukettu, Tamil Nadu. Source https://com mons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Varikkasseri_Nalukettu_ 2.jpg, accessed 24 May 2022 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schematic floor plan and section of a typical Nalukettu, Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The ground floor houses shops and workshops, Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kitchen and pooja room in a typical Newar house. Changunaryan art museum, Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schematic section of a Newar house. Author compilation, not to scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schematic view of a Ladakhi farmhouse on plain ground, and in the hills. Author compilation, not to scale . . . . . . . . . . . . The facade of a Ladakhi farmhouse. Source Andrea Rieger-Jandl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Water distribution in a residential quarter in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A porch or verandah in a neighborhood in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

96 97 98

99 100 100

103 105 106 108 110 111

112 113 114

115 116 117 118 126 128

xviii

Fig. 6.3.

Fig. 6.4 Fig. 6.5

Fig. 6.6 Fig. 6.7

Fig. 6.8 Fig. 6.9

Fig. 6.10 Fig. 6.11 Fig. 6.12 Fig. 6.13 Fig. 6.14 Fig. 6.15 Fig. 6.16 Fig. 6.17

Fig. 6.18

Fig. 6.19 Fig. 6.20 Fig. 7.1

List of Figures

A market adjacent to the main temple selling goods for the temple offerings. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A local market, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . An old pilgrim house, which was used as a sleeping place by pilgrims who visited the temples. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gateway and city walls of Bhaktapur, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A large artificial water tank with a shrine in the centre. At the end of the dry season there is no water left in the basin and grass and other plants start to grow. Source Author . . . . . . . A pond in a neighbourhood in Chidambaram. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tanks are normally dedicated to a god or goddess, who safeguard the tank. Their presence prevents people from contaminating the water. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Argasen Ki boali stepwell in New Delhi. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Flights of steps, the ghats, leading into the Ganga River, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A sacred tree with a platform and a shirne. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A community gathering for the Indra Jatra festival. Kathmandu, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A neighbourhood shrine in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gateway to the Ayyanar Forest Temple, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The sanctum sanctorium of the Ayyanar Forest Temple, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Male members bring their deceased to the cremation ground. All the way from home to the cremation ground they scatter flowers. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The deceased is washed in the river by his male relatives before the corpse is then transferred to the cremation platform. Pashupatinath, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . Burning platform at the cremation ghats in Pashupatinath, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cremation site in a rural area, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . Mahishasura Marthini caves from the seventh century CE, Pallava Dynasty in Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

130 131

132 133

134 135

136 137 139 140 141 142 143 143

145

146 146 147

153

List of Figures

Fig. 7.2

Fig. 7.3 Fig. 7.4

Fig. 7.5 Fig. 7.6

Fig. 7.7 Fig. 7.8 Fig. 7.9

Fig. 7.10 Fig. 7.11 Fig. 7.12

Fig. 7.13 Fig. 7.14 Fig. 7.15 Fig. 7.16 Fig. 7.17 Fig. 7.18 Fig. 7.19 Fig. 7.20

xix

The Sanctum Santorum with its gold plated roof, the Shikhara, and a gatewaytower, a Gopuram, Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Temple elephant, blessing devotees. Kumbeshwara Temple, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . Water tank inside a temple. Around the basin are steps towards the water. Ekambareswarar Temple, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Ratha, a temple cart. Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A portable image of Ganesha, ready for a procession. Kumbeshwara Temple, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . An overview of the ghats alongside the Ganges River, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Image of Goddess Ganga. Mul Chowk, Patan Palace, Patan, Nepal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Structural map of Varanasi; Kashi, followed by Avimukta, then Varanasi. The red line indicates the Atargriha pilgrimage route. Source Author compilation. Not to scale . . . . Kedar Ghat, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . Burning ghat at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Structural map of Madurai with the Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple in the centre. Source Author compilation, not to scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A gateway tower, Gopuram. Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brahmin houses adjacent to the temple walls. Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shops on the ground floor of Brahmin houses. Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gateway tower of the Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Lingam, Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The central courtyard of the Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Royal Audience Hall, Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Perumal Koli Water Tank, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

154 155

156 158

158 159 161

162 164 165

167 170 170 170 172 173 174 174 175

xx

Fig. 7.21

Fig. 7.22 Fig. 7.23 Fig. 7.24

Fig. 7.25

Fig. 7.26 Fig. 8.1

Fig. 8.2

Fig. 8.3

Fig. 8.4 Fig. 8.5 Fig. 8.6

Fig. 8.7 Fig. 8.8

Fig. 8.9 Fig. 8.10

List of Figures

Schematic map of Srirangam. Clearly visible are the concentric rings of the city. Source Author compilation, not scaled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Rock Fort temple of Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A view from one gateway tower, a gopuram, to the next. Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . Brahmin houses alongside the Chittari Street, the innermost ringroad, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Sanctum Sanctorum with the gold plated roof. Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Image of Garuda, Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Udaipur city map. The city palace and the lake palace are highlighted in grey. Source Google maps and author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Udaipur palace seen from lake Pichola in the foreground the Mohan temple. Source Jakub Halun, https://com mons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20191207_City_Palace,_ Mohan_Temple_and_Lake_Pichola,_Udaipur,_1523_7 262.jpg, accessed on 12 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Manek Chowk, city palace Udaipur. Source Henrik Bennetsen, 2006. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/ File:Udaipur_City_Palace.jpg, accessed on 12 Oct 2021 . . . . . . Bhaktapur city map. Source Author compilation, not to scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Durbar square, Bhaktapur. Source Author compilation, not to scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Durbar square, Bhaktapur. To the left the palace facade is visible, to the right the destroyed Vastala Durga Temple, in the front the Chayasilin Mandapa. Source Author . . . . . . . . . Shelter for pilgrims on Durbar square, Bhaktapur. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sundari Chowk temple gate, which is located between the old and the new part of the palace. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Palace with the 55 windows. Bhaktapur, Durbar square. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The sacred tree of a neighborhood, this particular one was used as the first stop for pilgrims before they entered the city. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

177 177 178

179

180 181

193

195

196 199 199

200 201

202 203

203

List of Figures

Fig. 8.11

Fig. 8.12

Fig. 8.13

Fig. 8.14 Fig. 8.15 Fig. 8.16 Fig. 8.17 Fig. 8.18

Fig. 9.1 Fig. 9.2 Fig. 9.3 Fig. 9.4 Fig. 9.5 Fig. 9.6 Fig. 9.7 Fig. 9.8 Fig. 9.9 Fig. 9.10 Fig. 9.11 Fig. 9.12

Fig. 9.13

xxi

Taumadhi tole seen from the Nyatapola temple, giving a view into the city. To the left is the Bhairava temple. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The gateway into the city at the Mangal Ghat. This gateway is mainly used to take the deceased to the burning Mangal ghat, which is one of the burning ghats of Bhaktapur. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jaipur city map with the nine squares that were designed according to the Pitha Mandala. Source Google maps and author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diagram of the Pitha Mandala. Source Author compilation . . . The Hawa Mahal, Jaipur Palace, Jaipur. Source Author . . . . . . . The Hawa Mahal. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Mubarak Mahal, the welcome palace, city palace, Jaipur. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The second courtyard of the city palace, Jaipur. To the right the Diwan i Khas is visible, where tow giant silver urns are stored. In these two urns Ghanges water was carried for an emperor’s visit to London in 1901. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Treasure house in the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Entrance square after passing the town walls of a village. Ksar in Morocco. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Residential unit separated from the next by a wall. Kasbah des Qudaia, Rabat, Morocco. Source Author . . . . . . . . . The courtyard of a house in Haft Rangoo, Keshm Island, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Skeduli House, Girokastra, Albania. Source Author . . . . . . . . . A mashrabiya window, Jerusalem, Israel. Source Author . . . . . The summer roof terrace from Skeduli House, Girokastra, Albania. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wind catchers, Laft, Qeshm Island, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . Entrances or windows never face each other in a street of a residential quarter in Berat, Albania. Source Author . . . . . . A fountain of a neighbourhood. Kasbah des Ouidaia, Rabat, Morocco. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Entrance gate. Kasbah des Oudaia, Morocco. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ruins of a caravan serai. In the foreground stone rings for attaching the tents. Kerman province, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The central meeting place in a caravan serai inside a city. Chan As’ad Pascha, Damascus, Syria. Source Author . . . . . . . .

205

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208 209 211 212 212

213 217 218 219 221 222 222 223 224 225 226 226

227 228

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Fig. 9.14 Fig. 9.15 Fig. 9.16 Fig. 9.17

Fig. 9.18 Fig. 9.19

Fig. 9.20 Fig. 9.21 Fig. 9.22 Fig. 9.23 Fig. 9.24

Fig. 9.25 Fig. 9.26 Fig. 9.27 Fig. 9.28

Fig. 9.29

Fig. 9.30

List of Figures

Bazaar street in front of the Jama Masjid, Delhi, India. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A medresa, a Qu’ran school. Kerman, Iran. Source Author . . . . A typical Persian garden. Mahan Garden, Iran. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The citadel towers above the entire city. In the citadel was the military apparatus, the stables and storage spaces. In times of warfare all inhabitants would retreat to the citadel. Bam, Kerman province, Iran. Source Author . . . . An Islamic palace garden. Alhambra, Granada, Spain. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Plan of Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author compilation, not to scale. (1) Agra Gate; (2) Naubat Khan; (3) Treasury; (4) Mint; (5) Palace; (6) Caravan Serai; (7) Jama Masjid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The gardens of the Fatehpur Sikri palace. Fatehpur Sikri, India. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diwan-eh-Khas. Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Buland Darwaza, the main entrance gate to the Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Tomb of Salim Chishti, Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Map of the Red Fort, the Lal Qila, Agra. Source Author compilation, not to scale. (1) Amar Singh Gate; (2) Akbar Mahal; (3) Jahangir Mahal; (4) Khas Mahal; (5) Diwan-i-Am; (6) Macchli Bhavan; (7) Diwan-i-Khas; (8) Nagina Masjid; (9) Jama Masjid; (10) Bazaar; (11) Delhi Gate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fortification walls and moat of the Red Fort, the Lal Qila, Agra. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The main entrance to the Red Fort, Agra. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Map of the Shalima Bagh, Lahore, Pakistan. Source Author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Water basin in the central area of the Shalima Bagh, Lahore, Pakistan. Source Farrah Zakir. https://commons. wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shalimar_Gardens_water_refl ection.JPG, 2016 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Map of the Taj Mahal Tomb Garden, Agra. Source Author compilation. (1) Tomb; (2) Tomb garden; (3) Great Gate; (4) Forecourt; (5) Gate; (6) Bazaar and caravan serais (today this part no longer exists) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Taj Mahal seen from the Yamuna River. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

229 229 230

232 233

235 237 238 239 240

242 243 243 245

246

247 248

List of Figures

Fig. 9.31 Fig. 9.32 Fig. 10.1

Fig. 10.2

Fig. 10.3

Fig. 10.4

Fig. 10.5

Fig. 10.6

Fig. 10.7

Fig. 10.8

Fig. 10.9

Fig. 10.10 Fig. 10.11

xxiii

The main entrance gate to the Tomb Garden of the Taj Mahal, Agra. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Tomb Garden of the Taj Mahal with its water features, Agra. Source Alain Viaro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scheme of a station. (1) main officer’s building (2) officer’s mass (3) theatre (4) ball room (5) church (6) water tank (7) library, (8,9) high officer’s residences, (10) barracks of soldiers (11) park of hospital (12) gardens (13, 14) hospital (15) residences of higher soldiers (16) military administration (17) gardens. Source Author compilation after J. Pieper (1974) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Victoria Terminus or Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Mumbai. Source Vyacheslav Argenberg, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mumbai,_Ind ia,_Chhatrapati_Shivaji_Maharaj_Terminus_, accessed 26 October 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Mall road of Shimla. To the right is the municipal corporation building. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https:// commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mall_Road_-_Shi mla_2014-05-07_1107.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . The Gaiety Heritage Cultural complex. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gai ety_Theater_-_Mall_Road_-_Shimla_2014-05-07_1291. JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Mall Road with the bandstand to the left. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https://commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/File:Mall_Road_-_Shimla_2014-05-07_1245.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Viceregal Lodge, Shimla. Source Praveenguptabotanist, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Viceregal_Lod ge,_Shimla.jpg, accessed 26 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The church at the Shimla Ridge. Source Betelbeuse. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shimla_India_ Ridge.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The plan for Imperial Delhi. (1) Old Delhi (2) Lal Qila (3) Jama Masjid (4) Railway line (5) Connaught Place (6) India Gate (7) Viceroy’s House, today Rashtrapati Bhavan. Source Author compilation after Sir Edwin Lutyens’project for New Delhi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Water course at the Rajpat, New Delhi. In the background the administrative buildings of the British Crown. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Rajpat. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The India Gate with the Canopy in the background, New Delhi. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

249 249

256

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263

265

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266

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271 272 273

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Fig. 10.12 Fig. 11.1 Fig. 11.2 Fig. 11.3 Fig. 11.4

Fig. 11.5 Fig. 11.6 Fig. 11.7 Fig. 11.8 Fig. 11.9 Fig. 11.10 Fig. 11.11 Fig. 11.12 Fig. 11.13 Fig. 11.14

Fig. 11.15

List of Figures

Connaught Place, New Delhi. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Slum dwelling, outskirts of Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Waste dump next to a dwelling. Wasteground near Konrak, Tamil Nadu. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Avenue des Champs-Élysées with the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile at its end, Paris. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 St Mary Axe by Norman Foster, Financial District, City of London, London, U.K.). Source Jack Soley. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/ 42/30_St_Mary_Axe_%28The_Gherkin%29%2C_Cen tral_London.jpg, accessed 6 Oct 2022 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Map of downtown Mumbai with Dharavi highlighted. Source Google maps, author compilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dharavi seen from the Sion Dharavi overway, Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . View into Dharavi from the Sant Mohidas Marg, Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Daravi citizens, posing proudly in front of the neighbourhood church. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Schoolchildren of Dharavi. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Workshops and shops in the basements of a slum. Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A carpenter workshop in Dharavi. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . A narrow lane with overhanging balconies: every inch of the slum is used. Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . A steep stepladder leads to the upper floors, Dharavi. Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The area between the railway tracks is used for drying laundry for the “legal” citizens, Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shop in Dharavi selling and producing products for the “legal” city and the global market. Source Author . . . . .

274 281 282 284

287 290 291 291 292 293 294 295 296 297

298 298

Chapter 1

India in Nine Episodes

Abstract Cities are spatial organisations that have evolved over the course of centuries and respond to the particular landscape and climate, but also to cultural factors. Consequently, cities and villages will have a different outlook in the various regions around the world. Recently, however, due to the rapid growth of cities worldwide, a globalisation process has led to uniform looking cities, that do not relate to the traditional urban patterns that have evolved over time. Furthermore, most of these new developments are neither environmentally friendly nor do they contribute to the resilience of cities—both requirements by most countries worldwide to generate socially sustainable cities or to counteract climate change. However, it is hardly investigated which attributes and qualities an urban environment of a particular region has. By taking the example of India this book aims to identify spacial elements of India’s cities that have evolved over the millennia and have led to a built heritage that is distinctive, unique, and local to India and nowhere else. However, India has a long history, where cities have continuously evolved and were adapted to the needs of the society. Such a long period and such a vast region is difficult to depict in one book. Therefore, nine urban scenarios, the episodes, have been singled out that still influence Indian cities until today. In this chapter, the underlying principles of spatial organisation are discussed to lead the way for India’s special urban and village development. This chapter provides an abstract of the underlying theories of space as a social entity. Keywords Globalisation · Loss of identity · India’s cultural heritage of cities · Place identity · Space

1.1 Introduction Since the middle of the twentieth century, there has been a global dramatic increase in urban population worldwide, which resulted in enormous city transformations that led to a loss of identity heritage. According to UN calculations, this growth will continue in the forthcoming decades: It is estimated the 55.3% of the world’s population lived in cities and urban agglomerations in 2018 and in 2030 the estimated number of people living in urban areas will be more than 60%, most of the new urban © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_1

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1 India in Nine Episodes

population will have migrated from rural areas. One third of the urban residents will live in cities with at least half a million inhabitants (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs 2018). It seems that this development is in line with the globalisation process: Global brands not only sell their products across the world, they also bring along architectural patterns and certain features for buildings and signs, so that the brand is easily recognised everywhere (Kaymaz 2013). Global companies develop whole neighbourhoods, if not entire new cities with standardised patterns for residential houses, for streets, for shopping malls, and so forth. This leads to cities that look similar across the world, no matter if the city is located in Indonesia, South Africa, India, or France. Globalisation thus causes a homogenisation of urban landscapes, and since the global interventions are often of enormous dimensions, the changes are irreversible (Kaymaz 2013). The public realm is often reduced to the planning of car parks and standardised features, neglecting the built heritage of the regions. The magnitude of the transformation of cities has not only led to dramatic environmental problems, but also to a loss of place identity and cultural heritage. Under the international influence of the globalisation process it is difficult to maintain place identity (Brabec 2004). The public realm becomes confined to shopping centres, public parks, traffic thoroughfares and the like, without reference to how people use public spaces, and how traditional urban spaces were configured. These developments triggered a loss of identity in almost every country in the world. As a consequence of this development, many cities invest time and financial resources to protect their unique urban landscape. Preservation of old structures is one of the key elements of current debates on urban design. Lewis Mumford suggested already in the 1940ies that urban planning should emphasis the relationship between the places and people, who live in these places (Mumford 1937). Since then, policies and guidelines were developed to design adequate architecture and urban quarters. It is widely believed by town planners, that a key role against the loss of identity is an adequate urban design (for example Gehl 1987; Gehl and Svarre 2013; Jacobs 1963; Venturi et al. 1978). Authenticity, which is defined by value attributes, is important to keep place identity alive. The operational guidelines of the UNESCO World heritage committee attest, that “…knowledge and understanding of these sources of information, in relation to original subsequent characteristics of the cultural heritage, and their meaning as accumulated over time, are the requisite bases for assessing all aspects of authenticity” (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2019, §80). Although defined for sites inscribed in the World Heritage List, these arguments also apply to all properties that inherit heritage. Among the factors that express authenticity are form and design, materials, substance, location and setting, as well as use and function, traditions, techniques, spirit and feeling (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2019). However, what the UNESCO World Heritage centre (among many others) calls for is relatively new and rarely explored: what are the socio-spatial constructs of a city? How can they be newly implemented in the urban environment? As long as only conservation and preservation is the agenda, design guidelines for a certain place are relatively easily delineated. It is more difficult to find appropriate solutions

1.2 Place Identity

3

for an urban design agenda meeting the demands of place identity and social-spatial patterns that are designed upon heritage when new urban areas have to be set up. New urban development is hardly based on the built heritage of a city. Even less are considerations of place identity and heritage are made when the urban growth is rapid. In most cases, the standardised global structures are erected, without taking into account the cultural realities of space. Examples are found around the world, in the banlieues of Paris, as well as certain suburbs of Liverpool (for example Anfield), or Berlin (for example Neukölln). In Asian, South American and African cities, where urban growth is strongest (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs 2018) hardly any effort is made to identify social-spatial patterns and how people use spaces, or what their expectations would be to a certain public space. In India whole new cities have been designed, such as Hyderabad, Navi Mumbai, or the quarters in the outskirts of New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, or Bangalore. These new parts were designed according to international, global planning and architectural ideas such as high-rise buildings, sealed with glass facades that only can be operated by the extensive use of air condition. Streets are mainly reduced to motorised traffic, which pedestrians can hardly use (Fig. 1.1). Such urban patterns are not only critical from an ecological point of view, they also neglect Indian socio-spatial patterns that evolved over the millennia. Indian life, however, takes place largely on the streets and in the open spaces and in the transition spaces between buildings and street: traditionally, there are porches, verandahs, balconies, from people participate in street life. With the new urban structures of high rise buildings and streets without pedestrian areas, the heritage of the socio-spatial patterns of Indian cities is abnegated. Such a development is neither sustainable, nor does it contribute to the resilience of cities and the stop the climate change: All these issues are demanded today and are the top agendas for urban development worldwide.

1.2 Place Identity Identity in the context of the built environment of a city or village includes a wide range of components, covering landscape and environmental factors, climate conditions, was well as ecological, cultural, political and social constituents. The essential components of a city are a fixed site, facilities for shelter and assemblies, storage and work spaces. The essential social components of a city are all components that serve the cultural and economic life. The interplay of all components creates a symbol of a collective unity results in an aesthetic symbol of the unity of inhabitants (Mumford 1937). Over often long periods of time, a particular urban identity is formed by the users and inhabitants of a certain city or village. Cities shape the outlooks and values of their inhabitants (Bell and Shalit 2011). The spatial layout, consisting of streets, buildings, open spaces and the movement of the inhabitants within this environment, create a unique structure. According to Jane Jacobs, the streets and street life comes to one’s mind when thinking of a city (Jacobs 1961). Identity generally is constructed

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1 India in Nine Episodes

Fig. 1.1 A street in New Delhi designed for motorised traffic. Source Author

through difference, through a view to the outside and therefore functions as points of identification (Derrida 2002) and constructed by an individual (Hall 1996). There is an emotional bond that is formed between the individual and a certain place, because humans tend to give meaning to this place. The interaction with a place produces feelings, memories and expectations about a place and an important feature of social and cultural life. Cities are therefore not only physical structures, but also involve social and cultural meaning. The relationship between the physical structure of a city, its streets, parks, green spaces or residential areas, and the social meaning is produced by the inhabitants of a city (Kaymaz 2013). On the other hand, the physical appearance of a city shapes the habits of the people and the way certain areas are used (Stephenson 2008). With this cultural heritage is formed over time and place identity is created. For individuals identity of a place is important because it is the source of meaning and experience for people (Smith, Bender 2001). Cities and villages must be understood as places in which people cooperate to create a “communal sense of values” and generate civic pride and thus shape the self-image of a city or a village. It is the multitude of people who leave their traces in the public realm through their paths, activities and personal ideas, which create a “meta-culture” (Ipsen 2009): a meta-culture is the sum of the traces of all the inhabitants—past and present—providing a city or village its own unique look and unmistakeable identity. The image of a city is the perception of the assembly of its elements and the way inhabitants interact with them. Inhabitants tend to mentally analyse the components of

1.3 Space as a Social Entity

5

the city and create mental maps. With this the city becomes meaningful for the users, it becomes separated from others, and urban identity is created (Lynch 1982). The sense of a place is about understanding of that place. Therefore, the experience of the individual is involved in the urban fabric. Space is defined by legibility, perception and visual qualities of the built environment (Kaymaz 2013). These components create place identity, which is part of an individual’s self-identity. It is a result from the everyday experience of an individual in the context of the urban fabric (Lalli 1988). Urban Identity only exists through differentiation and expresses originality. Similarity and repetition on the other hand would destroy place identity (Isin and Wood 1999). Urban identity is individuality and being unique (Lynch 1960). A city or a village is a human construct that embeds a three-dimensional memory of past, present and dives into the future. It thus becomes unique in form and character. Place identity is therefore a process, which is developed over time (Correa 1980). Place identity is not created by an individual, but by a group of people who share to a certain extend the same values, the same behavioural patterns, and symbols that are learned and transmitted (Rapoport 1977). The design of the urban fabric reflects the values of the inhabitants. The architecture and design of buildings reveal cultural and social components. Monuments tell about past episodes of the society. Gender relations, zoning of cities, the absence of women in the public open, reflect in a three dimensional way the relations and agreements of a society (Bell and Shalit 2011). Thus, many cities around the world are intrinsically connected with their inhabitants and their cultural heritage. For example, Tel Aviv, Esfahan, Fez, Madurai and Kyoto have, over time, developed differently. These divergent developments resulted in unique cityscapes that are connected to the people. Even Stockholm, Paris, Vienna or Rome have a very different outlook, although they all are in Europe and have, to a certain extent, a similar history and follow similar traditions.

1.3 Space as a Social Entity Early philosophers, such as Aristoteles, already described space as an important element for human beings. The state of being human is defined by various characteristics, such as time, personality, and also space (Durkheim 2001, p. 11). Kant and others saw space and time as universal, objective, abstract (Melnick 1989). Existence is spatial; it is “being in space”. Spatiality expresses itself in terms of closeness, distance and orientation. Therefore, humans can experience space. In some cases, this experience is dynamic—i.e., movement—and therefore it is linear. In other cases, we perceive space static, arranged in concentric circles that lead from the familiar to the unknown (Heidegger 2001). For Heidegger, space is therefore symbolically domesticated. For humans, space also has a social aspect, and the settlement area is therefore an attribute of a social system (Heidegger 2001). The topographical arrangement of individual structures of a settlement is an expression of interpersonal relationships, as well as an expression of the relationships between groups of a city (Leroi-Gourhan 1995). Social organisation is a prerequisite for creating such a

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spatial organisation, which can be recognised by its users. This results in a typological structure of socio spatial forms, ranging from domestic to supranational spatial organisation (Simmel 2006). Therefore, space is not only a natural resource that belongs to an economic infrastructure: it is the product of a particular social practice. Lefebvre divides social spaces into three levels: a spatial practice (“pratique spatiale”) that requires a subjective view of space; an objective view, the spatial presentation (“représentations de l’espace”), and finally the representational spaces (“espaces de représentation”), which represent a collective view of a space (Lefebvre 2012). These categories can never be considered on their own, because they are interdependent. The city is, therefore, spatial practice with its streets and squares. Finally, knowledge is required about the basic conditions of the spaces: the meaning of the social code of space, which required to decipher the elements, must be known by the users. The designed space is then experienced according to collective odes, and this gives space its symbolic meaning. Building upon the premise that space is an important element for humans in general and for social groups in particular, then space cannot be homogenous, cannot have only one quality, because otherwise it would not be able to serve different people in their (sometimes very) different every day lives (Simmel 1993). Consequently, it would not be a vehicle for conveying thoughts or be used as a tool for representation, whereby this last is important for forming societies. Through spatial experience, it is possible for humans to place objects in specific locations, but also to create entire urban complexes (Rapoport 1969). If space did not have the quality of incorporating representation, we would not be able to order or differentiate spaces into different sub-areas. Spatial representation incorporates certain values that are common to the particular users, and therefore provides a homogenous cultural background (Durkheim 2001). A spatial “type” is a simplified form of a spatial formation, although not the material components, but rather, what a society produces, i.e. the encoded social norm (Durkheim 2001). Space is the material result of a culture of living and building structures. These spaces are understood to be social objects that are characterised by a spatial dimension. Spatial formations are the result of processes of social negotiation, an intellectual or material configuration. Consequently, spatial representation is directly linked to a society with a certain cultural heritage and adapted to the society’s particularities and ideas. Each society will form its unique spatial representation with codes and arrangements, which means that these spatial representations are culturally dependent, unique to one society, and therefore cannot simply be transferred to another area. This book aims to demonstrate how a such a representation of space looks like by discussing Indian cities as an example.

1.4 On Space Space is created by humans, and thus it is neither abstract nor neutral or always just ‘there’. Space always has a “meaning”: there cannot be any space without. Space in

1.4 On Space

7

the form as discussed here is a product of people and their perception of it (Gray 2006). This space is the platform of historically and socially defined sub-spaces and at the same time, space is the product and medium of human action and interaction (Tilley 1994). Space and its meaning are simultaneously produced by human interaction. Architecture and the built environment are the three-dimensional expressions of this process. The built environment is the production of space (Lefebvre 2012) because people produce space out of an unbound space by creating spatial meaning for and of that space (Rapoport 1990). What finally decides the form of a dwelling and shapes the spaces and their relationships is the vision that people have of their ideal life (Rapoport 1969). A dwelling is usually composed of several areas, in such a way that the composition will facilitate people to organise their everyday life and life as a group. There will be facilities for production, residential quarters, city centres, recreation areas and means for organising the flow of traffic. Each of these areas will be created around the main purpose of such a space. Human ecologists have long pointed out that there is a connection between a given spatial structure and its corresponding society (Park and Burgess 1967; Emirbayer 2003). Ever since the “spatial turn” (Soja 2014), a connection between space and society has been recognised. Georg Simmel has already shown that space is created only by human activities. At the same time, spatial structures determine the actions of individuals (Simmel 1993). Therefore, spatial qualities have a social origin. Spatial orientation, such as top–bottom, left– right, is a collectively shared attribution. Spatial definitions arrange social processes and allow only expected actions to take place. The conception of space must be shared by all individuals in a dwelling, otherwise social coexistence is impossible (Durkheim 2001). Architects have since long been aware of the intricate interplay between architecture and its social function. There are even manuals explaining the principles of each type of building (Neufert 1984), like a school having a different concept of floor plan and appearance than an airport, a town hall, an office building or a residential house. This should also apply to urban design, but public space is commonly only divided into public, private, semi-public or semi-private. Alternatively, zones are designated to industrial areas, green zones, or residential quarters. However, this does not reflect the reality of the social spaces which are also part of villages and cities. To date, very few attempts have been made to understand that a small-scale layout of an area largely determines how people will use that particular area (Alexander et al. 1977) or determines their movements (Hillier and Hanson 1984; Gehl 1987). A market, for example, will be best designed in a way that potential buyers will easily find the various products. In previous centuries, when there was no modern advertising, markets were laid out in a way that comprised small paths between the stalls, which provided easy access to the products so that they could be touched easily, thus attracting potential buyers (Sennett 1997). In shopping centres, on the other hand, large advertisements take over the role to attract people to come into a shop. The aisles between the shelves are often wide, providing enough space to let two or three shopping trolleys pass each other.

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How much humans are influenced by spatial codes could include, for example, that nobody thinks of laying out a towel and lying down to sunbathe in a lively pedestrian central shopping area (unless it is part of performance art or actionism of some sort). Similarly a cemetery in central Europe will be designed and designated as a quiet green space where people can spend time commemorating the deceased in peace and quiet. Adhering tacitly to a common social code it would be inappropriate to play loud music, football, or to have a social gathering: The design of the cemetery supports this tranquil atmosphere (Fig. 1.2). The lively activities listed above will take place in other, more suitable areas such as parks or on riverbanks (Fig. 1.3). Riverbanks, parks, cemeteries and other public open spaces do not necessarily have codified regulations blatantly displayed. Nevertheless, people understand what kind of activity is appropriate in a particular setting. Such a scenario is even more striking when looking at residential areas in villages in the Alps or in Southern Europe. Here one would often find plant pots or white-washed steps in front of an entrance gate. These small signs indicate that this area belongs to a family and must be respected as a private area (Fig. 1.4). It is immediately clear to a stranger passing by that going beyond such a marker would be an intrusion into the privacy of the family living in the house. In Asia it is common practice for shoes to be removed before entering a house, in front of the threshold. The threshold is particularly important because it marks the

Fig. 1.2 An example of a central European cemetery. Friedhof Neuenheim, Heidelberg, Germany. Source Author

1.4 On Space

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Fig. 1.3 The meadows along the riverbanks of the Neckar, Heidelberg, Germany. Source Author

transition between the private and the public realm. Therefore, in many areas, the threshold is also delineated and marked with symbols, decorated with flowers and coloured powders. One should avoid to step on the threshold itself, as this would bring bad luck for both the inhabitants of the house and the guest (Fig. 1.5). Even in the most densely-populated areas, such as in slums, shoes will always be left outside (Fig. 1.6). Thus the signs that are embedded in the built environment must be readable by both, the people who use the built environment and have to decipher the codes, and those who plan the built environment and set the signs up. That being said, it is also important to understand the signs and symbols that are embedded in the urban fabric in order to use them correctly. However, such signs are created by a group of people with the same cultural heritage and are often understood only by them and by people who regularly interact with. Such signs indicate a certain behaviour and are created by a common understanding. Social space is related to form, function and structure, and each of these factors has an embedded code coupled with a method for deciphering the code (Lefebvre 2012). As mentioned above, a cemetery or graveyard is, to the European mind a place of quiet serenity. However, other places across the world may have implemented quite distinct codifications. In Mexico, for example, on the Dia de los muertos (Day of the Dead), which is celebrated on All Saints’ Day (UNESCO Intangable Cultural Heritage 2008). People bring food and decorations to the graves of their dearly departed, sit together and eat their picnics at the graveside.

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Fig. 1.4 An example of a main entrance door in Albanina. Berat, Albania. Source Author

The Dia de los muertos is a happy and sometimes quite boisterous occasion, far removed from the mournful approach to cemeteries in central Europe. Above described example highlights the fact that codes that are embedded in the urban fabric are not necessarily readable for people from every culture. Individuals have to learn to read these signs. From childhood onwards, humans learn to read the built environment, very much like a spoken language. This follows from the fact that each society shapes the spaces that are needed to organise communal living. Therefore, in the absence of motorised traffic, no facilities for organising the flow of that traffic are obsolete and will not be built. If a society needs to dry and process crops, then spaces will be created for this work within the urban fabricn Ethiopia, for example, coffee beans are still dried in small neighbourhood squares or on the street in the cities (Fig. 1.7).

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Fig. 1.5 The threshold between private and public space. Kathmandu, Nepal. Source Author

1.5 Building on the Cultural Heritage Following from the previous sections, the built environment is coded, and each space has its own meaning and has codes that help people to use it in a particular way (Bornberg 2008, 2010). Spatial settings are communication tools that facilitate people’s interactions and simplify people’s lives. The codes of a setting enable the user to use the space appropriately, like a language. This language of space is learned from childhood (Levinson 1996). Early on a child learns what to expect in a specific setting: the example of above, the zebra crossing, is not self-explanatory, just as little as the relative privacy of a European neighbourhood with detached or terraced houses, where children can play safely on the road, adults can chat across the garden fence, and cars are instigated to drive slowly (even when there are no speed limits as such) and by and large, everyone knows everyone else. Following Henri Lefebvre’s arguments (Lefebvre 2012), the understanding of the relationship between the three categories of space—spatial practice, spatial representation and representational space—is of paramount importance for architects and urban planners. Planners who establish and design such a setting need to know exactly how to design dedicated spaces, and users need to be able to read the design features;

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Fig. 1.6 The threshold in the narrow environment of a slum. Worli, Mumbai, India. Source Author

they need to “speak the language” of the settings. From this it follows, this means that the design and layout of a space in a given city is culture-dependent. On the one hand, the expectations that are connected to a setting must be understood by the majority of users. For example, for Europeans and US–Americans, the meaning of a zebra crossing is clear. But would a person from Irian Jaya /West New Guinea understand this setting? Not necessarily. On the other hand, Europeans would find it difficult to properly engage with the ritual megaliths in the villages of Nias in Indonesia unless they had been initiated into the correct practice. Planners and architects must be able to understand and apply culture-dependent codes in order to establish sustainable structures, especially when these structures are aimed at preserving the cultural diversity of regions. Despite an ever-growing need for cultural identity, cities and villages have become increasingly uniform in recent decades (Rapoport 1990). Entire cities, such as Brasilia, Singapore or Shanghai have been planned according to international standards. Local spatial patterns were completely ignored when these cities were being

1.5 Building on the Cultural Heritage

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developed. Wide thoroughfares, especially for motorised transport, flyovers, shopping malls and gated communities dominate contemporary cities and new urban quarters. This uniformity is combined with international-style building structures whose façades are mostly completely closed and sealed. High-rise buildings are erected in the city centres, while the periphery is characterised by single-family homes derived from a Central European schema: rectangular houses that are oriented to the street and often are located in the centre of a plot, surrounded by gardens with lawns and small shrubs. This type of plot originated was incorporated into Ebenezer Howard’s garden (Howard 1910) and was then spread across the world. Particularly in the countries of the Global South, such planning is neither climate-friendly, nor it matches the cultural traditions and the spatial “language” of the people. In recent decades, international urban planning and a global architectural style has spread throughout the world. Based on European trends—especially those from the nineteenth century onwards, as well as the advent of the industrial revolution and associated urban planning strategies—and the subsequent City Beautiful movement, these ideas are now used worldwide (Bornberg 2013). This international urban design disregards and is superimposed on indigenous settlement and building techniques, and as a result, the local structural types disappear. Furthermore, this process eliminates building types and their constructions that have been developed by the community for centuries, continually being adapted to cultural, social, climatic, landscape and economic needs. Even if such traditional building types are often dismissed as “backward-looking” and not up-to-date, they embody a great deal of knowledge

Fig. 1.7 Women drying coffee beans on a neighbourhood square. Awasa, Ethiopia. Source Author

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about cultural, social, and economic conditions, much more than modern, contemporary structures do. It is less straightforward to grasp the social consequences that an international style has for a western environment, but nonetheless, it has similarly devastating consequences for the cultural identity of the community in question. The hybrids of western urban planning ideas remain on the one hand foreign bodies that have little or no meaning and connection with the daily lives of the local population. As a result, cultural identity is lost and old traditions, if any are left, are expelled to museums. Observing indigenous forms of construction and settlement structures before starting a new project should therefore be standard for architects and planners. This is not a plea for backward-looking structures, but rather, quite the contrary: it argues for a basis for future development that combines traditional ideas with contemporary architectural and urban design planning paradigms. Traditional building types and spatial patterns must be re-interpreted, further developed by understanding the main principles that are embedded in the established and traditional structural styles, and adapting them to contemporary requirements. Architects and planners should see traditional structures as a source of inspiration on which to base their own ideas, like some architects in recent years who aim to design new buildings based on traditional houses. Charles Correa (Khan 1987; Correa 1980), Peter Zumtor (1999) or Luigi Snozzi (Broszeit 2006), to only name a few, design contemporary architecture based on the tradition of the place. The resulting architecture is not conserving, but has been taken up as contemporary and modern one by a wider public. These architects demonstrated that it is possible to create modern architecture by developing further traditional principles. Such an approach must be developed at the city level as well when designing urban areas or cities as a whole.

1.6 Methodology and Analytical Approach This book attempts to provide a better understanding of the world’s heritage by building on the example of India. As an European scholar I am generally interested in comparing different regions of the world to highlight the specialities of the particular built heritage. India was chosen because of its long and rich heritage that took a different path than, for example Europe. Analysing the cultural trails of India is also about understanding one’s own culture by recognising how differently urban design was developed in India. Secondly, the book aims to bring India’s rich heritage to a readership that is not familiar with Indian traditions, its history, or the like. As an European scholar, I looked at India with the eye of the outsider and thus Indian heritage was translated into an European understanding. The built environment consists of the three dimensional physical structure of a city or settlement and the social implications that are embedded in it (Levinson 1996). The built environment is created by people, who design it according to landscape and climate conditions, taking into account economic, social and religious and cultural

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factors. Such planning rules, often unwritten but handed down from generation to generation, have developed over centuries and have been updated by each generation when changes to the system were necessary. In order to explain the built environment means not only investigating the physical structure of a settlement, but also searching for historic factors, as well as looking at the social, cultural and economic implications, often summarised under the term attributes of a site (Bornberg and Paulowitz 2022). These factors lead to a unique townscape that is the built heritage of a region. Since much of the world´s heritage is in danger of being destroyed and lost forever, it is important to show the opportunities for ensuring that the built heritage is transferred into the future and continuously adapted to newly emerging needs. Engaging with cultural heritage is important for several reasons. First, the built environment is the result of cultural evolution of a society and is therefore unique and distinctive. Secondly, the built environment has adapted to the landscape and climatic conditions by using local materials and developing strategies to deal with climate. Looking at the built environment, that has evolved over the millennia is therefore important for sustainable, climate friendly and resilient urban developments. Only by meeting the social, cultural, and emotional demands of citizens, will lead to cities that can develop in the long term and are resilient. In this book, an attempt has been made to identify the social and cultural specifics that make up the Indian city. It is not an all-encompassing study that covers all the details of Indian urban history. The aim is to highlight those elements that continue to shape India’s cities to this day. Therefore, different eras in specific places of the Indian subcontinent (including Nepal) have been chosen and are described in the chapters of the book. In order to characterise the built heritage of India, the first step was data collection, a process which included many different disciplines, such as anthropology, history of architecture, history, town planning and urban design, which, when combined, led to a multi-disciplinary approach to the research design as a whole. The first source of data was literature from all the above-mentioned disciplines. The second source of data comprised geological maps and cartographic works in various scales, from house plots to maps of whole cities and even of the surrounding countryside. The maps included a wide range of content: some maps were historic, others were archaeological site plans, city maps from local Indian libraries and other sources, or Google maps (the list is not exhaustive). Thirdly, the work was carried out on the basis of selective field studies. For this project, participant observation and ethnographic fieldwork, two of the most used techniques in international anthropology (Schmidt-Lauber 2007; Legewie 1991; Burgess 1989) were used. Unstructured interviews with inhabitants and informants were another source of data source. Research activities led to many different sources and forms of material, such as films, photographs, sketches made during field studies, and plans, maps, and literature involving many different fields, such as anthropology, history, planning, sociology, urban design and architecture. Triangulation (Flick 2004) was the method used to process material from these different sources. Analysing the literature, organising and preparing field trips to India, interpreting the results, returning to literature, organising

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further field trips and so forth took more than a decade. Under this methodology, not all methods were used in all surveys which would have been impossible due to the vast amount of data that was accumulated in the course of the research. Again, those examples were selected that were representative of the respective question. It is quite clear that a single book would be insufficient to describe all elements and historic processes of Indian cities. The subcontinent is simply too large, with a history going back into the 5th millennium BCE, with too many different peoples, but also landscapes and climate zones. However, this is not even necessary to establish an outline of the cultural heritage of Indian cities: for this purpose, episodes in the history of the Indian city were delineated, which act as decisive for the cultural heritage of Indian cities.

1.7 Nine Episodes—The Structure of the Book The book starts with a brief overview of the history of the subcontinent, its landscapes and climate zones. In this chapter, Chap. 2, the main concepts of Hinduism, the most prominent religion, and some of the most important gods are briefly introduced. The chapter ends with a brief summary of the caste system, which is until today an important factor of spatial design. After this short introduction the main body of the book follows by delineating nine episodes, each highlighting important moments of the creation of India’s built heritage as it appears today. In Chap. 3, the first episode, ancient Indian design treatises are described, being important tools for urban design until today. This is particularly important, because Indian planning differs completely from that in Europe. However, European planning paradigms (especially those from England) are used in India today. The second episode, Chap. 4, deals with the historic roots of contemporary urban and house design in India. Houses and towns were established in the Indus valley as far back as the 5th millennium BCE, and they later influenced early Aryan settlements in the Ganga plain from where the planning paradigms were introduced on the whole Indian subcontinent. In the third episode, Chap. 5, the focus lies on the nucleus of every city and village: the residential house. Although the materials and shapes vary to some extend between regions, they all follow the idea of a courtyard house that is based on a Mandala design. The fourth episode, Chap. 6, looks at the next larger-scaled element of settlements: the public realm of a neighbourhood. Neighbourhoods are very important elements of cities and villages, since they are occupied by members of a particular caste. These wards are equipped with wells, ponds, ritual spaces, small shrines or temples, and all infrastructure the community needs. The centre of each village or ward is traditionally dedicated to a god or goddess. Therefore, the main temple or shrine is normally intended to be used by all people living in one city or village. Translated into a mandala, the main shrine will not only

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be the centre of the village, it will also represent the connecting axis between the celestial and the human world. How significantly temples shape cities and villages is described in episode five, Chap. 7. The sixth episode (Chap. 8) focusses on royal cities and princely palaces, since kings were often associated with gods, mainly with Lord Rama, who—according to the Ramayana—wisely guides his subordinates safely through bad and good times. Islam gained significant political and cultural influence from the Middle Ages onwards, which is outlined in Chap. 9, the seventh episode. A distinct Indian–Islamic style was created starting with the Delhi Sultanate, followed by the Mughal period which is discussed here by drawing on examples of garden designs, fortresses and the planning of cities. Finally, the British, again a foreign influence, had an important impact on planning paradigms, which is discussed in episode eight (Chap. 10). Starting with the British East India Company, which set up a few harbours on Indian shores in the first place the British ended up ruling over the whole subcontinent. The British also brought their ideas of dwellings, public places and urban design with them, and these principles have a great impact on planning until today. In the Hindu tradition, Dalit, the untouchable caste, are not part of society and therefore cannot live within the city walls, which is discussed in the last, the ninth episode (Chap. 11). Traditionally, Dalit always lived outside the city walls—although close enough to the city, because their labour was needed by members of the higher castes. Until today, untouchability is not only a social problem, but also influences how authorities deal with slums and how slum dwellers cope with their situation. The conclusion (Chap. 12) shows how India’s cities should try to delineate their own built heritage that is so much connected to its people, and explores how Indian cities could look like in the future and which elements could be retained. The aim is to stimulate discussion such that international architecture and urban planning is a product of in-depth reflection and discussion, rather than simply being adopted uncritically. It is certainly not about “museumification”, i.e., clinging to the past, and preserving only old types of structures. It is not a matter of staying stuck in the past. It is about developing new structures that derive from India’s rich heritage of building traditions.

References Alexander C, Ishikawa S, Silverstein M (1977) A pattern language. Towns. Buildings. Construction. Oxford University Press: Oxford, New York Bell D, Shalit A (2011) The spirit of cities. Why the identity of a city matters in a global age. Princeton University Press, Princeton Bornberg R (2008) Identity by spatial design: topos, a principle derived from historic and vernacular cultures. Urban Design International 13:182–200 Bornberg R (2010) Social identity and the urban fabric. jccs-a 4, pp 32–38

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Bornberg R (2013) Implementing vernacular village structures in urban kampungs in Indonesia. In: Lehner E, Doubrawa I, Ikaputra (eds) Insular diversity: Architecture, culture, identity in Indonesia. IVA Verlag/Gadjah Mada Univeristy Press, Vienna, Yogjakarta Bornberg R, Paulowitz B (2022) Attribute Mapping: A method and application using the Historic Centre of Vienna as a case study JCCS-a 14/2022, pp 46–60, https://www.newacademicpress. at/gesamtverzeichnis/e-book/jccs-a-whose-cultural-heritage-14-2022-ebook/. Accessed 12 Dec 2022 Brabec E (2004) Landscape change: the influence of external cultural forces. Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Faculty Publication Series. Paper 4. http://scholarworks.umass.edu/ larp_faculty_pubs/4. Accessed 20 Oct 2020 Broszeit J (2006) Wohnen am Steilhang. Die Entwurfsmethodik Luigi Snozzis untersucht anhand der Einfamillienhäuser von 1972–1990. PhD thesis, University of Hannover; Hannover Burgess RG (1989) Sampling strategies in field reserach. In: Burgess R (ed) Field research: a sourcebook and field manual. Unwin Hyman Ltd, London, pp 76–104 Correa C (1980) Quest for identity. Architecture and identity. The Aga Khan award for architecture, Singapore Derrida J (2002) Positions. Translated and annotated by Bass E. Continuum, London Durkheim E (2001) The elementary forms of religious life (trans: Cosman C). Oxford University Press, Oxford, New York Emirbayer M (ed) (2003) Émile Durkheim. Sociologist of modernity. Blackwell, London, Malden, MA Flick U (2004) Triangulation. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden Gehl J (1987) Life between buildings: using public space. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York Gehl J, Svarre B (2013) How to study public life. Island Press, Whashington, Covelo, London Gray J (2006) Domestic Mandala. Archiecture of lifeworlds in Nepal. Ashgate, Hampshire Hall S (1996) Introduction: who needs identity? In: Hall S, du Gay P (eds) Questions of cultural identity. Sage, London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi Heidegger M (2001) Sein und Zeit. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt/Main Hillier B, Hanson J (1984) The social logic of space. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Howard E, Verwilghen R (1910) Ebenezer Howard. ‘Garden Cities of To-morrow’. Plan of a garden city. SAGE Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA Isin E, Wood P (1999) Citizenship and identity. Sage, London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi Ipsen D (2009) Die sozialräumlichen Bedingungen der offenen Stadt. Eine Skizze. In: Bornberg R, Habermann-Nieße K, Zibell B (eds) Gestaltungsraum Europäische StadtRegion. Peter Lang, Frankfurt/Main, pp 97–109 Jacobs J (1963) Tod und Leben großer amerikanischer Städte. Bauwelt Fundamente 4. Birkhäuser, Basel and Bauverlag, Gütersloh, Berlin Kaymaz I (2013) Urban landscapes and identity. In: Ozavuz M (ed) Advances in landscape architecture, pp 739–760. InTech Open, London. https://doi.org/10.5772/55754 Khan H-U (1987) Charles Correa. Withe essays by Sherban Cantacuzuno and Charles Correa. Concept Media Pte Ltd., Singapore Lalli M (1988) Urban identity. In: Canter D, Jesuino JC, Soczka L, Stephenson GM (eds) Environmental social psychology. NATO ASI series (series D: behavioural and social sciences): 45, Springer, Dodrecht, p 26. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-2802-2 Lefebvre H (2012) The production of space. Blackwell Publishing, Malden, Oxford Legewie H (1991) Feldforschung und teilnehmende Beobachtung. In: Flick U et al (eds) Handbuch qualitative Sozialforschung. Psychologie Verlags Union, München, pp 189–192 Leroi-Gourhan A (1995) Hand und Wort. Die Evolution von Technik, Sprache und Kunst (trans: Bischoff M) Suhrkamp, Frankfurt/Main, pp 387–412 Levinson S C (1996) Language and Space. Annu Rev Anthropology 25: 353–382. http://www.jstor. org/stable/215583. Accessed 6 Jan 2023 Lynch K (1982) A theory of good city form. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, London Lynch, K (1960) Das Bild der Stadt. Ullstein, Berlin, Frankfurt, Wien

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Melnick A (1989) Space, time and thought, in Kant. Kluwer, Dodrecht Mumford L (1937) What is a city? Architectural Record (1937) essays on urban planning and culture, and the myth of the Machine. Hardcourt, New York Neufert E (1984) Bauentwurfslehre. Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig/Wiesbaden Park R, Burgess E (1967) The city. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, London Rapoport A (1969) House, form and culture. Prentice-Hall Press, Englewood Cliffs Rapoport A (1977) Human aspects of urban form. Towards a man—environmental approach to urban form and design. Pergamon Press, Oxford et al. Rapoport A (1990) History and precedent in environmental design. Plenum Press, New York Schmidt-Lauber B (2007) Feldforschung. Kulturanalyse durch teilnehmende Beobachtung. In: Götsch S, Lehmann A (eds) Methoden der Volkskunde. Positionen, Quellen, Arbeitsweisen der europäischen Ethnologie. Dietrich Reimer Verlag, Berlin, pp 219–248 Sennett R (1997) Fleisch und Steiin. Surhkamp, Frankfurt/Main Simmel G (2006) Die Großstädte und das Geistesleben. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt/Main Simmel G (1993) Über räumliche Projektionen sozialer Formen. In: Simmel G : Aufsätze und Abhandlungen 1901–1918 Band II. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt/Main Soja E W (2014) Thirdspace: journeys to Los Angeles and other real-and-imagined places. Blackwell, Malden, MA, p 334 Stephenson J (2008) The cultural values model: an integrated approach to values in landscapes. Landsc Urban Plan 84:127–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2007.07.003 Tilley C (1994) A phenomenology of landscape, places, paths and monuments. Berg Publishers, Oxford UNESCO Intangable Cultural Heritage (2008) Indigenous festivity dedicated to the dead. Mexico. https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/indigenous-festivity-dedicated-to-the-dead-00054. Accessed 31 may 2022 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2019) Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. https://whc.unesco.org/en/guidelines. Accessed 22 Aug 2020 United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (2018) 2018 Revision of World Urbanization Prospects. https://www.un.org/development/desa/publications/2018-revision-of-worldurbanization-prospects.html. Accessed 3 Oct 2022 Venturi R, Scott Brown D, Izenour S (1978) Lernen von Las Vegas. Zur Ikonographie und Architektursymbolik der Geschäftsstadt. Bauwelt Fundamente 53, Vieweg & Sohn, Braunschweig, Wiesbaden Zumtor P (1999) Häuser 1979–1997. Birkhäuser, Basel

Chapter 2

India: Some Insights

Abstract In this chapter, some insights into India are provided for all readers who are not so familiar with the culture and history of the subcontinent. The chapter starts with some general facts about landscape and climate. Then, a short narrative of India’s history is provided, as historical facts are also important for understanding urban developments. This part starts with the pre-Vedic developments of the Indus valley, followed by a brief review of the Indian Middle Ages, continued by the Islamic invasions that led to the Mughal Empire. The section continues with introducing the British rule and highlights some facts of the post-independence era. In the second half of the chapter the main religion, Hinduism, is described and some of the main deities of the Hindu pantheon are introduced. This is on the one hand important in all cultures around the world, because a certain believe moulds the cultural heritage of a region. In India, however, religion has a spatial dimension and thus shapes the layout of towns and villages, as will be addressed throughout the book. Finally, the caste system is introduced, because of its importance for the layout of villages and cities, until today. Keywords India · India’s history · Hindu gods · Caste system

2.1 Introduction In this chapter an overview of India is provided, its landscape and population, or climate, and a summary of India’s history. This is important, since not all readers are familiar with the subcontinent. On the other hand, these insights are important to understand the built heritage of the subcontinent. After these sections the main religions that are practised in India are briefly described. The most prominent religion is until today Hinduism, and therefore some of the main gods are introduced. This is, again, important for understanding the built heritage of India and necessary to have these facts in mind in the following chapters: particularly Hinduism has a major impact on the spatial configuration of cities, villages and houses.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_2

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Fig. 2.1 Map of India with today’s states and their capitals, not scaled. Source Author compilation

2.2 Climate and Landscape In demographic terms, India is the second-largest country in the world with over 1.3 billion people (statista 2018). The official language is Hindi, but English is the lingua franca of business and media. Furthermore, there are many different language families that are used in India, like the Indo-Aryan (78.5%) or Dravidian languages (19.64%) (Wikipedia 1, n.d.). The territory of today’s India is almost identical with the area of the Indian subcontinent, which stretches between 8°4´ to 37°6´ north latitude and 68°7´ to 97°25´ east longitude. India has a total area of 3,287,263 km2 and is the 7th largest country in the world (Wikipedia 5, n.d.), subdivided into 28 states and eight union territories. The capital and seat of the government of the Republic of India is New Delhi, which lies in the north-west of the subcontinent (Fig. 2.1). The main rivers of India are the Ganges and its delta, the Yamuna, Indus, Saraswati, Godavari, Narmanda, and Karveri River, which are also considered the seven sacred rivers, each represented by a goddess (more details see below) (Wikipedia 3, n.d.).

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The subcontinent has five different physiographic zones. The Indo-Gangetic Plain lies in the north and has humid subtropical weather with dry, cold winters and temperatures dropping below 0 °C. During the monsoon, there many heavy thunderstorms and rainfalls, and temperatures may be as high as 45 °C. The Plain is bordered by the Himalayan Mountains which are alpine in climate, due to the peaks rising over 7000 m, and snow covered all year. In the north-west lies the Thar Desert, which has an arid climate, with temperatures reaching sometimes 50° C (Wikipedia 4, n.d.). The centre of the peninsula is occupied by the Deccan Plateau, with altitudes between 500 to 900 m. The plateau is enclosed by the Eastern and Western Ghats, which are mountain ranges rising up to 2500 m, thus separating the Deccan Plateau from the coastal areas. This region has a tropical climate. The heavy rainfalls are screened off by the mountains, and most parts of the Western Ghats lie in the rain shadow. Temperatures range between 18 °C in winter and 50° C in May, and during the monsoon season that follows, there is an average rainfall of 750 to 1500 mm. The biodiversity of the Western Ghats has led to them being inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List (UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2012). Finally, the coastal lines and islands along the Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea, the Laccadive Sea and the Bay of Bengal have tropical monsoon climate with high temperatures all year round, ranging from 25 °C to 41 °C. The only precipitation is during the monsoon times in May and November, when there is over 2000 mm of rainfall during the monsoon period (Wikipedia 5, n.d.). This diversity of different landscape and climate conditions had always an impact on building technology, or on infrastructure and layout of villages and cities. Particularly the monsoon plays an important role in agriculture and life of the people. The most important factor here is the alternation of monsoon and dry periods, which has a decisive influence on the life of the Indian population. There are two types of monsoon, the spring and winter monsoon. The first monsoon in a year, the south-west monsoon, arrives in India at the Bay of Bengal and in the Arabian Sea. The monsoon rain strikes the coastlines of India at the end of May and beginning of June and arrives in the Indo-Gangetic Plain at the end of June. The retreat of the monsoon clouds starts in the north around the end of August and around the end of October in the area of Mumbai. The north-east monsoon starts in September and lasts until March, and although these winds are less humid, they also bring some rainfall (Wikipedia 2, n.d.). During the monsoon season, plenty of water is available, much more than can be used, and this often leads to flooding. Thereafter the dry season starts, and water becomes sparse. This factor led to sophisticated water management approaches being developed as far back as ancient times, which is outlined in Chap. 4. Water supply has always played an important role since then, and many different storage systems have been created, many still in use today. Some of the systems are discussed in the course of the book, such as the ghats at ponds or riverfronts, the water tanks, or stepwells.

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2.3 An Overview of India’s History 2.3.1 Early Historic Traces (5000 BCE–300 BCE) The first evidence of a high culture in India dates back to Palaeolithic and Mesolithic times. From fossils, we know that the first humans or early Homo sapiens left Africa via the Red Sea, some 74,000 years ago, in the wake of volcanic eruptions1 (Barnard 2011). It seems that a land bridge existed across the Red Sea from 170.000 BCE on and enabled Homo sapiens to cross the Arabian peninsula and from there travel on to India.2 Homo sapiens must have arrived in India’s north around 60,000 to 50,000 BCE (Barnard 2011). So far, early hamlets were excavated all over the subcontinent dating back to between 30,000 and 10.000 BCE (Dilip 2009). Around the 3rd millennium BCE, first urban centres arose in the Indus Valley and later in the Gangetic Plain. This urbanisation seems to have been a result of a surplus production, consequently agricultural produces were exchanged over ever greater distances, making it necessary to establish a specialised group of people: merchants (Thapar 2003). People realised that larger amounts of cargo could be transported by river, using boats (Dilip 2009). Consequently, a new settlement pattern evolved: the trading city, which is discussed in detail in Chap. 4. These trading cities first emerged along the Indus and its tributaries and later on in the Gangetic-Plain (Thapar 2003). Thus, as far back as the 3rd millennium BC, agricultural products were already being transported from local ports to distant harbours along the Indus River (Fig. 2.2). Trade was a driving force, which led to the development of bigger chiefdoms: administration of larger territories made it easer to control trade (Thapar 2003). The first larger kingdom that emerged was the Maurya Empire in the fourth century BCE. At this time, agricultural production was intensified and trade of agricultural produce played a significant role (Thapar 1961). A´soka (317–297BCE), one of the legendary kings, founded this empire that spanned throughout the Indian subcontinent. A new way of administration developed, namely, a centralised bureaucracy, which in turn generated a taxation system. Taxation on a regular and fixed basis is important for rulers to be able to invest in the cities. Thus it is not surprising that the main theorist of the Mauryan politico-economic foundation, Kautilya, devotes an important part to the taxation system in the Arha´sastra, a text on state craft (Shamasastry 1996). Trade became an essential economic factor for merchants and craftsmen, but also for rulers, who benefited from trade by the taxations. Trade routes were established by rulers along navigable rivers, but also on land: A´soka was the first emperor who developed Royal Roads for trade. These highways had wells every 15 km (Thapar 1961) and can be considered the first caravan routes. 1

Although these eruptions were on Sumatra, they covered Africa with a layer of ash, most probably causing massive problems for humans and other species, thus forcing humans out of their habitat (Barnard 2011). 2 Only later did people migrate to the Sahara and north Africa (Barnard 2011).

2.3 An Overview of India’s History

25

Fig. 2.2 Indus valley civilisation, not scaled. Source Author compilation

Trade with the European hemisphere was becoming more important because of the Indo-Greek merchants, who were descendants of the soldiers of Alexander the Great (356–323 BCE): his campaign to conquer northern India was not very successful, particularly after Alexander’s army started revolting against him (Wiemer 2015). However, some soldiers stayed behind and settled in India permanently. Thanks to their family connections to Europe, they began to trade with Europe, which soon became beneficial for Indian merchants (Thapar 2003). Spices, like pepper and cinnamon, pearls, items made of ivory, precious and semi-precious stones including diamonds were sent to Europe, as well as carnelian, sard, agate, cotton cloth, peacocks, and parrots. Products that were imported from Europe included horses, red coral, linen and glass. This led to an intense exchange of goods and people between north India and Europe, where Indian goods were highly appreciated by the Roman nobles. Thus, trade between India and Europe reached its zenith between 50 BCE and 50 CE, when Rome had its heyday (Farrokh 2007).

2.3.2 Development of the North (300 BCE–1200 CE) In ancient times, the north, the peninsula and south of India developed separately. Some northern kingdoms succeeded in extending their influence into the south, but this never lasted long. It was not until the fourteenth century, the advent of the Muslims invasions, that historical events became equally significant for the North

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and the South. Therefore, in the next sections, the North and the South will be addressed separately.

2.3.2.1

The Guptas (300 BCE–600 CE)

The Gupta period started when Chandra Gupta I, most probably a member of the Vaishya caste (see below), the merchants, married into an old family of the north, who were associated with the king of Nepal. The marriage was advantageous for both families and Chandra Gupta made himself a “maharaja-adhiraja”, a “king of kings”. He conquered many other kingdoms across the Indian subcontinent, from the Delhi area, Rajasthan, Punjab and Nepal, to local rulers of the forest peoples of the Deccan, and even the king of Kanchipuram near Chennai. The influence of the Gupta kings was visible as far away as Sri Lanka (Thapar 2003). The Huns began to invade, but they were defeated in 455 CE. However, the cost of war was high and it drained the resources of the empire, initiating the decline of the Gupta period—fuelled also by the rise of other local kingdoms. The Gupta period finally came to an end around 550 CE (Thapar 1988).

2.3.2.2

Successive Kingdoms of the North (800 CE–1200 CE)

After the Gupta period, the north of India was reigned by many kings with relatively small territories. Between around 750 CE to 1000 CE, three kingdoms once again took over the northern part of India: the Rashtrakutas controlled the northern Deccan, the Pratiharas reigned over southern Rajasthan and the Palas ruled over Bengal (Thapar 2003). However, none of them could retain power for long. All three were interested in the city of Kanauj, which had several decades ago been the capital of Harasha, and remained a strategically important city for all three empires. Thus, many battles were fought over the city, which in the turn also led to the downfall of all three empires. Actually, all of the kings were so engaged in fighting each other that none realised their own weakness, and therefore all three empires fell apart within a century (Thapar 2003). The decline of the Rashtrakutas, the Pratiharas, and the Palas kingdom coincided with the rise of the Rajputs. Their origins are unknown until today, but they claimed themselves to be of the Kshatriya caste, the warriors and kings. Four of the Rajput clans were important for the rise of the Rajputs, who also gained power in the north of India. However, invasions were frequent, because temple towns were targets for raids, as the temples were known to be richly ornamented with gold and jewels3 (Barua 2005). The biggest change during that time was the economic organisation of the states. Until then, high officials had not been paid in money, but with grants of revenue 3

Even Afghan kings started raids towards northern India to invaded temple towns and plunder the temples.

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from a certain parcel of land (Thapar 1988). However, these officials had no right of property to these lands, they only were entitled to the revenue from the land. In Indian Medieval times, these officers started to claim the right to of property to these territories (Thapar 2003). It was not only high officials who were entitled to these grants, but the Brahmins, too, and they often were assigned the land as well as the right to collect taxes from there. Brahmins had no further obligations to the king and thus lived comfortably. This was different for other groups; all other landlords had to send some of the revenue they had collected to the king. Later, there was a major change in the taxation system: from late Medieval times many landlords were allowed to levy the taxes, which they now collected in their own name and no longer in the name of the king. This weakened the position of the kings, since feudatories became independent rulers, and some even declared independence from the king (Thapar 1988). This transformation of this socio-economic system started in the early fourteenth century, already at the advent of the Muslim rulers, who soon afterwards would establish the Delhi Sultanate. With the Muslim invasion a new social reorganisation was introduced again, because the Islamic kings acted as a cosmopolitan power at a transregional level (Eaton 2005).

2.3.3 Development of the Peninsula (1000 BCE–1200 CE) The Deccan plateau was in ancient times a fertile area with massive and dense forests. The thicket of these forests made it difficult to conquer the region, and thus tribes were foraging in these forests as nomads for a relatively long time, well after 1000 BCE (Eaton 2005). Although these pastoral nomads were not attached to any kingdom or chiefdom, they nonetheless played an important role in trade, which was becoming increasingly important: products were handed over to these nomads and were delivered to faraway destinations. The nomads even acted as carriers between the coasts of the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Bengal. (Thapar 1988). Later, from 500 to 900 CE, the first regional kingdoms emerged. There were the Pallavas with their capital Kanchipuram, or the Chalukyas in Badami. Particularly the Pallavas were a mighty dynasty that ruled not only over the northern part of India, but also extended their power over parts of today’s Tamil Nadu (275 CE to 897 CE). Trade started in the Bay of Bengal, with goods brought from China. Trade on the Malabar Coast and the Konkan was diminishing, since at that time the Roman Empire declined during the migration period and the need for luxury goods in Europe became less relevant (Thapar 2003). Trade between the Persian Gulf and China started in the seventh century CE and was completely developed from the sixteenth century on. The Pax Mogulica4 allowed trade to flourish at a time when

4

The Pax Mogulica was a time of stability, without wars and inter-tribal feuds. It started with the accession of Akbar in 1556 CE and came to and end in the beginning of the eighteenth century, where

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aristocrats had a growing thirst for luxury products (Alam 1997). Arab merchants established colonies alongside the coast of the peninsula (Subramanian 2008). The most powerful kingdom of the Deccan was the Rashtrakuta kingdom (753 CE–982 CE), which was located in the north of the Deccan Plateau. The first king, Dantidurga, founded this first empire around 753 CE, which stretched in the heydays across the whole peninsula and along the western coast down to Kerala (Thapar 1988). However, the kings had to fight against many local kingdoms, some of which were powerful in their own right. There were the Cholas in southern India, with their homelands around today’s Tanjore. Further to the south were the Pandyas and their capital, Madurai, and the Cheras in present-day Kerala (Thapar 2003). The major change during this time (between 800 and 1200 CE) was the transformation of the Deccan Plateau, which went from a peasant society to an agrarian state. The Kakatiya state, which was also a regional, powerful kingdom between 1190 and 1310 CE and lay to the north of the Pandya state, transformed society and land. As mentioned above, before the eleventh century, the inner parts of the Deccan were sparsely inhabited, by pastoral peoples. The Kakatiya kings began to construct water tanks in order to cultivate the Deccan plateau (Thapar 2003). Water management was essential for this project and it is believed that Kakatiya warriors built some 5000 tanks, most of which are still in use. Some of the tanks had an “embankment” of as much as 600 m and a depth of 17 m, and several of the artificial lakes they also built had embankments which were even longer, measuring up to 1.6 km. These reservoirs and lakes facilitated the establishment of an agrarian society, since they enabled irrigation for wet and dry farming (Eaton 2005). Many Hindu temples were built around the time between 800 and 1200 CE in the interior of the Deccan Plateau, sponsored by regional groups. Such small temples were important for forging alliances between local chiefs and their subjects. Along the coastline, long-distance merchants built large temples as a demonstration of their power and their network of long-distance alliances (Eaton 2005).

2.3.4 Kingdoms of the South (800 CE–1200 CE) One of the powerful kingdoms of the south were the Pandyas. Their empire started to flourish between the fourth and third century BCE, developing their capital Madurai into a wealthy city. In the heyday of the Pandyas they ruled over South India and the northern part of Sri Lanka. Their reign came to a standstill between the sixth and tenth century CE, but a few Pandya kings could gain power once again between the thirteenth and fourteenth century CE (Vedachalam 2014). The Cholas were another dynasty playing an important role for the whole subcontinent (Fig. 2.3). They established their kingdom in 846 CE and had their homelands in Tamilnad, the area around today’s Tanjore. They defeated many other kings, even invasions of Persians, Afghans, and the first Europeans became frequent and led to the instability of the area (Alam 1997).

2.3 An Overview of India’s History

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Fig. 2.3 The Chola empire on the Indian subcontinent, circa 800 CE, not scaled. Source Author compilation

the at that time powerful Pallavas. The Cholas were able to expand their territory to the largest extent in the south of the peninsula in the eleventh century. From the very beginning, the Chola kings started campaigns to foster agriculture in their kingdom, because they realised that a strong and stable kingdom needed people who had enough food to eat (Eaton 2005). These campaigns also included large-scale irrigation projects. Later, around 1000 CE the Cholas began to expand their territory towards the coastal areas of the southern tip of the subcontinent, since they realised the importance of having access to the sea. Even the Maldives and Sri Lanka were attacked—largely because the islands were wealthy from trade (Thapar 1988). However, the Cholas did not manage to control the islands for long. Due to the many war campaigns the Cholas weakened and the Chola kingdom declined at the end of the thirteenth century (Thapar 1988).

2.3.5 The Delhi Sultanate (1206 CE–1526 CE) At the end of the twelfth century Muslim rulers entered India and their religion, Islam, had a lasting influenced on the people, architecture and art in India. The first Muslim kingdom was the Delhi Sultanate, a state formed by invading Turk slave

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Fig. 2.4 Delhi Sultanate, circa 1320 CE, not scaled. Source Author compilation

soldiers, who settled down in the area of Delhi (Asher and Talbot 2006) and ruled for some 300 years (Fig. 2.4). However, attacks from Turkish nobles, who had settled in northern India, local Hindu kings and Mongols, who for a short time controlled even the Indus valley, were frequent, destabilising the Delhi Sultanate (Ikram 1964). The sultans, as a consequence, took various measures to generate vast sums of money needed to maintain a large army. With their larger army they not only could withhold the attacks from neighbouring kingdoms, but attacked themselves kingdoms in the south. On their raids they looted many of the rich temples and temple towns in the south, money that again was spent on military personnel and aparatus. Due to their raids in the south, a new capital was founded, Daulatabad, which was closer to the Deccan and the southern kingdoms (Thapar 1988). Many residents were forced to leave Delhi and sent to live in the new capital. A road between the two cities was built, flanked by willow trees and other plants, and every 1.5 km there was a post station where travellers could stock up on supplies (Eaton 2005). At its heyday, the Delhi Sultanate was the largest empire that had ever existed on the Indian subcontinent (Thapar 1988). However, the Sultanate was weakened by the many battles being fought on all its borders, the constant rebellions of conquered kings and the Sultanate’s own nobles, and the establishment of a new capital which was too far south to deal with the conflicts at the northern borders (Asher and Talbot 2006). In the early fifteenth

2.3 An Overview of India’s History

31

century, the large empire fell apart and the last sultan was opposed by his own people (Thapar 1988).

2.3.6 The Mughals (1526 CE–1712 CE) After the decline of the Delhi Sultanate, Barbar came into power, a descendant of a Turco-Mongol family from central Asia with Islamic faith. He founded the Mughal empire, which also was influential in India. To begin with, the Mughals had difficulty gaining power, since they were new to the subcontinent and had no allies (Hambly 1968). Only in the second half of the sixteenth century CE, and due to the decline of the Delhi Sultanate, did the Mughals become a powerful dynasty. At first, they were tolerant of all religions, which was an important factor in expanding their territory (Thapar 1988). Akbar, and later Aurangzeb extended the Mughal empire over large parts of the subcontinent, but due to Aurangzeb’s orthodox views on religion, he soon faced many problems with his subjects. At the time of his death there were many revolts, and this, coupled with the feuds between his successors, led to the empire losing its power and falling apart (Thapar 1988).

2.3.7 Maratha Empire (1674 CE–1818 CE) The Marathas, Hindu kings, began as small chieftains with strong bonds and alliances to Deccan kingdoms, but then they started a guerilla war. Their power increased over the years, and in 1674 the first king was crowned and started to build up a strong state that defeated even the Mughals (Eaton 2005). For the first time in a long time, the ruling class were Hindus again. This was later recognised as the end of the period of Islamic empires. Shortly before the rise of the Marathas, the resistance against Mughals (and thus Islamic traditions), began to gain power (Chaurasia 2004). During the reign of Queen Tarabai, in particular, Brahmins began to occupy high positions in the government, so they began to engage in politics. The reason seems to have been the high cost of maintaining a large army. Until then, military personnel was remunerated by land ownership, which gave consequently revenue in the form of taxes. Now, army personnel were paid in cash, so chieftains had to negotiate with banks, which were in the hands of the Brahmins. This way, the Brahmins were gradually able to translate their financial power into political power. At that time Brahmin rules were codified into laws, with codes of behaviour for Brahmins, rules for intermarriage, procedures for their purification ceremonies, and their being permitted to wear the Sacred Thread (Eaton 2005).

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2.3.8 Western Colonialism (1500 CE–1947 CE) Shortly after Vasco da Gama had found a new sea route to India in 1498, Portuguese traders set up trading posts along the Malabar Coast, in Goa, Mumbai and other places (Newitt 2005). The Portuguese traders were mainly interested in buying and selling, they were a small group such that their ethnicity played an unimportant role in this multi-ethnic subcontinent. However, from the beginning, missionaries came along, and they began converting the locals to Christianity (Daus 1983). After the Portuguese, Dutch traders arrived in India, made Sri Lanka their trading base and tried to expand towards the Malabar Coast. However, their ambitions were short-lived, and they were defeated by local kings (Koshy 1989) (Fig. 2.5).

2.3.8.1

British Rule (1757 CE–1947 CE)

Dutch, French, Danish or Portuguese traders established settlements along the coasts to have transshipment points for their goods (Subramanian 2008). The hinterland had little interest for them. Therefore, their sphere of influence was limited to the coastal strips and the port cities built on them, such as Chennai, Goa, Colombo or Mumbai. However, this changed when the British entered India, which made a great impact on life and politics. The British East India Company started to set up trading

Fig. 2.5 Colonial settlements and regions, eighteenth century, not scaled. Source Author compilation

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posts, like other European traders. But soon after the British obtained the right to establish factories in Surat (in 1619) and later in other parts of India, such as Mumbai or Chennai (Ludden 2006). Internal conflicts among Indian kingdoms fuelled the process of the East India Company to gain political power, including the trading posts of the other European traders. Goa, Diu and Daman, the Portuguese ports, and the French enclaves of Chandernagore (now Chandannagar) and Pondicherry were the only ones evading British control (Subramanian 2008). Almost all the rest of India gradually came under British rule. Where the British forged alliances with existing kings and princes, these kingdoms had a limited autonomy (Mudbidri 1992). These alliances were important for the British to maintain power, at least in the early days of their rule. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, almost two-thirds of the Indian subcontinent was governed this way: the princely states performed administration and taxation according to British ideas, and in return the Company granted the princes their power over their territories (Mudbidri 1992). The corrupt ruling system of the East India Company, the often unfair taxation system and, finally, the beginning of mass deportations of Indians as slaves to other parts of the newly-conquered territories in the southern hemisphere, led to riots and rebellions in 1857. In fact, slave trade had begun under the Company’s aegis in 1833, and continued until 1920, long after the British crown had taken over. In this time, more than 3.5 m Indians were deported (Niaz 2019). For Britain, the wars in India were very expensive, and the revenues brought back to Britain were very low, although many former Company members returned to Britain with great personal fortunes they had amassed in India (Steinmetz 2013). The mismanagement led to a massive rebellion, which was also noticed in England, and the British crown decided to reorganise the government over India. This rebellion, fought by the soldiers on the payroll of the East India company, was against the rule of the Company. Soon after, the rebellion was quashed, but the British crown from then on officially took over the rule over India. From now on the so called British Raj reigned and introduced both, a new legislative system and a new education system, where everybody was expected to learn English, since English was then introduced as the official language. This was a time of frequent and far-reaching famines, each costing some 10 million lives and reported to be the result of failed policies on the part of the British crown. Paradoxically, the population also grew constantly during this time, going from 125 m in 1750 to 389 m in 1941 (Niaz 2019).

2.3.9 India’s Independence (Twentieth Century) In the nineteenth century, Indian nationalism began to grow. Over the years of British rule, Indians had achieved posts in government, but also in the army, and this weakened the position of the British in India (Chandra et al. 2016). The first revolutionary movements began in Bengal, but the ideas of an independent India spread across India soon: India’s population sought for self-rule and more economic rights. This

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movement culminated in the 1920s with Mahatma Gandhi’s mass-movement of nonviolence (Markovits 2004). The movement was not only seeking independence, but also for a democratic and libertarian as well as secular administration (Chandra et al. 2016). Independence was finally gained in 1947, shorty after the end of World War II. Nevertheless, India was under the rule of the British Crown until 1950, when the Republic of India was officially established (Chandra et al. 2016). On 15th August 1947, the British parliament launched the Indian Independence Act, which should grant self-government for Indians. For this, British India was divided into two dominions, India (inhabited mainly by Hindus) and Pakistan (inhabited by Moslems) (Zain 2006). This decision meant to lessen religious conflicts between Muslims and Hindus (Tan and Kudaisya 2000), but it caused a mass displacement of 14 m people and an estimated 2 mio people lost their lives. Military conflicts between India and Pakistan persist to this day (Dyson 2010). The state of Pakistan comprised of two parts, West Pakistan, today Pakistan, and East Pakistan, today Bangladesh. But tensions between the two parts grew soon after and led to a independence movement in Bangladesh (Schendel 2020). In 1972 independence from Pakistan was granted and a secular democracy was adopted. India is today an independent, secular and democratic republic (Metcalf and Metcalf 2012). However, the worldwide liberalisation of economy has also taken hold in India. The new economy started in the 1990s and was soon growing faster than in most other countries around the world (Stang 2002). The new economy led to a the development of a middle class, who were not any more bound to castes, but could act independently from their traditional roles within the assigned caste (Jodhka and Prakahs 2016). This led to a transformation not only in economic terms, but also to changes in the urban fabric, which will be discussed in Chap. 11. For the rise of the middle class and the related changes in the urban fabric it is necessary to get some insights in the main religion of India, Hinduism. Hinduism is not only the main religion in India, it also has an impact on society, due to the caste system, which is embedded in Hinduism. Therefore, the next paragraphs will introduce some of the main deities as well as the basic aspects of the caste system.

2.4 Religions India is often called the “home of religions”, because many different spiritual believes are practised on the subcontinent. Hinduism, which emerged here, is still the most important religion today, and more than 80% of the population are Hindus. This is followed by Islam, with 13.4% of the population being Muslims. In addition there are also other religions such as Buddhism, Jainism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Sikhism and several others (Majumdar 2018). However, Hinduism is the oldest religion as well as the most dominant one. Hinduism is much more than a guide in matters of faith, as it also gives clear instructions about the social order and the built environment. The instructions affect the construction of a house and extend

2.5 The Pantheon of Hindu Gods

35

to the layout of an entire city. Therefore, Hinduism is explained in more detail in the following, coupled with a short introduction to the world of the Indian gods. Hinduism has its roots in the Vedas, a collection of hymns written in Sanskrit that contain philosophies and theories aiming to help individuals and society as a whole to attain higher spiritual wisdom in order to be able to leave the cycle of birth and rebirth which is called Samsara (Doninger 2009). The Vedas are grouped into four texts, the Rgveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. These texts guide the believer in his pursuit of attaining higher wisdom. Each individual is considered to be born into a certain social context, which remains their social context for life. This applies to status, caste affiliation, future profession, or gender. Therefore, it is also impossible to convert to Hinduism, since a Hindu must be born to a Hindu women. If an individual were to change their social context, they would change the logic of the universe. However, since humans cannot comprehend this logics, its must by all means remain unchanged (Doninger 2009). Still, some alterations in the life of an individual must be done in order gain higher wisdom. Everyone has karma, which is generated by physical and mental actions and has consequences for this life, but can also have an effect in the next life (Herman 1976). Karma is set at the time of the creation of the world, and one has to stick to this karma. A human must stick to the predefined karma and only make the few choices in life to elevate in the circle of birth and rebirth (Doninger 2009). To overcome karma, there are four purushartas, or aims of life: dharma, artha, kama and moksa. Dharma can be translated as law, custom, duty, quality, order and the like. Dharma holds the universe together and describes the ideal course of the world. Artha is economic and political power. Kama is pleasure and the world of the senses, such as music, food and sexuality. And finally, moksha means liberation, and is the most important aim of a Hindu life. It is the union with celestial beings, it is the stage of unselfishness, highest knowledge and eternal mental peace (Herman 1976). The purushastras are defined in the main part of the Vedas and it is indicated that the texts are meant for different castes. Thus, for example, the Dharma shastra is intended mainly for Brahmins, the priest caste. Kshatryias, the warriors and kings caste, should read all parts of the Vedas. The merchant caste, the Viashyas, and the workers, the Shudra, should mainly concern themselves with the Artha shastra. For the Dalit, the “untouchables”, no text is provided, since they are historically considered as outsiders, not belonging to the Hindu society (Doninger 2009).

2.5 The Pantheon of Hindu Gods 2.5.1 Brahma Although Brahma does not appear in the Vedas He belongs to the central gods of Hinduism. In prehistoric times there was a pre-Vedic deity, a nameless god carrying the title “Lord of the Creatures”, who is believed to be the predecessor of Brahma. And

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Fig. 2.6 Bust of Brahma. Pura Dalem, Desa Adat Selat, Bali, Indonesia. Source Author

although there are hardly any temples dedicated to Brahma, He plays an important role in Indian mythology and religion (Schumann 1996). Brahma is the creator. He is time, and is also subject to it. He is the personification of unassailable power. Brahma emerged from the cosmic golden egg Hiranyagarbha, which floated on the primordial ocean. Out of Himself He created His daughter, Shatarupa. However, He desired Her so much that Brahma grew more faces, in all four directions, so that He could see Her wherever She roamed. As a punishment for the incest, Shiva (see below) beheaded Him, and, out of this head, Brahma’s fifth head arose in the centre, between His other heads. This fifth head is Manu, the progenitor of human beings (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983) (Fig. 2.6). Brahma is portrayed with four faces, each looking towards the cardinal directions. He has four arms, each holding a prayer wreath, often a palm manuscript, a jug and a scoop, which are all symbols of wisdom. His four mouths are seen as the creators of the four Vedas (see above). Sometimes he is depicted sitting on a lotus blossom, which originates from the navel of Ananta Shesha, the serpent that circles the world. His Vahana, his mount animal in this world, is a goose called Hamsa, who can take him everywhere in the universe. His consort is Sarwasati, the goddess of music and art, wisdom and knowledge, and learning (Schumann 1996).

2.5 The Pantheon of Hindu Gods

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Fig. 2.7 Shiva with trident, drum and fire, in the background the Himalayan mountanis. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author

2.5.2 Shiva Shiva is a pre-Vedic deity, one who seems to have emerged in prehistoric times. His symbol, the lingam, a phallus, was already known in Indus valley civilisation. He is described as descending not from a noble family, but from peasants high up in the Himalayas. He is the creator and the destroyer, at the same time. He does not follow the rules of the nobility, because he eats meat, he slaughters animals, but at the same time he is an ascet, a trait normally ascribed to nobles (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983) (Fig. 2.7). Shiva is known by many different names. For example, the Shiva Purana lists more than 1000 different names, each of which refers to an attribute of Shiva.5 Frequent epithets are Mahadeva (“Great God”), Nataraja (“Lord of the Dance”), Bhairava (“the terrible one”), Mahesha (“Highest Lord”), Nilakantha (“the one with the blue neck”, referring among others to the myth of the Milky Ocean), Pashupati (“Lord of all Creations”), Rudra (“the Savage”), Shankara (“the Blessed one”) and Vishwanatha (“Lord of Universe”). Some Puranas call Shiva the highest manifestation of the One, which is why he is also called Mahadeva, “the great God”. Shiva is also considered to be the god of ascets, who dwells in deepest meditation on his mountain, Kailash (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983). He is the god of opposites. On the one hand he forms the Holy Family with Parvati, his consort and Ganesha, his son. On the other hand he is portrayed as a great ascet and 5

Puranas are ancient encyclopaedic texts about cosmology, genealogies of gods and goddesses, kings, heroes, medicine, astronomy, theology and philosophy, but they also contain folk tales, love stories and much more.

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loner. And while he embodies destruction, believers see in him at the same time the ever-present mercifulness, which erases the bad karma of his worshippers. He is seen as the savage from the Himalayas: he destroys, eats meat, kills animals, smokes, and is often illustrated being dressed in the bloodstained skin of a predator (Schumann 1996). He is portrayed with his hair wildly tied up into a large knot, and has three white stripes painted on his forehead. Around his neck is the cosmic serpent Ananta Shesha. In his hands he holds a drum, fire and a trident. His vehicle in this world is Nandi, a bull, and his consort is Parvati, the goddess of love, beauty, marriage, as well as strength and power. Shiva is also known as the god of cosmic dance, the Nataraja, and with his dance, he fights against the demons of ignorance, destroys them together with the whole universe and recreates everything again afterwards (Schumann 1996).

2.5.3 Vishnu Vishnu descends from a noble family and is the role model of the Brahmin caste as well as kings. He appears in the Rgvedas (one of the four Vedas) where he is described as an elemental force (Schumann 1996). Vishnu is the preserver. Originally he was the god of the sun, light and warmth. He once set time in motion. Over time he took over more and more tasks from Indra, the god of all gods. He then fought against demons and was the sustainer of the world. He is also regarded as the manifestation of the highest being of universe. Vishnu is a vegetarian and he meditates. He does not sleep, but only rests on Ananta Shesha, the cosmic serpent (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983) (Fig. 2.8). Vishnu is portrayed sitting on Ananta Shesha, and holds a disc for fighting. His symbol is the Lotus flower, which is a symbol of wisdom and purity: the most beautiful petal of the Lotus flower can even be grown in brackish water. His vehicle on earth is Garuda, half man, half eagle. His consort is Lakshmi, goddess of wealth, love, prosperity, beauty, and fortune (Hardenberg 2000). Each god or goddess has many avatars. An avatar is a manifestation of a certain attribute. Whenever Dharma, the cosmic order of the world, becomes unstable, gods incarnate into various avatars, to re-establish order. Vishnu incarnates as Varaha, a boar, who saves the oceans—or as Matsya, a fish that draws the ark in the great flood, or as Rama, the king from the Ramayana epic, and so forth. Particularly Hindu kings ruling over India tried to be associated with Vishnu (Schumann 1996; Hardenberg 2000). This interrelation between Vishnu and Hindu kings is discussed in Chap. 7.

2.5.4 Devi Devi is the great goddess. She is the only goddess who incorporates within her all the other goddesses; they are all avatars or manifestations of her. She is the root of

2.5 The Pantheon of Hindu Gods

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Fig. 2.8 Vishnu holding his insignia. Behind him is Shesha, the world serpent. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author

all existence, the universe itself. She is the absolute, the active force of manifesting the universe. She is the absolute power and truth. Together with Brahma she created everything (Kinsley 1986). With Vishnu she received and preserves, and with Shiva she destroys it. Devi is portrayed as a warlike being, fierce, with thousands of feet, arms and eyes and covered in flames to destroy demons. On the other hand, she is portrayed as kind and beautiful, a desirable female creator (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983). Devi manifests herself in rivers such as the Yamuna or the Ganga, and in trees, bushes and other natural elements. She is the protective deity of most towns and villages, manifesting in a tree or a river every morning. Her power is transmitted to all the inhabitants—whereby higher caste members receive more power from her and member of lower castes less. Every evening she returns to her celestial realm and returns the next morning (Kinsley 1986).

2.5.5 Durga Durga is an avatar or manifestation of Devi. She represents the elusive and difficult to access. She is the goddess of perfection and embodies power, knowledge, wisdom and action (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983). She is at once cruel, beautiful, and desirable. Durga herself has avatars, such as Shakti, the elemental force of the earth and the energy of the universe; she is Kali, the wrathful, but also Lakshmi, the consort of

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Fig. 2.9 Durga, with 18 arms. Gilt copper statue with inlays of semi-precious stones, fourteenth-fifteenth century BC. Source https:// commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/File:Durga_as_Slayer_ of_the_Buffalo_Demon_M ahishasura_MET_DT5236. jpg. Accessed: 31.07.2021

Vishnu. She is also Kumari, the girl goddess, who is widely worshipped in the Newar cities of Nepal (Ranjitkar 1999). Durga is depicted as having 8, 10 or 18 arms, and has a third eye on her forehead. Her mount animal is a lion or a tiger, and she has no consort. Her weapons are a discus, a trident, bow and arrow, sword, but also a prayer chain and a bell. Durga’s weapons are cosmic and spiritual forces; she has the sword of wisdom with which she destroys all demons and all evils of the world. These evils are Kama (worldly desires, lust and dissatisfaction), Krodha (anger, wrath), Lobha (greed), Moha (blinding), Mada (pride), Matsarya (jealousy and envy). Durga defeats all and is thus provider of divine wisdom and knowledge (Kinsley 1986) (Fig. 2.9).

2.5.6 Ganesha Ganesha is the son of Parvati and Shiva. When Shiva came home and found Parvati with a baby, he did not believe the baby was his son, so he beheaded him. Parvati became very angry and told Shiva that the baby was his son—then, Shiva beheaded an elephant and put the head of the elephant on the baby, and from then onwards, Ganesha was half man, half elephant (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983) (Fig. 2.10). Ganesha is the god of obstacles, of new beginnings, of luck. He is also the patron of music, dance, literature and science. He embodies wisdom and intelligence. He is a mediator between his father and other gods. He also loves to eat, is kind, humorous, clever—as well as playful, mischievous and childish. Being half-elephant, he carries the whole world on his back. He has no consort, and his mount animal on earth is a mouse or a rat, symbolising that even the smallest creature can carry the largest,

2.6 The Caste System

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Fig. 2.10 Ganesha with his insignia, standing on his mount animal, the rat. Relief at the Sundhara Chowk, Patan, Nepal. Source Author

heaviest load. And mice and rats also symbolise intelligence and strength (Schumann 1996). Ganesha is portrayed often as a child being a little chubby, which stands for acquisition and wealth of experience. He also represents control over the ego. He is shown with only one tusk, as the other second one was lost in a fight. Ganesha has four arms, which carry weapons, a book and a prayer chain. Two arms are free for hand signals. In front of him is a bowl with of sweets. A snake is wound around his belly (Keilhauer and Keilhauer 1983). Ganesha is one of the most important gods in India, and he is always included in the poojas, the ritual prayers that begin each day. His help is requested for practically every type of activity, including a good day at school or at work, building a house, travel, weddings, etc. (Schumann 1996).

2.6 The Caste System Although the caste system was officially abandoned in 1950 with the Untouchability Act (Constitution of India, n.d.), it continues to play an important role in society as a tool of social segregation and segregation in terms of access to the economy and education, and has an important influence on the layout of villages and towns, as will be outlined in the following chapters. There are two systems for classifying people into castes: Jati and Varna. Jati denotes in the first place the endogamous group. The word derives from the word jan, meaning “born”, and refers to the main meaning of Jati, which is membership of a clan or group of workers. Therefore Jati refers on the one hand to a particular branch or profession, and on the other hand to a group that is connected by cultural,

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Fig. 2.11 Vishnu explaining the caste system. Relief in Changu Narayan, Nepal. Source Author

social or economic bonds. Today, it is estimated that there are between 2000 and 3000 different Jati groups (Dumont 1976a, b; Bellwinkel 1980). Each Jati group has its own ethical norms and restrictions, particularly regarding rules on intermarriage. Within the group, members help each other, which is a form of social insurance. Members help each other with organising accommodation and in times of unemployment or illness (Bellwinker 1980). The second social classification system is Varna, which refers to caste in religious terms. The system was first mentioned in the Veda hymns, dated between 1900 and 1200 BCE, in the verses that are called Purusha Sukta6 These verses are about the time when the universe was created, and with it the social order of human beings. The Cosmic Man was dismembered, and the moon was created from his mind and the sun from his eyes, fire from his mouth, the earth from his feet, and the cardinal directions from his ears. Verse 12 describes then the classification of humans. Out of the mouth of the Cosmic Man came the Brahmins, the priest caste, so as to be able to tell the other humans about cosmic order. From his arms sprang the Kshatryias, the warriors and kings. From his thighs sprang people who were later specified as the Vaishya, the merchants, and from his feet came the Shudra, servants and workers (Enterria 2010) (Fig. 2.11).

6

Although scholars believe that the Rgvedas date to the second millennium BCE (not least because they are mentioned in early Buddhist literature [Cohn 1971]), it seems that the Purusha Sukta, in particular, were altered afterwards, for economic, social and religious reasons (Leslie 2003).

2.6 The Caste System

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The hymn to Purusha explains the nature of the world and the law of nature: The Brahmins from his (Purusha’s) mouth, the Kshatriyas from his arms, the Viashayas from his stomach and the Shudras from his feet. The moon was born from his mind, from his eyes was born the sun, from his mouth (the deities) Indra and Agni, and from his breath Vayu was born. From his navel was the atmosphere, from his head the sky was evolved, from his feet the earth, and the directions from his ear. (Gray 2006, p. 21) The high Varnas are also associated with being born twice. First, each member of the Brahmin, Kshatryia and the Vaishya group is born of a Hindu woman, without which one cannot become a Hindu. This is the first birth. After several years of religious education, the individual undergoes the Upanayana, the initiation ceremony, where the teenager receives the Janeu, also know as the Yajnopavita, the sacred thread which they will wear for the rest of their life. With this step, the teenager becomes a full member of society and takes over their caste duties (Leslie 2003). After this ceremony, the person is called twice born: the second time as a full member of their particular caste7 (Enterria 2010). Sudra, the workers, are considered not to be twice-born. They represent the lowest stratum of the caste system, although they form the majority of the Indian population. They are peasants, artisans, labourers, servants, and agricultural workers. In temple festivals and rites, Shudra are assigned to do the heavy work. They carry the heavy temple chariots, or the platforms on which the deities sit, and are occupied with the preparations for the festivals which need manual power (Khare 2006). Not included in the Varna are the Paria or Dalit, the “untouchables”. Dalit are not seen as part of the society, probably because they descend from the common people who already lived in a place when Hindu kings and their followers conquered a territory. Hinduism with its rites, traditions and the caste system only applied to the Hindu society. Indigenous groups were not part of the Hindu society, but had their own traditions and social agreements. For the Hindu society, the local population was simply foreign peoples, as much as Chinese or Persian people. But over the course of time, Hindu kings conquered large parts of the subcontinent, and the local people were included into the Hindu territories. However, the indigenous tribes were still considered outsiders and not part of Hindu society. Withheld from access to education and economic resources, not allowed to participate in Hindu ceremonies, or to live in the Hindu towns, and over time were tainted impure and unclean. Until today, Dalit are not allowed to enter pure and holy spaces, e.g., the temple district, 7

In previous centuries it was common that boys and girls underwent Upanayana initiation. Today it is more common that only boys receive the sacred thread.

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and sometimes they are even forbidden from entering the city as a whole when certain processions are taking place (Khare 2006). Dalit are also barred from areas where higher caste members live and from various public facilities such as hospitals and schools. Some older Brahmin texts suggest that Dalit are not allowed to wear new clothes, only those previously worn by deceased. Footwear or jewellery or colourful clothes are generally unacceptable for Dalit (Teltumbde 2020). According to Brahmin texts, Dalit were not allowed to recite the Vedic texts, since the Dalit were seen as contaminated and could not achieve the purity of high caste members. At the same time, the Dalit, even though they are not members of the caste system, and therefore also not part of Hindu society, are important in that they carry out all the tasks that people in other castes won’t touch: they are butchers, cleaners, waste collectors and the like. Without Dalit, Hindu society would not function (Khare 2006). But Dalit are seen as being impure and therefore they cannot be granted a higher social rank, or be included in Hindu society (Teltumbde 2020). However, the members of the high castes are dependent on the labour of the untouchables, because of the concept of purity and impurity, which is the structural principle of the Varna caste system (Dumont 1976b). Purity means cleanliness in a social, ceremonial, emotional, physical and spiritual sense. Only if a person is pure in all respects, they are fit to participate in ceremonies and rites and allowed to enter the temples (Padfield 1908). Shudras dealing with contaminated matter and Dalit generally are normally not allowed to enter the temples, but under certain circumstances some can. Barbers are allowed to take part in certain religious celebrations with the Brahmins, even though they are among the impure castes that normally cannot come near gods (Bellwinkel 1980). Normally, all contaminations have to be avoided, because freedom from all contaminations is the main goal of Hindus in their pursuit of leaving the spiral of birth and rebirth behind. For physical purity, Hindus frequently wash with water, do yoga exercises, and eat the food which is prescribed for each caste (Aktor 2008).8 In order to attain mental purification, believers try to live faithful by including meditation and temple rites as well as pilgrimages or study of the Vedic texts. The opposing concept of purity is impurity or contamination, which is divided into two forms, namely temporary and physical contamination. Temporary contamination occurs in different phases of family or personal life that happens in many phases of transition, such as birth or death (which are also rites of passage around the world; Gennep 1986). Physical contamination happens on a daily basis, when digesting, bleeding, or getting dirty over the day. A twice born Hindu has to get rid of both kinds of pollution, which is partly accomplished by rites, partly by physical cleaning of the body as well as of their homes. Since the twice-born should not touch contaminated substances, other people have to do the cleaning and clearing up work for them and these are the members of the castes that are considered unclean: the Shudra (servants) or the Dalit, the “untouchables”. These castes are assigned to dealing with 8

Brahmins and Vaishya are vegetarians, whilst Kshatryia also eat meat, but only small amounts of certain types of meat; and all higher caste members avoid eating what their caste rules would label as “rotten” food, which can also include garlic or onions.

2.6 The Caste System

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the unclean substances, and therefore are street-sweepers, barbers, and workers in crematoria (Dumont 1976a, b). In 1950, the Indian government has declared in Article 17, The Untouchability Act (Constitution of India, n.d.) that untouchability will no longer exist. Mahatma Gandhi in particular wanted to include the untouchables into the Hindu system, and wanted to have a fifth caste (Kolge 2017). However, untouchability still continues. The above outlines very clearly that the pure castes need the help of the impure castes to get over their own temporary impureness: a temporarily contaminated person is treated the same way as a permanently-impure person. Only with the help of the lower castes or the untouchables, who deal with (and thus ‘absorb’) the uncleanness of high caste members, can the latter attain the pure way of living which is their duty (Teltumbde 2020). In addition to these main castes, there are numerous sub-castes, which also describe different professions, but with a more theoretical approach. In every day life, both systems are not clearly distinguished and often appear blurred. Each main caste has various sub-castes that again follow a hierarchic concept. There is a Shudra sub-caste for butchers, which is seen as lower than the sub-caste of the barbers. Mahatma Gandhi was from the Modh Baniya caste, which is a sub-caste of the Vaishya. Although Vaishya are the cast of the merchants and traders, Gandhi was banned from his own caste when he wanted to go abroad to study law in England, especially his voyage across the sea was disapproved of (Kolge 2017). This is peculiar, because merchants normally need to travel, but Gandhi’s clan seemed to mistrust travelling so much that they banned their son from the caste. In agriculture, which is still one of the main economic source in India, worktasks has always been divided. The upper castes, such as Brahmins and Kshatriyas, are in many areas the only landlords. Since members of these two castes are not allowed to do manual work, these have to be taken over by the Shudra or Dalit. Landlords tend not to be interested in the working conditions of the workers and whether their equipment is suitable—a social attitude that can be observed around the world (Brogner 1970). Sometimes they are not interested in the state of the fields, and often the fields are left fallow. But fields of higher caste members have better soils than those of lower caste members, their plots are bigger and upper caste landlords have the advantage of being able to grow a wider variety of crops, which which makes up for the poor working conditions. Upper caste Shudras may also own small plots of land, but frequently these are further away from the villages, very small (sometimes so small that they can hardly feed the family), have less good quality of soil, and the Shudras are only allowed to grow rice, millet or pulses (Enterria 2010). Above described approaches led to dramatic problems in food production. On the one hand, there are big fields that are badly maintained, because the uppercaste landowners are only interested in the revenue they receive from the fields. The workers, on the other hand, are not very much invested in the careful cultivation of the crops, because they have no right to use the land at all. Agricultural products could still feed many more people in India than is currently the case (Brogner 1970).

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2.7 Conclusions In this chapter, some general facts about India, its history, religion, and social framework have been explained. These facts are important for the other chapters of the book, as not all readers will know them in detail. Hinduism, the main religion, has a spatial component, which is expressed through the processions, rituals, and mandalas, diagrams that outline cosmic order in many scales, from small drawings to whole city layouts.

References Alam M (1997) State building under the Mughals: religion. culture and politics. Cahiers d’Asie centrale 3/4:105–128. https://journals.openedition.org/asiecentrale/478?lang=en. Accessed 3 Aug 2021 Aktor M (2008) Ritualisation and segregation: the untouchability complex in Indian Dharma. Corpus Iuris Sanscriticum, Torino Asher CB, Talbot C (2006) India before Europe. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Barnard A (2011) Social anthropology and human origins. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Barua P (2005) The state at war in South Asia. Lincoln, NE, University of Nebraska Press Bellwinkel M (1980) Die Kasten-Klassenproblematik im städtisch-industriellen Bereich. Historisch-empirische Fallstudie über die Industriestadt Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, Indien. Franz Steiner Verlag, Wiesbaden Brogner D (1970) Der sozialgeografische Einfluss des Kastenwesens auf Siedlungen und Agrarstruktur im südlichen Indien. Erdkunde, Archiv Für Wissenschaftliche Geografie 24(3):194–207 Chandra B et al (2016) India’s struggle for independence 1857–1947. Penguin, UK, London Chaurasia, RS (2004) History of the Marathas. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors, New Delhi Cohn BS (1971) India: The social anthropology of a civilisation. Prentice-Hall Inc., Hoboken, NJ Constitution of India (n.d.) Article 17. Abolition of untouchability. https://www.constitutionofindia. net/constitution_of_india/fundamental_rights/articles/Article%2017. Accessed 8 June 2018 Daus, R (1983) Die Erfindung des Kolonialismus. Hammer, Wuppertal Dilip, K. Ch (2009) India. An archaeological history: palaeolithic beginnings to early historic foundations. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Doninger, W (2009) The Hindus. An alternative history. Penguin/Viking, New Delhi Dumont LM (1976a) Gesellschaft in Indien. Die Soziologie des Kastenwesens. Europaverlag, Wien Dumont LM (1976b) Homo Hierarchicus (trans: Venjakob M). Europa Verlag, Wien Dyson T (2010) Growing regional variation: demographic change and its implications. In: Heath J (ed) Diversity and change in modern India. Economic, special and political approaches. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 19–46 Eaton RM (2005) The new Cambridge History of India. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Enterria A (2010) India from within. A guide to India’s history, religion, arts, culture and society. Indica Books, Varanasi Farrokh K (2007) Shadows in the desert. Ancient Persia at war. Osprey, Oxford et al. Gennep A (1986) Übergangsriten (Les rites de passage). Campus Verlag, Frankfurt/Main Gray J (2006) Domestic Mandala. Architecture of Lifeworlds in Nepal. Ashgate, Hampshire Hambly G (1968) Cities of Mughul India. Elek Books Lim, London Hardenberg R (2000) Ideologie eines Hindu-Königtums. Struktur und Bedeutung der Rituale des Königs von Puri. Das Arabische Buch, Berlin Herman A (1976) The problem of evil and Indian thought. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi

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Ikram SM (1964) Muslim civilisation in India. Columbia University Press, New York, London Jodhka S, Prakahs A (2016) The Indian middle class. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Khare RS (2006) Caste, hierarchy, and individualism. Oxford University Press, New Delhi, Indian Critiques of Louis Dumont’s Contributions Keilhauer A, Keilhauer P (1983) Die Bildsprache des Hinduismus. Die indische Götterwelt und ihre Symbolik. DuMont, Köln Kinsley DR (1986) Hindu goddesses: visions of the divine feminine in the Hindu religious tradition. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA Kolge N (2017) Gandhi against Caste. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Koshy MO (1989) The Dutch power in Kerala, 1729–1758. Mittal Publications, New Delhi Leslie J (2003) Authority and meaning in Indian religions. Hinduism and the case of Valmiki. Ashgate, Hants, UK Ludden D (2006) Geschichte Indiens (trans: Arora M C) Magnus-Verlag, Essen Majumdar S (2018) 5 facts about religion in India. Pew Research Center, Washington, DC. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/06/29/5-facts-about-religion-in-india/. Accessed 5 May 2022 Markovits C (2004) A history of modern India, 1480–1950. Anthem Press, London Metcalf B, Metcalf T (2012) A concise history of modern India. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Mudbidri A.G. (1992) The town and the Raj. Urbanization in British India. Reliance Publishing House, New Delhi Newitt M (2005) A history of Portuguese overseas expansion, 1400–1668. Routledge, London Niaz I (2019) The state during the British Raj: imperial government in South Asia, 1700–1947. Oxford University Press, Karachi Padfield JE (1908) The Hindu at home being sketches of Hindu daily life. B.R. Publishing Corporation, Delhi Porter A (2008) Empires in the mind. In: Marshall PJ (ed) The Cambridge illustrated history of the British Empire. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 185–223 Ranjitkar SB (1999) Kumari. The virgin goddess. Book Faith India, Delhi, Varanasi Reu PBN (1933) History of the Rashtrakutas (Rathodas). Publication Scheme, Jaipur Schendel W (2020) A history of Bangladesh. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Schumann HW (1996) Die großen Götter Indiens: Grundzüge von Hinduismus und Buddhismus. Diederichs, München Shamastry R (1996) Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Mysore Printing and Publishing House, Mysore Stang F (2002) Indien. Geographie, Geschichte, Wirtschaft, Politik. Wiss. Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt statista (2018) Die 20 Länder mit der größten Bevölkerung im Jahr 2018. https://de.statista.com/sta tistik/daten/studie/1722/umfrage/bevoelkerungsreichste-laender-der-welt. Accessed 12 Oct 2019 Steinmetz G (2013) Sociology and empire. The imperial entanglements of a discipline. Duke University Press, Durham, London Subramanian L (2008) Ports. Towns. Cities. A historical tour of the Indian littoral. Marg Publications, Mumbai Tan TY, Kudaisya G (2000) The aftermath of partition in South Asia. Routledge, London Teltumbde A (2020) Dalits. Past, present and future. Routledge, London, New York Thapar R (1961) Ashoka and the decline of the Mauryas. Oxford University Press, Oxford Thapar R (1988) Medieval India. History textbook for class VII. National Council of Educational Research and Training, New Delhi Thapar R (2003) Early India. From the origins to AD 1300, Penguin Books, London Vedachalam V (2014) The Pandyas. In: Chakrabarti D, Lal M (eds.) History of ancient India. Political history and administration (c. AD 750–1300). Aryan Books International, New Delhi, pp 329–349 Wiemer H-U (2015) Alexander der Große. Verlag C.H Beck, München

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Chapter 3

Episode 1: Planning Theories

Abstract Planning tools have been known in India long before Europe. Planning treatises were already codified in early Vedic times. This codification connects to Hinduism describing the social structure as well as the ideal form of cities and villages quite precisely. The division of society into different castes also generates rules of conduct between castes. Not only is each individual obliged to live in accordance with rules applying to their caste, there are also a multitude of rules on how to deal with members of other castes. This in turn has implications for the usage of space and influences various aspects of the settlement area and thus its shape. In addition, many Hindu rites and ceremonies have a spatial character. Through diagrams, the mandalas, the believer is made aware of the connection between the human world and the cosmos. Such mandalas can range in size from that of a small picture to encompassing an entire city and are a second source for planning. After introducing mandalas in general, some theoretical urban mandalas are discussed. Then, some of the theoretical texts on town planning are highlighted. Indian planning treatises go far beyond the mere description of settlements, but also deal with a multitude of other aspects, such as how to depict deities and their seats. The chapter ends with a brief description of the profession of town planners. They had a high status in Hindu society, because a town planner needs to know exactly about the connection within society, between the gods and the world, in order to be able to plan cities and villages. Keywords Planning · Mandalas · Shipla shastras · Types of settlements · Indian town planner

3.1 Introduction In India, cities and settlements in general are always seen as the seat of a deity, on several scales. From the seat of the household deity to the seat of the city god, a virtual axis is thought to connect the human sphere with the universe. Therefore, all spatial configurations are always connected to the divine (Bühnemann 2003). As a result, planning must be undertaken with special care. Therefore, planning tools were developed already in Vedic times and were developed over the millennia continuously. Indian planning tools, however, include diagrams, the mandalas, as well © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_3

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as texts of various origins that were developed over centuries. Both are described below. To interpret the texts and diagrams correctly is only possible by specialists, which is why the training of architects and urban planners was very comprehensive. However, it is important to understand that Indian planning tools must be interpreted in a different way than European planning traditions. Most Indian planning texts as well as the Mandalas have a geometric character: plots for houses or temples, as well as whole cities are described as perfect rectangles or squares, which are then subdivided into several units, again of square or rectangular shape (see below). But these concepts are theoretical and never meant to follow strictly in geometrical terms (Pieper 1974). Europe has as well a long tradition in theory of architecture in which geometric shapes play an important role. Theoreticians such as Leon Battista Alberti, Antonio du Ouetro Averlino (also known as Filarete) or Claude-Nicholas Ledoux, addressed in their theoretical writings that perpetual beauty of cities and buildings can be achieved through geometric shapes (Broadbent 1996). However, in Europe, not only was theoretical thinking based on geometries, but buildings and cities were actually constructed according to these ideas. A famous example of a geometric city is Palmanova in northern Italy: the outline of the city is star-shaped, straight streets lead to the centre, which is formed by a hexagonal square. Radial streets divide the city into further segments (Jonas 2015). Even if the reason for the geometric layout of the city was a military one, for the planners of Palmanova the focus was on implementing the geometric arrangement as accurately as possible and the city was later seen as the ideal city, close to perfection. If only looking at the theoretical texts on urban planning and architecture of Europe and India, similar descriptions will be found. But the difference between Indian town planning philosophy and the European counterpart is, that in India the geometric diagram is more a spiritual map. Therefore, Indian town diagrams are not meant to be implemented strictly geometrically. Indian planning does not aim to create an ideal city, but to show the connection between heaven and earth through geometry. Since all residents are aware that their city is built on a geometric pattern representing universal order, and each of the geometric fields has a specific meaning, every user knows where they are, between heaven and earth, but also within society. Before starting to deal with Indian planning guidelines, it is important to know how to interpret the basic geometric bodies for city and house: as a mental diagram that helps orientation, and not as a strict geometric framework as they were designed in Europe.

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3.2 Mandalas Mandalas are diagrams of cosmic order and essential tools for Hindu religious practice. They are ritual symbols that represent the universe and the relations between the universe, the underworld and the human world. They depict the connection between the realms and assist believers to orientate themselves, their position in the world and help to understand cosmic order through doing so, attaining higher wisdom (Bühnemann 2003). Most importantly, by gaining higher wisdom, one can exit the spiral of birth and rebirth. Mandalas are used as mediators because they establish a sacred space where the human world is connected to the celestial realm and the universe. Mandalas also describe the hierarchy of deities and the relationships among each other. They are mentioned in the Rg-Vedas, where nine stars are described using a mandala: Surya (Sun), Chandra (Moon), Shukra (Venus), Guru (Jupiter), Buddha (Mercury), Shani (Saturn), Mangala (Mars) and the north and south lunar nodes Rahu and Ketu (Bühnemann 2003). According to the Tantric worldview,1 mandalas are the space where celestial beings become visible to the human world. Fig. 3.1 The Sri Yantra. Source Author compilation, not scaled

1

Tantra means “weaving together, loom, or warp”, the physical and the spiritual. In the Tantric traditions texts are translated into movements Yoga), Mandalas, or medidation.

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One mandala is the Sri Chakra (Fig. 3.1), which is dedicated to Devi Tripura Sundari, or the natural beauty of the three realms, the physical realm, the intermediate space and the divine mind. The mandala has nine levels, the innermost being the sacred bindi, or point, then five sections of triangles, followed by two rows of lotus petals, and finally the outermost square made of four lines, which is intersected in the centre of all sides by portals (Bühnemann 2003). The most basic elements of all mandalas are a circular main structure inscribed into a square. The square represents the earth and the four cardinal directions. The inscribed circle refers to the connection between the human realm and the universe. The square is then divided into several units, according to the sacred numbers. The first sacred number is four, because it points to the four cardinal directions and thus is combined with the four corners of the square in the diagram. Five is included when the centre is counted, too. Seven represents the concept that there is also an above and a below. The special significance of the number eight results from the subdivision of the main directions (Pieper 1974). If the eight main directions, namely north, south, east, west, north-east, north-west, south-east and south-west are laid out, then there is a central plot and this results in the number nine. All other sacred numbers are multiples of these numbers (Bühnemann 2003). Mandalas can take on various different forms and come in different sizes. They can be a pattern in the sand, spread out in front of the entrance doors, or they can be painted on the floor in public spaces. They can be temporary, strewn on the floor using leaves, fruits, fragrant substances or coloured powders and in some cases even precious and semi-precious stones. But they can also be permanent, like mandala paintings on canvas or wood, or set in stone. Mandalas can be as small as a painting being part of the house altar, but can be as vast as a temple complex and even a whole city (Dellios 2003). Particularly the latter is of importance for the following analysis. Three-dimensional mandalas of sacred cities, such as Varanasi or Madurai, have shrines at certain spots in the city and thus the believer knows in which part of the mandala they are (Bharne and Krusche 2012). This helps the believer to attain a spiritual orientation, too. The largest Mandala spans the whole Indian subcontinent, where shrines, sacred cities and natural elements show the pilgrims in which part of the mandala they are. It is important to understand that city mandalas are not necessarily perfect geometric figures. They are mental maps and not just geometric figures that exist in reality as such. The concept of the mandala is a rather theoretical approach than reflecting reality. Mandalas are meant to remind people of the various elements of space and associate them with the cosmic idea and with humans.

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Fig. 3.2 The Newar king represented with the insignia of Vishnu: the lotus flower, the world serpent, a canopy. Bhupatindra Malla statue, Bhaktapur, Nepal. Source Author

3.2.1 The Geopolitical Meaning of Mandalas Mandalas have also a political meaning: the geopolitical denotation of the mandala refers to the composition of the ideal state in India’s past. As outlined in Kautilya’s Arthashastra, the book on statecraft which was most probably written in the fourth century BCE (Shamasastry 1961), a state in the Hindu sense has no boundaries or frontiers as it would have in the European sense. A state is defined as a strong centre, the kingly seat of power, around which tributary states and the territories of the commoners are arranged. This is the cosmic diagram of the king—a person, but also his palace (Dellios 2003). The king, at the centre of the diagram, is vertically linked to the celestial beings, and horizontally to his subjects, which are located at several cardinal points of the mandala. Since kings were always spiritually linked to one of the main gods, Vishnu or Shiva, their palace was also the symbolic axis linking the celestial world with the human realm. The king was seen as the legal heir of the early noble ancestors, the main gods (Fig. 3.2). The capital or seat of power was therefore the centre of the “imperial Mandala” (Dellios 2003), with huge temple complexes adjacent to the palace (Fig. 3.3). Thus, it is not surprising that the main ancient Hindu epics—the Ramayana (which describes the deeds of the ideal king, Lord Rama), the Mahabharatha (on the warfare between the princes of the Pandavas and Kauravas), and the Manusmitri (describing the law of Manu, the cosmic first man)—make frequent use of mandalas as symbols of cosmic and political order (Dellios 2003). Mandalas were used to describe the relationships between neighbouring states. In the Arthashastra, Kautilya describes state mandalas as a cluster of states and their

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Fig. 3.3 Durbars Square, Bhaktapur. The centre of the city is occupied by the royal palace, around which the most important temples are situated. Source Author compilation, not scaled

relation to each other: either friends, friends of friends, enemies, enemies’ friends, friends’ enemies, enemies’ enemies, and so forth (Shamasastry 1961). Kautilya also distinguishes between kings with their territory lying east, north or west (which are desirable configurations), or south, a much less desirable configuration. His diagram showing all the permutations of friends and enemies shows four primary circles with twelve kings, sixty sovereigns and seventy-two elements of states (Shamasastry 1961); it is a perfect mandala with perfect numbers. Thus, Medieval India, when the geopolitical mandala was used throughout the whole of the subcontinent—was a patchwork of concentric rings with relations to neighbouring empires or kingdoms. Each capital was the centre of the state, where the strongest power was centralised, in both a spiritual and a real sense. The further away from the capital, the weaker the king’s influence became (Shamasastry 1961). Mandalas are used to connect cities or regions. In South India, for example, Shiva is worshipped in five major cities, each of which represents one of the elements: Kancheepuram represents earth; Chidambaram, space; Tirupati, air; Tiruvannamalai, fire and Srirangam, water. These cities form a mandala and pilgrims follow the paths between these cities (Bharne and Krusche 2012).

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3.2.2 The Mandala as a Planning Tool for Cities As mentioned, mandalas were used to describe the relation between a king and his subjects and the spatial relation between members of the different castes. Each individual, as well as the whole environment is seen to have certain forces; some positive, some negative (Meister 2003). Members of higher castes have more positive energy than persons of lower castes. The higher the caste, the more positive the energy of its caste member would have. And, bearing in mind that the centre is always divine, high caste members with their positive power will be close to this nucleus—not only in philosophical terms but also in a spatial manner. A mandala, therefore, arranges the forces of the people, taking advantage of positive energy and avoiding negative energy (Bühnemann 2003). Consequently, mandalas are used for town and village design, particularly the Vastu Purusha mandala (Fig. 3.4) which shows the cosmic man, Purusha, lying on the ground. The mandala is described as follows: at the beginning of time, Brahma and other gods pushed the cosmic man, Purusha, on earth to bring energy to humans. He was placed on earth with his head to the north-east, his feet in the opposite direction, and his arms to the south-east and north-east, respectively (Bühnemann 2003). A diagram is inscribed over the whole body, which contains a minimum of 9 squares. Each square is then assigned a special energy which is guarded by one of the gods (Fig. 3.5). Thus each square has a particular energy, or in other words, from this square the energy of the guardian god is emanating (Meister 2003). The town mandala—as well as all others—has the same properties as its cosmic ideal. Believers, who start their journey at the outskirts of the city and follow defined paths through the lanes until they reach the temple and the sanctum, understand the sanctum as the sacred mount Meru which connects the celestial world with the underworld and the human realm (Meister 2003). The town (especially holy temple towns) is a huge mandala, arranged according to the sacred numbers and perfect Fig. 3.4 Vastu Purusha Mandala: the cosmic man is inscribed in a square, with his head lying in the north-east corner, and his feet in the south-west corner. Source Author compilation

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Fig. 3.5 Diagram of the main gods protecting the cardinal directions (In India these are eight), and with the central area of Brahma, the creator. Source Author compilation

shapes: the more sacred a temple town, the more square-like it will be. A yogi or pilgrim who stands in the central cella of a temple will know that this womb-like structure is the centre of the mandala, the town, the summit of the sacred Mount Meru and the birthplace of the entire universe. From this place one can reach the level of the cosmic self, the Atman-Braman (Gutschow 1982). The ideal form of the Mandala for towns is the oriented square and the circle. The most important movement is the path of the rising and setting sun. This defines time itself and in turn also space (Acharya 2004). The square of the mandala should therefore point to the cardinal directions that are associated with deities and stars on a macro level, and with the human body on the micro level. The interconnection between macro- and micro level is best represented in a square, because it can be infinitely subdivided into smaller squares. The square represents the concept of a vast universe as well as the single human individual (Acharya 2004). The square is created by humans, as much as Brahma has created the universe. If a square is divided by two intersecting axes, a four-square mandala is created. If it is divided by four intersecting axes, then a nine square mandala is created. Here, the centre is dedicated to Brahma, and one square is reserved for the deities of the cardinal directions, which in India also include south-west, south-east, north-west and northeast. North is dedicated to Kubera, the god of wealth; east is the home of Indra, god of lightning, thunder, rain and water and knowledge. The north-east corner is dedicated to Ishana, the god of water, purity and and again knowledge, who stands for the culmination of the properties of north and east. The south is the space of Yama, god of death, ancestors and the underworld. The south-east corner is dedicated to Agni, the fire god. The west square is dedicated to Varuna, the god of the sky, truth and justice. Between Yama and Varuna is a square dedicated to Dhara, the god of earth, located in the south-east corner of the mandala. Finally, the north-west corner is dedicated to Vayu, god of wind (Gray 2006).

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In a further transformation, the mandala can be subdivided into 64 squares, and then into 81 squares (Pieper 1974). Each new square is dedicated to a deity, with the centre always being dedicated to Brahma, followed by the higher gods close to the centre, and the less important gods in the peripheral areas. The mandala also has connecting paths and rings, which is important for the idea that all realms are in the end one big unity (Meister 2003). When designing houses, mandalas are the underlying concept, too. Here, the mandala begins in the courtyard which is ideally a scaled down version of the celestial mandala. The size of the house is then related to the courtyard. All houses in one neighbourhood then form a bigger square of the mandala, and the many neighbourhoods then make up the whole mandala of a city or village. Thus, theoretically, if the courtyard of a house is resized, the entire house would need to be resized, followed by the neighbourhood and then by the whole village (Sachdev 2001). Moreover, the Vastu-Purusha mandala is not only a diagram of the static order of space, is it also a dynamic representation. Since it is oriented east-south-westnorth and has an inscribed circle it follows the path of the sun. The paths shown in the Vastu-Purusha mandala are used for processions and circumambulations, which start in the east of a sacred shrine and follow a circular path in a clockwise direction (Fischer et al. 1987). The many processions that shape daily life in India are inscribed in the mandala and take place on several scales: some are performed in the house, others in the temple district, whereas yet others include the whole city or even a wider region (see also Chap. 5, 6, 7 and 8).

3.3 Indian Planning Treatises Town planning as a theoretical and practical discipline has been known in India most probably since the times of the Indus civilisation. As far back as early Vedic times, town planning was already a discipline in its own right and, as will be shown below, built on mandalas. It is worth noting that planning in India went far beyond contemporary, European understanding of the discipline, and included the search for a site for a house, temple, whole village or town, carpentry, metallurgy, sculpting, measurement systems, iconography of images of gods, painting, architecture, wood working, making instruments, making seats for gods, horticulture and so on. These various aspects were grouped together under the collective term “Shilpa Shastras”, which means the science of arts and crafts generally. One part of the Shilpa Shastras are the texts collected as “Vastu Shastras”, the “art and science of architecture”. The Vastu Shastras set out planning rules for all sorts of buildings, including temples, palaces, forts, residential houses, and also including smaller-sized projects such as pedestals for gods and goddesses, the design of furniture, the sculpting of idols of deities and so forth (Anath 1998). On a macro scale, they describe aspects of town and village

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planning, such as the planning of streets, harbours and their dams, city walls, Gopurams (gateways into cities and temples), or Ghats (bathing and performing platforms on the riverfront) (Acharya 2004). Planning in India has always taken an holistic approach, because it includes the macro scale as well as the micro scale, both from the building and planning perspective, but also with regard to other aspects of life and communal living. Several scripts and diagrams highlight planning and organisational concepts for towns and village from a macro-scale (i.e., the whole town) to the micro-scale perspective (the layout and construction of buildings, but also the carving of idols) (Anath 1998). In addition, both, diagrams and texts are often read as geometrical ideas of the built environment, which leads Western scholars, in particular, to consider these diagrams as tools in geometric terms. However, this is not the Indian way of reading such diagrams: the planning tools that are outlined in the Shastric texts are principles of orientation for how to place the quarters for the various castes and relating them to each other (Anath 1998). Another source of planning treatises are the Indian epics, particularly the Mahabharata (Chandran 2020) and the Ramayana (Menon 2003). In the Mahabharata, the celestial, “floating” cities of Indraprashtra, Dvaraka and Mithila are described in detail. This is important for commoners, because these cities are inhabited by gods and semi-gods and are therefore examples for humans as well. In the Ramayana the city of Ayodhya is described, mentioning that the city was well known for its roads that were sprinkled with water,2 the fortification with its high enclosing walls, the machines of the ditches, and the fortified walls that made the city impregnable and the densely packed residential quarters. It also describes life in the city, with its many foreign merchants, and the various skilful artists who worked on semi-precious and precious stones (Pillai 1948). Another influential corpus of scripture are the “Agamas”, which deal with arts and crafts, architecture and town planning. They are believed to have originated in South India, since most of the texts are concerned with the iconography of Shiva, who is the main deity of South India (Pillai 1948). As with all other collected texts, the Agamas, too, deal with different aspects of life, including urban design and architecture. For architecture, many different technical and construction aspects are described and suggestions regarding the right material for each purpose. The texts on town planning start with the foundation of a city, village or town, which are all treated the same way. Planning for both town and house begins with an examination of the soil, identifying the cardinal directions, taking the basic measurements, and finally the construction of the enclosing walls and the individual buildings (Pillai 1948).

2

Sprinkling roads with water is a sign of a sophisticated city, because this cools down the area and refers to the sophisticated system that there is such a technique.

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3.3.1 The Puranas The Puranas are a collection of texts written in Sanskrit. Since these are the most ancient planning treatises, they are discussed here in more detail. The Puranas are an encyclopaedia of the ancient knowledge of India and cover a wide range of topics, dealing with cosmology, the characteristics of gods and goddesses, tales and sagas of kings and heroes, but also temple construction, astronomy, grammar, love stories, philosophy, architecture and town planning (Pillai 1948). There are 18 Great Puranas, the Maha Puranas and 18 Minor Puranas, the Upa puranas, that consist of more than 400,000 verses and were most probably composed by many different authors, between the third and tenth century CE (Dimmitt 2015). The first part of the verses deals with the creation of Brahma, then the creation of immobile things, and then the creation of animals. The following verses deal with the creation of celestial beings, which are the higher order. The seventh creation is the middle order, the order of human beings (Shastri 1984). Eight of the Puranas deal with architecture and town planning, and it is those verses in particular that influenced the Shilpa Shastras. The part called Marsay Purana describes how buildings should be composed, the variety of the perfect location and number of columns is mentioned, the ideal layout for pavilions and sculptures is described, as well as the materials for the various building types. In the Garuda Purana three different types of buildings are outlined: residential buildings for twice-born3 and palaces for kings and nobles; military structures such as fortresses, forts, walls and so forth, and finally, religious buildings, i.e., monasteries and temples (Pillai 1948). However, as in the other treatises, the majority of the verses deal with rules for sculpturing religious objects, such as images of gods or their seats and pedestals. The Agni Purana gives clear instructions for the spatial distribution of the castes: the goldsmiths, for example, should be located in the south-east part of a town, dancers, musicians and courtesans should be in the south, carriage men and fishermen should be placed in the south-west. The northern quarters were for the Brahmins. In the east were the Kshatriyas, in the south the Vaishyas, and in the west, the Sudras. However, there is no mention of where the royal palace should be situated. The ceremonial ground should be placed in the south as well (Dutt 1977).

3.3.2 Arthashastra Another source of planning are the Arthashastra texts on statecraft. The Arthashastra was written by Kautilya, an advisor of Chandragupta, the first king of the Mauryan empire (Acharya 2004). Kautilya lived in the first century BCE and was also a philosopher, teacher and economist as well as a lawyer. The Arthashastra comprises 3

All higher castes are summarised as being born twice: firstly, they are born naturally, when a woman gives birth to a child, and then they are born a second time, when they receive the sacred thread and are from then on an accepted member of their caste. (see Chap. 2.6).

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15 books that are subdivided into 150 chapters. Many different topics are described, such as the activities and duties of kings, strategies for ruling people in an empire, general planning issues related to law, warfare, protection of forests and wildlife, spying, regulation of taxes and the like. Although no entire chapter is dedicated to town planning, the spatial organisation of cities and villages is described, stressing the importance of the aspect of planning, because it organises and regulates commoners (Acharya 2004). Kautilya argues that three of the royal roads of a fort should run from west to east, and three from south to north. The king’s palace should face either north or east, and should occupy one ninth of the area of the city. The residential areas for royal teachers, priests, and ministers should be situated north of the palace, as should the sacrificial places and bodies of water. Royal kitchens, elephant stables and storehouses should be placed either in the east or the south. Merchants who sell scents, garlands and liquids should be located to the east, as should skilled artisans and members of the Kshatriya caste (warriors, leaders, see Chap. 2.6., Shamasastry 1961). The treasury, offices and manufactures should be situated in the south-east area of the fort, and storehouses for forest products, as well as the arsenal, should be ideally placed in the south-west corner. The south part of the fort should be for the army, but also for merchants of cooked rice, liquor and meat. Musicians, courtesans and members of the Vaishya, the merchant caste, should also be situated in this area. To the west is the area reserved for artisans, manufacturers of threads, cotton, bamboo mats, skins, armour, weapons, and the Shudra (workers, see Chap. 2.6., Shamasastry 1961). The north-west is the best place for shops and hospitals, and iron smiths, artisans working with precious stones and Brahmins, the priests, should reside in the north, which is also the perfect place for the tutelary deity of the fort. In the corners shall be placed corporations and several workmen’s guilds. The centre of the town should be reserved for the temples and shrines of the town’s main gods. The guardian deities of the corners of the mandala should have their shrines in the corners of the town. Cremation grounds should be located to the east, and only the burial grounds for the high caste families should lie outside the town boundaries, to the south. People of other beliefs should live beyond these burial areas. Finally, it is stated that there should be a water body or a well for every ten households. (Shamasastry 1961). Only one town was built by Kautilya: Pataliputra on the banks of the River Ganges was built in 490 BEC by the Magadha ruler Ajatashatru as a small fortress. During the Mauryan Dynasty, the city became the capital of their empire. Since the Greek ambassador and historian Megasthenes made a detailed description of the city, we have a very good idea of what the city looked like. According to Megasthenes’ writings, the city was 15 km wide and was fortified with a 40 km long palisade wall made of bricks. The city was divided into 16 quarters (divided by paved roads) in which the different artisans’ guilds lived. Some of the quarters had tree-lined squares, which functioned as the meeting place as well as the market place. In the centre stood the king’s palace, and the priests and high officials also had their multistorey houses there. Some of these houses had small gardens and ponds. Adjacent to the king’s palace were the dwellings of the courtesans and musicians, as well as public buildings. This area was separated from the palace precinct by canals, which

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were used to keep the micro-climate of the city cool. Each square had shrines for the gods. Foreigners, being outsiders and non-Hindus, were considered untouchables. The city seemed to be flourishing and was an important centre for philosophers and scholars as well as an important centre for early Buddhism. However, Faxian, a Chinese monk who visited the city in the fifth century, stated that the city was lying in ruins. To this day, it is unclear why the city was abandoned (Schlingloff 1970).

3.3.3 Mansara The Mansara also known as Mansara Shilpa Shastra is an ancient planning treatise written in Sanskrit. It is one of the few ancient manuscripts that has survived (Acharya 2004). The Mansara comprises 70 chapters and was most probably written around 400 CE. It includes texts on cosmology, politics, economy and a large part of it describes building houses as well as towns. The design and layout of foundations, pedestals and chariots for images of gods and goddesses, thrones for kings, the right choice of fruit trees in public open space, the layout of ornamental trees (being the seat of goddesses), pillars, principles for joinery, furniture design, the design of for representations of deities, etc., are all described in detail. Also, more detailed information is provided for the measurement and location of doors, particularly the main door, which is the first point of entry to the house. Other verses deal with the different types of residential buildings for the different castes, types of courts and temples, and also public buildings and structures, such as the Gopurams (gateway towers) or the Mandapas (pillared pavilions), all with a detailed description of the location of doors, central courtyards, windows and openings or number of floors (Das 2007). Moreover, the book not only concerns itself with the built environment, it also describes what sort of characteristics a king and his kingdom should have, what ornaments kings and deities need, how coronations of deities and kings should be performed, as well as how images of gods and goddesses should be repaired (Acharya 2004). By settling down in a city, an individual grows into the space, like a plant that puts down roots into the soil. Consequently, choosing the appropriate site is the first and most important step when building a house—and choosing the right site is even more important when it is a whole village or town that is being established (Pieper 1974). Before starting with the actual construction process, all sorts of information need to be collected. This includes the choice of the geographic location, with a water body nearby, and whether there are protective mountains in the area and if the ground is suitable. The ground is the most important and primordial element and associated with the Goddess of the earth. Therefore, the first verses of the Mansara describe the examination of the soil before the cardinal directions are determined. Once these procedures have been completed, offerings need to be made. Next the cardinal directions are determined, as well as the centre of the town or village from where the main roads will lead to the gateways of the enclosing town wall. In a next step, the site is divided up and the quarters for the castes are set and only then—with

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offerings being made after each step—the actual construction work can start (Pillai 2004). Towns and villages are both treated the same way in the Mansara (as in the other treatises), and there is no distinction between a town and a village as it is in the European sense. Both, city and village, have cosmic origins and must therefore be treated the same way. The only difference is that villages are smaller and have less inhabitants. However, towns and villages are categorised on other bases. On the one hand, they are distinguished on the basis of the castes that will live here, on the other hand, there is a categorisation depending on the main function of the city. A type of town known as Patana, for example, is a big commercial port that can be situated either on the bank of a large river, or on the coast. Such a city must include special quarters for foreign traders, who must be allowed to practice their religion (albeit only to a certain extent). Also, a Patana must include accommodation for traders who will be staying only a short time, and that these guest rooms are best incorporated into the watch tower, where they can be monitored and watched by the guards of the town easily4 (Pillai 2004). In the Mansara, the layout of cities and villages is again based on the use of Mandalas. Thirty-two different Mandalas are described, and these are used for building temples, buildings and towns. The Mansara describes the most basic as a 2 × 2 square mandala, and the largest division is a 32 × 32 mandala. Each of the squares is the seat of a god, and it is stated that in nearly all Mandalas, Brahma’s seat is the centre (Acharya 2004). For security, all settlements need to be surrounded by walls made of brick or stone, with ditches and trenches. The walls must have main gateways in the centre of each side and smaller ones leading to the fields beyond. Main streets connect the gates with the centre, which is located at the intersection of the main streets. Since this place is associated with Brahma, the main temple of the village god or goddess should be located here. This only applies to larger cities, since village temples normally lie outside the villages, because the seat of the village goddesses (normally it is a goddess) is a natural object, such as a tree, a stone or a bush (see Chap. 6.12., Acharya 2004). If there is no temple in the centre, then a Mandapa is placed here for village meetings and community gatherings. Each caste must live in an area that is separated from the other quarters (Acharya 1946). Although it is not mentioned in the Mansara, it is important to note that twiceborn cannot accept water from lower caste members, and therefore it makes sense for each caste to live in a quarter of its own, each equipped with a well. Although the Mansara states that the high-caste members should live in the best quarters of the village or town, it does not explain what sort of qualities characterise these “best” areas. All residential quarters should have buildings on either side of the street. Temples of frightening deities should also be placed outside the village walls, as 4

Foreigners always posed a danger to the locals. Therefore, strangers were always accommodated at the main gates to the cities, where they could be monitored by the guards. By housing them at the entrance to the city, there was no need for the strangers to penetrate further into the cities, which made life inside quiet and peaceful. Examples for such guestrooms attached to the gateways to cities can be found in nearly all trading hubs of Europe, Asia and Africa.

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should cremation grounds, as mentioned earlier (see also Chap. 6.13.). The Mansara further sets out guidelines regarding the width of each type of street, how the gate towers should be built, and all sorts of openings are classified: for military purposes, for residential and for religious use. The specifications for royal courts are described at length, and those for the construction of temples, which is the central element of towns go into even more length, as they have the most building regulations and special measurements. A large portion of the verses provide ideas for the right choice of a town or village mandala.

3.3.4 Mayamatam The Mayamatam, again an ancient text on planning that has survived until today, belongs to the most studied ancient texts on Indian planning, like the Mansara, which is outlined above (Chakrabarti 2013). The Mayamatam comprises 36 chapters and is written in Sanskrit but originates from Dravidian5 ideas of the Shiva traditions that were well known in the Chola Empire of South India. The overlaps between the Vastu Purusha and the Agamas are obvious, and the similarities between the Mayamatam and the Mansara are striking, so it is hard to say which of these texts was written first. As in the Mansara, the chapters on town planning are very limited, and the Mayamatam texts also deal with many other aspects of building and construction. Here too, the society is divided into four different Varnas (castes) plus the Dalit, the untouchables and intrinsically polluted people, who do not belong to the society of a town or village and are not allowed to dwell inside a village—although their labour is needed highly especially by the high caste members, as described in chapter one. This form of societal organisation is identical to the descriptions given in the Arthashastra (Dagens 2007). The first chapters of the Mayamatam deal with the search for a suitable site by examining the soil and evaluating its colour (each colour is designated to a particular Varna; i.e. caste), the water resources, then the act of taking possession of the land, the various measurements and then the orientation of the site. However, the book does not specify whether the site means a whole city or village, or a temple or a house for a commoner. After the necessary rites, the layout of the site is considered (Dagens 2007). Many different diagrams are outlined that can be used for a city or village. The most basic diagram consists of only one square. Square-shaped diagrams are seen as perfect, and villages and towns for Brahmins will be square shaped. In actual fact, Brahmin villages as such never existed, and they are merely theoretical considerations. However, when it comes to building houses, square shapes were used wherever possible for Brahmin houses and temple complexes. The most common diagrams are described below (Dagens 2007). 5

Dravidian people, living in South India, had their own architectural and philosophical ideas in Hinduism. Important kingdoms were the Cholas and the Pallawas, who were patrons of this style.

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First the general diagrams are described—which are also used for festivals, sculptures and buildings—followed by the plans for villages and towns. To start with, the dimensions are defined: 500 Danda (a Danda is a rod of approximately 180 cm) make one Krosa; four Krosa make a Gavyuta, and 8000 Danda make a Noe Yojana (Dagens 2007). Subsequently details are elaborated: an eight-Danda square is a Kakani, four Kakani make a Masa, four Masa make a Vartanaka, five Vartanaka make a Vataka, and a Vataka, quadrupled is the perfect area which is suitable for a family to live in (this most probably includes the land and the farms and fields). The smallest villages should be 2000 Dandas, the largest village should not exceed one hundred thousand Dandas in size, and one family should occupy one-twentieth of the village (Dagens 2007). After the general introduction to the different measurements, the number of Brahmins that should make up a village is given. Twelve thousand Brahmans is the maximum for a village of the highest category, and a population of 10,000 Brahmins is considered appropriate for a medium-size village. In smaller villages of the highest category eight thousand Brahmins considererd to be appropriate. The number of Brahmins per village goes down to twelve Brahmins for villages of the lowest category. The Mayamatam also states that, if the Brahmins have no other source of income than the land, then they should have ten times more land than the commoners (Dagens 2007). The streets are named according to their position in the village. The central street is called Brahmavithi; streets leading to the city gates are called Rajavithi, and the street called Mangalavithi is the main street along which the temple chariots are carried in ceremonies. All the streets should be paved. The width of the streets should be between one and five Danda, with only the main streets crossing from east to west being six Dandas wide. A temple or altar dedicated to Brahma should be built in the centre of the village or town (Dagens 2007). The Mayamatam also suggests that residential quarters should be interspersed with shops, and that shops should be located in the middle of the residential quarter. Furthermore, a processional boulevard should circumscribe the city. The ceremonial street should be lined by the premises of artisans and merchants, all grouped according to their profession. Shops selling jewellery, gold, clothes, drugs, pepper, ginger, honey, ghee, oils and medicines should be located within the boulevard (Dagens 2007). The whole city should be divided into 81, 64 or 49 plots. The innermost zone is called Brahma, followed by the zone called Daivika, the third ring is called Manusha, and the 4th ring, the outermost one, is called Paisacha. The Brahmin dwellings should be situated in the second and third zone. Artisans and labourers should be situated in the outermost zone (Das 2007). Here, too, may lie plots for the highest classes, if necessary. Deities have their temples here, too. The shrine of Brahma is placed in the central ring, with the town hall located in the northeast or southeast corner of this precinct. To the right of the Vaishyas are the houses of the Shudra. The royal palace should be in the east and should occupy 1/7th of the entire city. Wells and tanks should be evenly distributed over the town. The cremation ground is generally

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located further away from the town (Dagens 2007). Areas outside the town wall are allocated to the Dalit, foreigners, people involved in “impure” professions, and the sentinels, who should be located next to the gates. Officials should be distributed throughout the town, and high ministers should not be located too close to the palace, for fear that the king may be poisoned by his high officials(Das 2007). The Mayamatam was described in more detail because it is exemplary for all planning treatises of India. It became evident that planning in India is conducted different than in Europe. Indian planning theory goes far beyond the mere regulation of building heights or the designation of zones in a city as it is used in Europe. Traditional Indian planning is grounded in the idea of cosmic order and its representation on earth. Therefore, planning deals not only with the building of cities, but is also concerned with building palaces and temples, as well as the distribution of the castes within city boundaries.

3.4 Some Theoretical Types of Settlements So far, the general ideas of the planning tools in India were described. They are on the one hand texts and on the other hand diagrams, the mandalas. But—as outlined above—Indian treatises include also many aspects that do not deal with town planning or urban design. Historic Indian planning tools include many aspects of the built environment, like the iconography and design of shrines, pedestals, and seats of deities, the construction and design of the several elements of temples and the like. After having introduced the general ideas of the planning tools, the diagrams dealing with the various settlement types are presented below. All chosen types appear in more or less the same way in all treatises, although some variations can be seen between authors. For example, Maya (author of the Mayamatam), describes only villages with rectangular shapes, whereas Mansara (the author of the treatise of the same name) describes villages with other shapes, such as triangular or semi-circular shapes (Das 2007). In all cases, these forms were seen only as a theoretical framework, and were never implemented in their strict form. All described diagrams are built on the basic unit of a square, the “Pada”, and each Pada has a particular guardian deity. The diagrams vary in number of the Padas, and thirty-two diagrams are outlined, from the one-square diagram to a diagram consisting of 81 squares. A very basic diagram is called Pitha. It consists of 9 Padas, with the four Vedas in the areas of the cardinal directions. Water, Udaka is located in the north- east; fire, Dahana is located in the southeast, Gagana is in the southwest, and Pavana, the god of the wind, lies in the northwest. In the centre is Prthivi (earth) (Dagens 2007). Another, more complex diagram is the Manduka diagram, which consists of 64 Padas. The four central Padas are dedicated to Brahma. The other four gods of the diagram each have three Padas: Bhudhara, Aryaka, Vivasvant and Mitra. Then there are four Padas divided diagonally, and these are the spots for the immortals: Apa, Apavastra, Sãvindra, Indra, Indraraja, Rudra and Rudraraja. The gods Mahendra,

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Fig. 3.6 The Dandaka—town mandala. the long side of the village following the Dandaka diagram should be twice as long as the short side. A Vishnu temple should be located at the western corner of the village, and a Shiva temple should be located in the north-east corner. Source Author compilation after Pieper 1974, not scaled

Raksasa, Puspa and Bhallata protecting the cardinal directions have a two-pita field each. The deities Jayanta, Antariksa, Vitatha, Sugriva, Ruga, Mukhya and Diti have all one pada, and finally, the deities that protect the four corners have half a square each, because each direction is subdivided into two areas. Isa and Parjanya protect the northeast, Agni and Pusan the southeast, Dauvarika and Sugriva protect the southwest and Vayu and Naga protect the northwest (Dagens 2007). The Dandaka is rectangular in shape, with streets running east–west and north– south (Fig. 3.6). The main streets intersect at right angles and four gates are located in the centre of the four sides of the walls or fortification (Lakshmanan 2012). The two transverse streets have houses only on one side, and these should host the public facilities. Next it is stated, that the village officials should live in the east of the village or town, and it is said that the female deity should be located outside the village. The Sarvatobhadra is suitable for larger villages or towns and is also squareshaped (Fig. 3.7). According to this plan, the whole town is fully occupied by houses of different heights and sizes, and inhabited by all classes of people (except the Dalit, which are not officially part of society). The settlement is set out as a grid of 11 by 11 streets, with the royal palace in the centre (the pada that is dedicated to Brahma—in temple towns this square would be reserved for the temple). From the palace or castle, a wide street called the Rajavithi leads in an easterly direction, with the residential areas of the Brahmins are built along it. The adjoining quarters

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Fig. 3.7 The Sarvatobhadra town mandala, that is, complaisant on all sides. There are entrances in the centre of each side, and has square shape. Therefore, it is the ideal city form for Brahmins and gods. Source Author compilation, after Pieper 1974, not scaled

are allocated to merchants, and the quarters which are further away are allocated to artisans, according to their status of their profession. The temple should be situated at the centre, next to the palace, and should dominate the settlement (Dutt 1977). The closer the residences are to the temple, the higher the status of the occupants. The Nandyavara plan is used for bigger towns and cities and can accommodate 3000 to 4000 houses. Nandyavara is the name of a flower, and therefore the shape of the town should be circular; if this is not possible, it can also be rectangular. The streets run parallel, the temple district is situated at the centre, and the city wall and ditches run around the city, with four main gateways in the centre of each side. The Padmaka mandala plan is adopted from the petals of a lotus flower, and thus is round or octagonal It is used for fortified towns with large moats around them, but it can also be used if water surrounds the town on all sides, like an island. There are gateways on four sides and the streets run north–south, and east–west. In a Swastika plan, the main streets that run north–south and east–west divide the town or village into several rectangular sub-units that makes up the residential quarters of the Varnas. The Swastika may have any outer shape, but it must have a rampart that secures the city and a moat filled with water for additional security (Dutt 1977).

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A Prastara plan has a basic square or rectangular shape. Its main streets divide the city into several quarters, and these quarters are subdivided into smaller plots. Each main part is assigned to one of the Varnas, and the plots are allocated according to status: bigger (for Brahmins) or very small (quarters for the Shudra) (Dutt 1977). The Karmuka mandala is semi-circular and thus is only useful where the landscape has this shape, too. The main streets run from the centre to the city wall, and along with other main streets that radiate out, divide the area into several blocks. Temples have no fixed place; they can be built wherever it is convenient (Lakshmanan 2012). In addition to above described general considerations, there were also guidelines as to the perfect number of roads in a town or city. There should be 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, or 2 east–west streets and north–south streets. If this was not possible, they should be an odd number: 11, 9, 7, 5, 3, 1 (Dutt 1977).

3.5 The Profession of the Town Planner Planners had a high status in Indian society, as they did not only construct cities, buildings or temples. The correct layout of a city also had to establish the connection between the worlds. Therefore, planners had to know exactly about the religious texts, they had to know exactly the description of the gods, they had to know all the rites, and so on. Planners in India are known as the Vishwakarmas, people of a sub-caste, that is sometimes seen as part of the Brahmins (mainly by themselves). Vishwakarmas claim to be descendants of Lord Vishvakarma, who built the celestial realm (Ramaswamy 2008). Vishwakarmas not only planners and architects in the European sense. They are also blacksmiths, goldsmiths, carpenters, and stonemasons, and thus were divided into subgroups. The Vishwakarma learned their profession by being apprenticed to a master. As soon as they had become masters themselves they spread throughout India to help with the construction of all sorts of buildings, temples and sometimes also whole villages, as well as sculptures and instruments (Ramaswamy 2008). There were a number of different qualifications: Stapathi (someone who has studied the Shilpa Shastras and is capable of directing works), Sutragrahi (someone who knows the Shilpis and Shastras very well and is capable of taking the measurements, i.e., finding the cardinal directions and the major measurements), the Vardhaki (someone who knows planning treatises very well and is familiar with measurements, design and construction), and finally, the most skilled of all, the Thakshaka (someone who is a master of his art, but is also sociable, faithful and kind) (Pillai 2004). Given that the Vastu Shastra and Shipla Shastra covered all major areas of science, the training of Indian town planners can be seen as a form of humanistic education. It was taught until the nineteenth century (Pillai 2004), when it was replaced by the newly-introduced British education system, which sought to train Indians in European thinking.

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3.6 Conclusions Indian planning has a very long tradition, which can be observed from the fact that the first planning treatises were written in Sanskrit, like the Mansara or the Mayamatam, both having survived over the millennia. But the texts not only include how to organise settlements or design houses and temples, they are also concerned with music, dance, and the representation of deities. The parts of the planning texts that deal with town planning are mainly theoretical concepts of how settlements are ideally designed. The outlined concepts for street layout following the cardinal directions, etc. were never implemented, nor were they ever meant to be strictly implemented. The same applies to the town mandalas. Mandalas in general are diagrams that follow strict geometric rules. Mandalas are mental maps that help the believers to orientate themselves in the different realms. The transformation of the mandala into space no longer strictly follows geometry. In this respect it is important to note the difference to the European concept of geometric planning: European theoreticians on architecture have planned cities on the basis of geometric shapes, like stars, circles, or squares. But the difference between Indian town planning philosophy and the European counterpart is that in India the geometric diagram is rather a spiritual map. Therefore, Indian town diagrams are not meant to be implemented strictly geometrically.

References Acharya PK (1946) Encyclopedia of Hindu architecture. Oxford University Press, London et al Acharya PK (2004) Indian architecture according to Manasara-Silpasastra. Low Price Publications, Delhi Anath S (1998) The Penguin Guide to Vaastu: the classical Indian science of architecture and design. Penguin Books, New Delhi Bharne V, Krusche K (2012) Rediscovering the Hindu Temple: the sacred architecture and urbanism in India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne Broadbent G (1996) Emerging concepts in urban space design. E&FN Spon, Glasgow Bühnemann G (2003) Mandala, Yantra and Cakra: Some observations. In: Bühnemann G, Brunner H, Meister M W et al (ed) Mandalas and Yantras in the Hindu traditions. Brill, Leiden, Boston, pp 30–74 Chandran V (2020) Mahabharata. The eternal epic in short stories. Notion Press, Chennai Chakrabarti V (2013) Indian Architectural Theory and Practice. Contemporary Uses of Vastu Vidya. Routledge, London Das AK (2007) Urban planning in India. Rawat Publications, Jaipur, New Delhi Dagens B (2007) Mayamatam. Treatise of housing, architecture and iconography. Sanskrit Text (ed and trans: B. Dagens). Vol I and Vol II. Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi Dellios R (2003) Mandala: from sacred origins to sovereign affairs in traditional Southeast Asia. (Centre for East-West Cultural and Economic Studies; No. 10). Bond University. Available https://research.bond.edu.au/en/publications/mandala-from-sacred-origins-to-sovereign-aff airs-in-traditional-s. Accessed on 13 Jun 2018 Dimmitt C (2015) Classical Hindu mythology: A reader in the Sanskrit Puranas. Temple University Press, Philadelphia

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Dutt BB (1977) Town planning in ancient India. New Asian Publishers, New Delhi Fischer K, Jansen M, Pieper J (1987) Architektur des indischen Subkontinents. Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt Gray J (2006) Domestic Mandala. Architecture of Lifeworlds in Nepal. Ashgate Publishing Limited, Hampshire Gutschow N (1982) Stadtraum und Ritual der newarischen Städte im Kathmandu-Tal. W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart et al. Jonas C (2015) Die Stadt und ihre Geschichte. Utopien und Modelle und was aus ihnen wurde. Wasmuth, Tübingen, Berlin Lakshmanan C T (2012) Ancient system of town planning in India. https://www.slideshare.net/ctl achu/ancient-system-of-town-planning-in-india. Accessed on 20 Sept 2018 Menon R (2003) The Ramayana: a modern translation. Harper Collins Publ, New Delhi Meister M W (2003) Vastupurusamandalas: Planning in the image of Man. In: Bühnemann G, Brunner H, Meister M W et al (ed) Mandalas and Yantras in the Hindu Traditions. Brill, Leiden, Boston, pp 251–270 Pillai GK (1948) The way of the Silpis or Hindu approach to Art and Science. The Indian Press Ltd., Allahabad Pillai G K (2004) The Hindu architecture (Silpa-Sastra). Bharatiya Kala Prakashan, Delhi Pieper J (1974) Die anglo-indische station. RWTH Aachen Ph.D. Thesis, Aachen Ramaswamy V (2008) Traditional crafts, technology and soceity in pre-colonial Peninsular India. In: Datta R (ed) Rethinking a Millennium: Perspectives on Indian History from the Eighth to the Eighteenth Century. Aakar Books, Delhi, pp 275–299 Sachdev V (2001) Mandala by Design. In: Tillotson G (ed) Stones in the sand: the architecture of Rajasthan. Marg Publications, Mumbai, pp 28–41 Schlingloff D (1970) Die Altindische Stadt: eine vergleichende Untersuchung. Verl. d. Akad. d. Wissenschaften und der Lit., Mainz Shamasastry R (1961) Kautilya’s Arthashastra. Mysore Printing and Publishing House, Mysore Shastri J L (1984) Ancient Indian tradition and mythology. The Agni Purana. Part I. Moltilal Banarsidass, Delhi

Chapter 4

Episode 2: Of Ancient Times

Abstract As outlined in the historical part of this book (Chap. 2), the Indian civilisation is among the oldest in the world. The first cities evolved as ports alongside the Indus river in the area of today’s Beluchistan/Pakistan and northern India. These port towns were hubs of long distance trade with remote regions such as Mesopotamia or Egypt. These early cities of the Indus Valley civilisation were already equipped with sanitary systems, tanks, warehouses and dockyards with a sophisticated water sluice systems to enable ships to be loaded and unloaded independently of high and low tides. However, from 1800 BCE onwards cities were abandoned gradually, followed by the whole region and most of the inhabitants of the Indus Valley civilisation moved towards the hilly regions of today’s northern India and into the Gangetic Plain. Although the Indus Valley culture does no longer exist any more, it is evident that the ideas of town planning lived on in India and influenced India’s town planners ever since. Keywords Indus Valley civilisation · Ancient port towns · Ancient town planning · Kalibangan · Mohenjo-Daro · Lothal

4.1 Introduction The Indus civilisation, which is also called Harappan civilisation, came into existence around 7000 BCE and existed until post 1300 BCE and developed in the region of the Indus valley which lies in today’s Pakistan (Wheeler 1969) (see Fig. 2). Archaeologists divide this time into five phases, a pre-Harappan time dated between 7000 and 3300 BCE, the early Harappan phase that starts around 3300 BCE, followed by the “Mature Phase” until 1900 BCE, and a late phase until 1300 BCE. Finally, the post-Harappan phase lasted from 1300 to 300 BCE and overlaps with the Vedic period1 (Wheeler 1969) which indicates that the traditions of the Indus Valley civilisation continued in Hinduism.

1

The Vedic age is a period where the Vedic literature and culture was developed in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It lasted from 1500 to 500 BCE. It was an important phase for the evolution of the Indo-Aryan culture, i.e. Hinduism (Stein 2010).

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Not much is known from the pre-Harappan phase, because most probably people lived in villages with houses of perishable materials, such as straw and earth. However, it seems that the village layout and building schemes were incorporated into later Indus valley cities (Eltsov 2008). In the next phase, the Early Ravi Phase, named after the Ravi River, villages began to grow and adopt town-like structures. Building an acropolis was widely used, as well as a building residential units in a certain density: features that were used later used in all Harappan cities. Also a drainage system in the residential districts was used as well as enclosing towns with walls. All these elements were later on built in all Indus Civilisation cities and are today believed to be markers of this early urban culture. Trade began to be important, which linked people across the region. Raw materials such as lapis lazuli, used for the production of beads, were brought in from far-away places into the cities. Cotton was domesticated and the fabrics were soon a major driving force for trade, and thus villagers gradually moved into the urban centres and abandoned their villages (Wheeler 1969). One town was established during this phase is Kalibangan, which is described in detail below. The mature phase was marked by the strong expansion of cities. It is likely that this development was related to water management. Rain was plentiful available during the monsoon season, but there was a shortage of precipitation during the rest of the year. In addition, the Indus River was subject to regular heavy flooding. Water management was therefore a core concern for people, and this led to the development of tanks and other water storage facilities. Thus, people who lived along the riverbanks began to control the water and the floods (Eltsov 2008). Floodsupported farming might have generated an enormous surplus, and thus paved the way for the stratification of labour. Alternatively, there may have been an overall reduction in rainfall at this time, which may have provided another impetus for the population to reorganise into larger urban agglomerations. However, this theory would probably have to be refuted if we consider the luxurious water features in the cities, where nearly every household had a bath, indicating that water has been available throughout the year. This would suggest that the real driving force behind the development of the Indus Valley culture was trade, strengthening and reaching more distant regions over time (Wright 2010). Whatever the reason for the appearance of urban development, cities evolved. Consequently, new professions developed and a stratification of labour seemed to have emerged (Singh 1995). On the one hand, there were many different craftsmen working on beads and gold and silver jewellery, other artisan products for figurines and wood carvings, as well as specialised construction workers and still many farmers. Particularly the specialised construction workers were important for the development of the cities, because these early cities were already equipped with many amenities: most houses had private baths and latrines, which were connected to a sewer system in the streets. The cities had warehouses, wharves and docks. The most amazing elements, however, were the massive artificial platforms on which the cities themselves were constructed to avoid damages caused by the regular floods. The cities of Mohenjo-Daro and Lothal, both described below were built during this phase (Wheeler 1969).

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Around 1800 BCE, the cities began to decline. At some sites archaeologists found evidence of severe flood damage in the walls of the towns and dockyards. And, although earlier damage had been repaired, as time went on, it seems that people grew tired of having to continuously repair their houses and the public facilities and platforms (Singh 1995). Perhaps, too, the neglect could have been caused by a decline in trade. Less attention was paid to repairing and maintaining public areas and facilities, as well as the private houses (Singh 1995). In some cities, artisans moved into the former Acropolis areas, which had previously been used to accommodate public water tanks, the so called baths, and the residential quarters of the governor.2 The sophisticated water system that fuelled the private baths and the public drainage system fell into disrepair. By 1700 BCE, most cities were depopulated. Recently excavated skeletons reveal that diseases such as leprosy and tuberculosis were rampant in the region (Singh 2008). It is also conceivable that the invasion of the Aryan tribes from Central Asia were responsible for the fall of this culture, because smashed skulls were found, evidence of battles—and since the Vedas mention such battles, it would seem to prove this theory (Wheeler 1969). Yet another reason which may have contributed to the collapse of the Harappan culture may have been the decline of trade with Egypt and Mesopotamia (Ratnagar 2006; Wright 2010). However, the most likely reason for the decline of the Indus Valley Civilisation was climate change which caused extremely severe droughts which in turn changed the course of the river rendering elaborate port towns obsolete. Whatever the reason for abandoning the cities, the inhabitants did leave, some moving to the hilly regions of Baluchistan, but most going east, towards the Gangetic Plain. This is evident because the number of villages and small towns increased there from there 218 to 853 around 1900 BCE (Ratnagar 2006). Around 1200 BCE, the first Aryan cities were established, only a few centuries after the last cities of the Indus Valley Civilisation had vanished. These first Aryan cities were strongly influenced by the models of Harappan times: the foundation of tanks and wells, the enclosing town walls, the concept of courtyard houses, to just name a few elements, were not only core elements of early Aryan cities, but influenced town planning on the whole Indian subcontinent until today, Harappan town planning ideas blended with local concepts and adapted to changing needs—repeatedly over the millennia.

4.2 Religious and Cultural Traces Although it cannot be suggested that the religious practices and beliefs of the people were in line with Hinduism, it does seem that some of the major Hindu believes derive from the Indus Valley civilisation. This is suggested by archaeological finds which include figurines, terracotta pieces and ornaments on seals, that show remarkable similarities to Hindu gods (Chakrabarti 2004). 2

However, it is not certain whether there really was a governor in this society. For more information on this issue: Green 2020.

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One example is a mother goddess, that is portrayed on many terracotta figurines. The goddess is shown wearing garlands, headgear and girdles, but nude. Since this image was found almost everywhere, she must have been a very popular goddess, and today it is believed that she was the main deity in Harappan times (Wheeler 1969). Since many of the beliefs lived on in Aryan times (albeit substantially altered over the millennia) and even had an impact on the Rg-Veda it is possible that this deity was the ancestor goddess of Kali, the main goddess of Hinduism (see Chap. 2.5). Other interesting finds included the portraits and figurines of a Shiva-like deity. On one seal a god is portrayed as a three-faced deity in meditation flanked by a tiger, an elephant, a rhino and a buffalo. It is now believed that this god was a prototype of Lord Shiva who in Hinduism is described as “the Lord of the Beasts and Prince of the Yogis” (Wheeler 1969) (See Chap. 2.5). Small conical objects made of stone or terracotta were found as well which suggests that a phallus-rite was common, and these stones are astonishingly similar to the Shiva Lingas of today.3 Other objects have been interpreted as Yoni-stones, the bowl-like symbol of Parvati, the female consort of Shiva. Bulls, serpents and trees were also worshipped. All these elements are important elements of Hinduism: the world’s serpent, Shesha, who is the resting place for Lord Vishnu, symbol of fertility and is carried around by Lord Shiva (Singh 1995). There were fire altars and circular fire pits unearthed, that were sunk into the ground (Wheeler 1969), again a parallel to Shiva’s iconography because the Shvia linga is always placed below ground level. From all these findings taken together it can be argued that Harappan beliefs influenced Hinduism—one could even argue that Harappan beliefs shaped the predecessor religion, which later fused with Aryan beliefs. Therefore, Mortimer Wheeler, one of the main scholars of Harappan and early Indian culture says: “Here, if anywhere may be recognized on of the pre-Aryan elements which were to survive the Aryan invasion and to play a dominant role in the so-called Aryan culture of the post-Vedic period. Another such element was phallus-worship, a non-Aryan tradition which appears to have obtained among the Harappans, if certain polished stones, mostly small but up to 2 ft or more height, have been correctly identified with the linga and other pierced stones with yoni. The likelihood that both Siva and linga worship have been inherited by the Hindus from the Harappans is perhaps reinforced by the prevalence of the bull…” (Wheeler 1969, p. 89).

4.3 Economic and Ecological Background But not only Harappan religion was influencing the Indian cultural heritage, town planning ideas too, played essential roles for developing Indian cities. However, to understand the development of Harappan towns it is important to have a closer look 3

Interestingly, in Hinduism Lord Shiva is described as the natural force who came from the Himalayan mountains and has no noble ancestors. This would fuel the theory that the Harappan god was later transferred into the Hindu pantheon.

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at the economic conditions at that time: these not only fuelled the development of cities, but were crucial to the layout of Harappan cities. At first the question arises why towns evolved in the Indus valley at that early time in human history. In fact, not much is known about the reasons for the denser population that led to the foundation of towns. However, a close look at parallels in ancient Egypt can provide some insights. In Egypt the Nile regularly burst its banks and flooded but this was followed by times of little to no precipitation. This led to a particular kind of agricultural approach with many people busy with farming during the rainy season (and after that a short period of harvesting) but also of long periods where no farming activities were necessary (Strauß-Seeber 2007). These circumstances paved the way for freed up labour to be available for activities other than farming. In Egypt these activities included building pyramids, temples, graves, sculpting statues, making figurines, writing scripts, or laying out gardens (StraußSeeber 2007). The development of Harappan culture must have followed a similar path. The management of water must have led to a better distribution of food for all, and this all year round. Water management, however, can only be done in larger groups; small villages do not have the resources to dig large water basins, for example, and maintain them. But a second factor that led to the development of towns was trade. One of the most important exported products was cotton. In one of the very early cities, Mehrgarh, cotton seeds dating back to the 6th millennium BCE were found (Chakrabarti 2004). This is the oldest known evidence of cottonseeds in the world so far and it can be assumed that cotton was native to the region (Chakrabarti 2004). People started using the cotton and most probably started weaving fabrics, although there is no evidence of them doing so from archaeological findings (Chakrabarti 2004). Soon news about the new fabric spread to far away areas, and the demand for cotton fabric even increased. A small village cannot produce the supply for this size market; it can only be satisfied by towns with a bigger population, administration and traders. Large plantations were established to deliver the high quantities of cotton, and a social and agricultural revolution took place, transforming the peasant society into a well-organised urban population. A division of labour was introduced for the cotton production, and large groups of people had to work together. Within a few centuries, the Harappan culture was a mighty cotton and trading empire (Shaikh and Ashfaque 1981). Not only cotton was grown on the fields of the Indus valley, also barley, wheat, millet and rice were cultivated. These products were consumed by their own population, but a considerable proportion were also traded (Chakrabarti 2004). Not just agrarian products were traded, but also beads made of semi-precious stones, conch bangles, or gold and silver jewellery were highly prized goods in far-off trading centres. Excavations in Mesopotamia, Iran or Turkmenistan revealed objects that were made in the Indus valley region. From these findings we can suggest that there was extensive trade between these regions (Jarrige 2006). Trade was important and was organised internally, meaning inside the community but also externally with the outside world (Chakrabarti 2004). The inland transport network comprised pack animals or carts drawn by bullocks. Some of the carts were light-wheeled, others solid-wheeled, depending on the landscape conditions:

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for transport on the plains, solid-wheeled carts could carry heavier loads, whereas in the hills, the light-wheeled carts were more flexible and easier to manage (Rao 1979). However, these methods of transport are slow and can only transport small amounts of cargo. Thus, wherever navigable rivers were nearby ships or boats were used. These boats were made of reeds, and when comparing images of boats in Harappan seals and Egyptian wall paintings the two types of boats look nearly identical. The reed boats were flat-bottomed and some had cabins, and a mast and sails could be attached to the boat. In addition, they had benches for oarsmen. These boats could be used not only to sail on navigable rivers, but also to sail along the coast of the Arabian Sea (Rao 1979). A newly emerging phenomenon of these times was the introduction of a stratification of labour. The professions of full time authorities, as well as full time artisans and craftsmen, merchants and sailors, builders and planners were developed further. Specialised Occupations were organised into social groups which some scholars consider to be a predecessor of the Hindu Varna system (Chanchreek and Vajpayee 2014). The occupational system was flexible: individuals could change professions and develop new technologies. People could also invent new systems by exploiting new resources. An individual started off in a basic profession, and after completion of this stage they would go further into the next group (Green 2020). Very much like the Hindu Varna system in early times the stratification of people according to their profession was egalitarian: each group had its specific duty, but without a hierarchical system. The Hindu idea of the classification of the different castes was that one person would begin a life as a beggar, and as soon as they had completed the tasks of that caste-life, one would move on to the next caste. Only later was this Varna transformed by introducing the idea of birth and rebirth; what it was possible to achieve in one lifetime then became only possible when one was reborn (Chanchreek and Vajpayee 2014), i.e. one could only ascend to the next higher caste in the next life. With the new business of trade a new profession developed for managing trade that of the trader or merchant: they make deals with faraway customers, guarantee that products leave the town and arrived at the customer’s place (e.g. a retailer in a foreign city) and finally they have to deal with the incoming products of the barter transactions. A series of measures were taken, such as the invention of weights that were standardised throughout the Indus valley, a scripture to record all the salient details was invented, as well as terracotta seals where several seals would be used to seal up a load to ensure that no goods were removed during transport.

4.4 Some Examples of Cities Harappan cities were all built according to the same urban design ideas. In the following sections the theoretical considerations shall be highlighted by describing a few Harappan cities. The first is Kalibangan, the oldest of the so far excavated sites, followed by the description of Lothal with its sophisticated harbour, and finally

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Mohenjo-Daro that had already a population of more than 35,000 people in such ancient times.

4.4.1 Kalibangan Kalibangan lies 310 km Northwest of Delhi in what is now the state of Rajasthan on the banks of the Ghaggar River. Today Kalibangan is only an archaeological site and there are only small villages in the area but between 3000 and 2700 BCE the city was one of the first of the Indus Civilisation, a well-documented example of the Early Ravi Phase (Lal 1998). The city continued to exist well into the 2nd millennium BCE, and there is no evidence of its decline, as can be seen in other Indus Valley cities. Most probably the settlement was gradually abandoned when the river became dried out (Chakrabarti 2004). The city was covered by the sand dunes for millennia until the Rajasthan Canal Project was launched in the 1960s, and revealed the ruins of the city (Lal 1997). Although Kalibangan has so far been the least explored and excavated and is also much smaller than other cities, the city is noteworthy for its high level of planning and excellent craftsmanship (Chakrabarti 2004) (Fig. 4.1). Kalibangan consists of four parts, the so called acropolis, the upper city, the lower city and an area that most probably was the cremation ground. The upper city and the acropolis are surrounded by a wall but separated by an internal wall. The lower city is an area on its own, as much as the cremation ground with no connection to

Fig. 4.1 Scheme of Kalibangan. Source Author compilation, not scaled

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the other parts and located at some distance from each other. Each of the four parts is surrounded by a thick city wall made of sun-dried mud bricks (Chakrabarti 2004). The largest autonomous area of Kalibangan is the lower city, a rectangular space of 235 by 360 m. The city is secured by a three to nine m thick mud wall with fortification towers at all four corners. Only two gateways connect the city to the outside: one lies in the northern wall, one in the east, facing the acropolis (Nayanjot 2005). The main streets are oriented north–south, east–west and form a grid system dividing blocks. Some of the main streets are paved with terracotta stones. The blocks are raised platforms on top of which the residential houses were placed. Narrow lanes connect the houses in the centre of the blocks. The residential houses have a central courtyard and six to seven attached rooms which are accessible either via the courtyard or via corridors. The floors of some of the rooms are paved with decorated tiles. The lower city is thought to have been the residential area for commoners, farmers and artisans (Chakrabarti 2004). West of the lower city lies the second part of Kalibangan, the acropolis and upper city. It too, is nearly rectangular but is smaller than the lower city and measures only 240 by 120 m (Nayanjot 2005). Thispart is surrounded by a thick wall made of earthen bricks and strong bastions and salients secured the walls. The acropolis is separated from the upper city again by a thick wall of three to seven metres of sun-dried earthen bricks that was plastered on both sides (Lal 1997). Two gateways lead to the upper city, one in the north with a staircase made of earthen bricks and leading into the residential part of the upper city, the other one in the eastern wall which was facing the outer wall of the lower city. The acropolis could be accessed by a gateway in the centre of the southern wall. The dividing wall between the two parts of the city however, has no gateways or entrances (Chakrabarti 2004). In the acropolis ceremonial platforms and fire altars were found and therefore it is believed that this part was used solely for ceremonial purposes. Some of altars and platforms are arranged in a row, embedded in an area that was paved with fired bricks (Nayanjot 2005). From the floor level flights of steps lead up to the platforms. However, it is not clear what purpose these platforms had. In the upper city streets and houses were found and scholars believe that this part was the residential area for priests or high officials. Streets there run north–south and east–west and this grid layout is slightly twisted towards the city wall (Chakrabarti 2004). East of the lower city lies another part which most probably was used as another ceremonial ground equipped with several fire altars. This area is located much further away and perhaps lay in the middle of the fields. The function of this part is not really known today (Lal 1997). Finally, west of the acropolis lies a burial ground. Interestingly, a large variety of burial practices was found including many different sizes of graves, some lined with earth bricks, others which are simply holes in the ground and urns provide evidence of cremations. Some of the bodies were buried with their head facing north, others were placed in other directions. In some graves grave goods had been put near the head of the corpse yet other graves contained nothing but the body (Chakrabarti 2004). Kalibangan was one of the earliest cities in the Indus valley and even today little is known about the people, their beliefs and their social order. However, a few features

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of Kalibangan, like the grid layout of the city, the paved streets or the town walls are also central elements of later Harappan cities, like Lothal being described below.

4.4.2 Lothal Lothal, which was founded around 3700 BCE, is one of the best excavated and researched examples of Harappan cities (Fig. 4.2). It was discovered in 1954 and since then excavation work has continued. From the findings we have a clearer picture of life in this ancient society and therefore the city was inscribed on the World Heritage Tentative List in 2014 (UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014). Lothal lies on the coastal plains of the Ahmedabad district, between the peninsula of Saurashtra and the Kutch desert at the head of the Gulf of Cambay. Today there are two salt-water channels in the proximity of the prehistoric city, the Little Ran of Kutch in the north and the Ran of Cambay in the south. The Nal Lake marks the centre of the area. Sheet flooding with seawater overflowing the riverbeds is common today and we can assume that it was also frequent at the times of the Harappa civilisation (Wheeler 1969). Although the Ran of Kutch is a salt desert in winter and only becomes slightly green during the monsoon season it must be assumed that in prehistoric times the area was forested and fertile because much of the farming products were sold to far away regions. Major crops in ancient times were wheat, rice and cotton, but also teak which grew in the nearby hills and was a highly-prized trading product. Furthermore, there was also a wide range of handicraft products, such as beads or metalworks that were sent to far away regions such as Africa and Mesopotamia (Rao 1979).

Fig. 4.2 Scheme of Lothal. Source Author compilation, not scaled

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Little is known about the exact structure of Lothal’s society. It seems that there was a stratification of the society in terms of profession, but it was an egalitarian division (Green 2020). The chieftain of Lothal was most probably responsible for trade and production, and according to the seals that were deciphered, he was seen as a friend, protector and saviour of his subjects. The majority of Lothal’s residents were occupied with raising livestock, agriculture, fishing, hunting and gathering. However, a massive surplus made oversea trade possible. Cotton (although not processed), beads, fine works of bronze, gold and silver jewellery and other luxury goods from Lothal were highly sought-after in far-away regions (Rao 1979). Scholars believe that the people here worshipped different gods such as a fire god which is important in many Asian countries, just like in China or Tibet (Darragon 2015) to this day. Fire has a special ritual significance for the Zoroastrian community (in India called Parsees), because fire is seen as an agent for purity (Tandberg 2019). There were also many other deities, such as snake deities, a mother goddess, or a Shiva-like god. However, little is known about the religious rituals of the time, although many of the rites may have been incorporated into the Aryan Vedic traditions (Rao 1979). Lothal is located next to the ancient course of the Sabarmati River, which enclosed the city to the east. From the main course of the river a channel, the Nullah lay north of the city. From there an artificial dock was built, which enclosed the city in the east. A small creek was built alongside the southern end of the city. The whole city was enclosed by walls, although these had no defensive function; rather, they had more the of separating the city from the surrounding countryside.4 This theory is supported by the fact that no weapons were found in the city, similar to all other Harappan sites. Only small arrows and similar tools were found with which only small animals and birds could be hunted; the blades would break if they had been shot against a stone or other hard material. This would also suggest that no military apparatus was known in Harappan societies (Rao 1979). The city is divided into two parts: the acropolis and the lower city. In this case both parts are enclosed by the same wall and appear as one entity. The acropolis is located to the east, whilst the lower city occupies the north-east of the city. In front of the acropolis the wharf is located, adjacent to the docks in the east. Some manufactories were found north of the acropolis and in a little distance, north west of Lothal, a cemetery in close proximity to the riverbanks of the Sabarmati River was excavated (Rao 1979). 4

To enclose a particular parcel of land by low walls that have no defensive character, is widely used in Asia, but was also common in Ancient Europe. An example of this is the saga of Romulus and Remus, the twins that founded Rome: When Romulus wanted to establish the new city, the first task was to build a wall around an area that later should be inhabited. This was in line with Etruscan believes, where no-ones land was transformed into a residential area by ploughing it. In the Etruscan ritual, a sacred plough was drawn around the boundaries of the settlement to be, and then a wall was built to distinguish between inside (i.e. people’s realm) and the outside world. This wall needed not to be high and it was even possible to jump over it, as Remus did. But by jumping over this wall he ignored the ritual wall and thus Romulus had to kill his sibling: if he had not done so, his city would have been cursed and would never have been able to be a flourishing centre of an empire (Guidoni 1978).

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Two main streets, one in north–south direction, the other going east–west lead from the town wall and city gates into the centre. The street running north–south between the entrance gate and the intersection with the east–west street is flanked by a widened area that is believed to have been the bazaar. East of the intersection, between the two main streets lies the acropolis. The streets of the acropolis were paved with earth bricks, which were painted with a substance to prevent water damage during the monsoon season. In front of the acropolis, a pool was unearthed that separated the acropolis from the lower city of the commoners (Rao 1979). The whole area of the acropolis, measuring 130 by 60 m, was set on an even higher platform than the blocks of the lower city, and ensured a good overview of the entire city. The acropolis was surrounded by a two metre-high wall, which protected it from the frequent flood. Two gateways led from the acropolis into the area below, one to the main market street, the bazaar street and one to the docks. It is believed that the acropolis was the area for the chieftain and his officials and maybe also for the priestly caste (Rao 1979). The lower city lies north–east of the acropolis, and was occupied by the commoners. Akin to other Harappan cities, it is evident that the society was egalitarian. All houses had a bath and some even more than one. The baths were paved with polished bricks that were plastered with lime. The waste water of the baths ran into small sumps from where it went to larger collectors before being channelled out of the city. Inspection chambers guaranteed the proper flow of water between the private baths and the public drains. Archaeological finds indicate that slave labour was not involved: all the work is assumed to have been accomplished by the city’s commoners (Rao 1979). The lower city is divided into several rectangular blocks ranging between 50 × 40 metres in width and 115 × 25 metres in length. The blocks are divided by long straight streets running east–west and north–south. Each block is raised by one to three metres, and the houses were built on these artificial platforms, again arranged in a grid system. Along the main streets the houses flanked the street with the houses at the centre of each section being connected by lanes three metres wide. The main streets below the level of the blocks were 12 metres wide and allowed an ample flow of traffic. Drains were built-in on the surface of these streets and connected all residential blocks (Rao 1979). North of the acropolis and west of the lower town some manufacturies were unearthed which were used for bead production. These manufactures are within residential areas with no division being made between manufactures and dwellings. In some of the bead-making manufactories semi-precious stones were used, in others firing vats and kilns were found most probably for baking beads (Rao 1979). Raw materials were brought in from far and wide: onyx was imported from the Narmada valley, teak from Gujarat, gold and silver from Mysore and copper from Oman, to just name but a few. The artisanal products were delivered to other regions such as Ur and other cities in Mesopotamia, to Susa in Iran or taken to the west coast of the Indian subcontinent. A system of standardised weights was introduced that was used in the whole region for selling and buying and a scripture was developed

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to facilitate trade. Packs were fastened and fixed with seals to ensure that the same amount of goods would be unloaded at destination as had been left Lothal. Most of the merchants lived in the lower city, but some had their residences close to the wharf and warehouses. The proximity to the warehouses was probably important for them to be able to have a good overview of the hustle and bustle at the wharf. Their houses were bigger, had more than one bath, had two or three living rooms and spacious kitchens. In some merchants’ dwellings, items such as gold pendants from Sumeria were found, or semi-precious stones from other far-away places (Rao 1979). The dock was located on the eastern margins of the city and are even today the most striking element of the city, due in part to the fact that it seems to be the oldest dock ever built. The dock was built around 2350 BCE and was in regular use until 2000 BCE, when a massive flood destroyed parts of the wall. The breaches were mended and soon after and the dock was in use again. However, in 1900 BCE a second massive flood destroyed the dock again and this time the dock was not repaired and thereafter not used any more (Rao 1979). The dock has a rectangular shape with the western wall measuring 220 metres, the eastern wall 215 metres, the southern wall is 36 metres and the northern wall 37 metres long. All walls leading into the basin are two metres wide and 3.3 metres deep with no steps or ramps leading to the water surface. It is the largest fired brick construction of the Harappa civilisation. In front of the wharf an embankment was built a rectangular platform 244 metres long and 21 metres wide. When ships arrived in the city they entered via a sluice in the eastern wall from where they anchored in front of the wharf. From the wharf the cargo could be hauled onto the wharf platform and from there goods could be taken to be stored in the warehouse, which lay behind the wharf. At the mouth of the river was a sophisticated system of water sluices which allowed the same water level inside the dock at all times. Thus the floating ships were always at the same level and therefore no steps were needed to reach the dock. With the constant water level loading and unloading of the ships was easily done (Leshnik 1968). The cemetery is located at the north-western corner of the city and was connected with the lower city. So far, 16 graves have been excavated. Most of the dead were buried as a whole in Lothal and only a few grave goods were found. The dead were found to have been placed in certain directions, which was not the case in Kalibangan. In Lothal the grave pits were oriented north–south, with the heads of the corpses tilted slightly towards the east (Rao 1979). It seems that there were no clear rules on how to bury the dead. There were many disastrous floods that caused severe damages. One such flood occurred in 2350 BCE and it forced the people of Lothal to not only rebuild the city but also to come up with new ideas to protect it against flooding. Thus, a protective wall was built around the entire city as well as the dockyard. After some time it seems that people were tired of the continuous mending work of their city. In a first phase of the decline the houses were built to lower standards and the equipment was poorer than in the centuries before (Rao 1979). Finally, the residential quarters of the lower city were abandoned and artisans and commoners moved into the acropolis.

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At some point the acropolis too, was abandoned and Lothal’s inhabitants seemed to have moved to the rural areas and intermarried with other groups or left towards the Gangetic Plain (Rao 1979). To this day, Lothal is the seat of the sea-goddess Vanuvatimata, who is worshipped by the villagers of adjacent villages. There are many shrines dedicated to her along the coastline of Gujarat particularly near the ancient Harappan port towns such as Gogha or Surat. Worshipping this goddess is evidenced by some some stone images were found on the platform of the warehouse which overlooked the dock (Rao 1979). This is another indicator that, although Lothal was abandoned, the ideas of Harappan culture continued to influence Indian life later on. Some ideas of Harappan culture survived and were integrated in Indian culture and some of them are still are alive in modern India.

4.4.3 Mohenjo Daro Mohenjo Daro is one of the biggest cities of the Indus Valley civilisation that has been excavated so far. Excavations are going on since 1900 CE and new findings are constantly being unearthed. Today it is believed that more than 35.000 people lived in the city although most probably these figures will have to be corrected upwards (Jansen 1993a, b). Although further excavations will reveal more about life and the city’s inhabitants what we know so far already provides a clear picture of the ancient city (Crouch and Johnson 2001). The city was founded around 2500 BCE, and was built within the comparably short time of some three generations; it flourished between 2800 and 2500 BCE and in a second phase between 1800 and 1700 BCE (Wheeler 1969). The site lies 400 km north of Karachi in Pakistan and is located between the Indus and the Ghaggar Hakra River on a ridge in the middle of an Indus River Valley flood plain. As a result the city is situated on a natural hill and was unaffected by the frequent floods. Today the Ghaggar-Hakra River is dry, but the Indus River still flows east of the city (Crouch and Johnson 2001). Floods were (and still are) caused by the melting of snow in the Himalayas but for most of the year precipitation is very sparse which means that agriculture was only possible in the vicinity of the rivers (Wheeler 1969). Not much is known about the religious beliefs and cultural background of the Mohenjo Daro society but many artefacts were excavated, such as seated and standing figurines, tools made of copper and stone, scales, weights, and carved seals. Particularly the latter were necessary for trade as they were used in the whole Indus valley of this time (see above). Jewels made from jasper and gold were found, as well as children’s toys which indicates that such things were already known in Harappan times (Wheeler 1969). Furthermore a large variety of stone sculptures was excavated which were unique to the Mohenjo-Daro. Most probably these sculptures were images of deities but since there were so many different figurines found it is believed that many different gods were worshipped in Mohenjo-Daro. Another explanation

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could be that there was a number of religions practised in the city in parallel possibly due to the different groups living in Mohenjo-Daro and perhaps each family had its own deity (Jansen 1993a, b). Mohenjo-Daro is divided into two parts: to the east lies the acropolis, with an area of 22,900 m2 . West of the acropolis lies the lower town with an (excavated) area of 83,000 m2 . The entire city is surrounded by a city wall, and the acropolis itself is separated from the lower city by a rampart. Like all other Harappan towns Mohenjo-Daro was built systematically. The streets are laid out in a rectangular grid with two main streets running east–west and north–south. At the intersection of these two major thoroughfares the marketplace is located which marks the centre of the lower town (Jansen 1993a, b). The layout of the city is a near-perfect grid: all main streets with the public sewer system strictly adhere to this grid system (Wheeler 1969). The city had a main “Great Pool” or “Great Bath” lying between acropolis and lower town, with a smaller pool next to it. So far, no other examples of a smaller pool next to the Great Pool have been excavated in any other Harappan city, so it is not clear what purpose the second pool served (Jansen 1993a, b). The city had six very large wells with a capacity of 160 m3 and approximately 700 wells to provide sufficient water for all the inhabitants. The well shafts were built with special bricks that narrow conically towards the inside, according to the diameter of the well. Some of the wells were more than 20 metres deep. Since, as mentioned, all houses had water and thus baths. A sewer system was created in the public streets to deal with the waste water. The sewer system is one of the most stunning features of Harappan towns: a network of sewers made of bricks ran alongside the rows of houses at about 50 to 60 cm below street level and was paved with fired bricks. At intersections, u-shaped connectors made of clay mortar had been inserted. The tops of the intersections were covered with stone slabs or other materials. At main intersections, man-sized holes lined with bricks were cut out to allow maintenance work to be carried out (Jansen 1993a, b). The acropolis is built on top an artificial mound six to twelve metres high made of bricks and earth. A massive retaining wall encircles the whole area. In this area a larger building complex was excavated, probably a complex for municipal buildings as well as a larger house for a governor or priest king. Besides there is a structure that is today believed to have been a granary. Finally some smaller residential buildings were unearthed perhaps dwellings for senior officials (Crouch and Johnson 2001). Some scholars suggest that there was a stupa perched on top of the acropolis but it is likely that the stupa was placed there in later times, when Buddhists dwelled in the ruins of the city. The lower city is also set on top of an artificial platform to protect it from flooding. Success was variable with the platform increasing in height over the years. After each flood the platform was raised using the material of the flood-ravaged houses as the basis for the new houses. In the lower city the straight streets run north-east and south-west. Almost every house had latrines and baths, and these were connected with the public sewer system below the streets, which divided the city into blocks of approximately

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365 × 183 metres (Jansen 1993a, b). So far 90 houses have been unearthed with houses that were separated by a smaller lanes or a larger street. The blocks are high artificial terraces with flights of steps leading from the city below to the residential quarters on top of the terraces. All blocks are equipped with a drainage system alongside the streets. Archaeologists also found a massive structure made of reinforced earth bricks which is believed to be a small fort (Wheeler 1969). Next to this structure lies a staircase which looks very similar to the ghat-staircases of contemporary Indian ghats. The staircase descended at least to today’s water level. Between the lower city and the acropolis lies the great pool. Its centre is seven by twelve meters wide and two and a half metres deep. Flights of ten steps at the narrow sides lead to the bottom of the pool. The water for the pool was piped in from a big well in the east of the city. The pool is lined with two layers, the first and outer layer one being made of fine-cut bricks and the second layer with fired bricks to seal the basin. Gypsum mortar filled the gaps of maximum one millimetre. The outside of the pool has a three-cm-thick coating of bitumen, a construction which was not found in any other Harappan sites. However, in Mesopotamia this technique was well known (Jansen 1993a, b) and maybe merchants brought this technique to the Indus Valley. Most probably there were colonnades enclosing the pool, but this upper level no longer exists and it is difficult to imagine the surrounding buildings or make suggestions to their use. At least a five-metre-wide lane was excavated that encircles the whole pool and adjacent ruins of buildings illustrating how far into the city the building complex extended (Jansen 1993a, b). In the proximity of the Great Pool lies a structure that measures 27 by 50 metres which consists of a number of rectangular platforms made of fired bricks. Each platform is one point five metres high, and between these platforms there are runlets most probably for heating the floors or for ventilation. The function of the structure remains unclear. Some scholars believe that it was a granary but no grain was found. Maybe it was used for rites and celebrations, because the Great Pool and this structure were connected by flights of steps but they are no longer visible (Wheeler 1969). Although we do not know all that much about the religious beliefs of the inhabitants of Mohenjo-Daro it seems fairly certain that water played an important role in ritual practice. Considering the central position of the pool, its layout and structure similarities to later Hindu temples and temple towns are obvious. All main streets are north–south and east–west oriented. The main streets are nine metres wide and connecting lanes are between two and five metres wide. All subsidiary lanes are much narrower only allowing people to walk two abreast. The subsidiary lanes often have turns and end in front of houses. This plot is also similar to the other Harappan towns: the big streets that divide the building blocks run straight in a grid system and are made for through traffic whilst the small, narrow lanes are created to connect the houses inside the blocks. All streets and lanes of Mohenjo Daro were unpaved; only the sewers alongside the streets were covered with stone slabs. At the intersection of the two main streets a house with an l-shaped floor plan was excavated with galleries attached to the walls. This particular building which is also located at the intersection of two thoroughfares leading from the gateways into the centre is believed to have been a caravan serai a structure that allowed

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foreign merchants to stay overnight (Hasan and Ashfaque 1981)—most probably for longer periods of time. Residential houses were built alongside the streets that divided the city into several blocks. Each house was built on a plinth rising from street level and flights of steps led to the entrance leaving the streets far below the ground floor level of the residential buildings. The houses had two storeys and a central courtyard from which all rooms and chambers could be accessed. The floors were covered with alabaster lattice to keep out the hot air and intense heat from the sun from the rooms during the hot daytime in summers. Roofs were flat and had a timber sub-construction with layers of bricks and another with rammed earth and plaster (Wheeler 1969). Practically every house had a well situated in the courtyard which supplied water for the baths and latrines. Baths had grooves to allow the water to flow out of the bath and into house’s sewage system and then on out into the public sewer system. There were also public wells in the big squares most probably for the houses which did not have a private well (Hasan and Ashfaque 1981). One well- documented house illustrates the most probable typical layout of the houses. From a lane, a one point five metres wide doorway leads into the house, where an entry hall is located. There is a tiny porter’s lodge on the side facing the doorway. Via a short passage with a small room with a well one entered the main court, which measured ten by ten metres. Initially the courtyards were open but gradually it became the practice to partially cover them. Next to the well-room was a bathroom plastered with bricks and connected to the well by a small corbelled opening (Hasan and Ashfaque 1981). Under this area an earthenware pipe connected the bathroom with the public sewage system underneath. On the opposite side was a series of rooms and a staircase connecting the ground floor with the upper area. This layout was also found in other houses and it can be surmised that the larger houses in particular all had a private bath and toilet drainage as well as staircases leading to the upper levels. Some houses were even equipped with a oven for baking bread and their appearance and shape is similar to those that are still widely used in northern India and Asia today (Jansen 1993a, b). Another, smaller house had a ring of brickwork in the central courtyard measuring one point two metres in diameter. It is not clear what this ring was used for. Perhaps it was a protection ring for a sacred tree or an altar-like structure as human figurines made of alabaster were found in the adjacent rooms. The building itself has massive walls and was approachable via two symmetrically-arranged stairways which were accessed via a double entrance of impressive dimensions. Therefore it is believed that this building was a temple (although, as mentioned earlier not much is known about the religious practices of the inhabitants) (Wheeler 1969). In another area of the city a big block-like structure was found with 16 similar barracks-units. These were arranged back to back in two rows. Each unit had a back room, maybe for sleeping or storage and a bigger front room with a small bathing room equipped with a gully. The function of these barracks can be manifold; perhaps they were dwellings for the workers, shops or workshops of artisans (Wheeler 1969). All residential houses were accessed in the north of the house plots via the narrow lanes. The facades were plain without any ornaments. This is still common in many

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Fig. 4.3 A typical residential area as it can be encountered in Iran and Pakistan. Chahu Shargi, Keshm Island, Iran. Source Author

Islamic countries such as Iran, Iraq, Morocco: To the outside the houses are kept simple and small gates are the only alternation in the otherwise bare outer walls (Bianca 1975) (Fig. 4.3). Although they had no decoration on their façades the houses vary considerably in size. Some houses have smaller chambers, others larger ones; some have larger courtyards than others. Houses of different sizes were found next to each other indicating that people of different social status lived in the same area. There are also houses with bigger courtyards that seem to have other purposes rather than residential. Maybe some of them were used as manufactures for pottery or as carpenters’ workshops or even as workshops for processing cotton and dyer’s workshops (Hasan and Ashfaque 1981). The walls of the larger houses were some 150 cm thick made of bricks, all of the same size: 28 × 13.4 × 6.5 cm. This was important not only because it is a size that can be handled easily—it might also have speeded up the building process. Today it is believed that only with this technique it was possible to built an entire city in only one century (Hasan and Ashfaque 1981). Most bricks were fired indicating that there must have been a huge amount of firewood available (Wheeler 1969). It seems that the rising water table of the river was already a problem in MohenjoDaro’s heyday. An earthen brick embankment of thirteen metres in width was soon built at the acropolis to cope with the flooding. However, the city was gradually abandoned. Some craftsmen continued with their work as they had done before, but much of the city seemed already abandoned. When the primary function of the acropolis (most probably it had ritual functions) was given up craftsmen moved into the area and built their small-scale dwellings here. Finally the acropolis itself was abandoned and the city was left in ruins. Some 2000 years later Buddhist monks settled on the remains of the acropolis where they founded a monastery and built a stupa which is dated to the Kushana period (Second century CE). However the Buddhist period did not last long either and the site was completely abandoned and forgotten until the excavations started in 1922 (Jansen 1993a, b).

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4.5 Harappan Town Planning: A Summary Cities were a newly invented type of settlement that seemed to base on predecessor villages in the area. Not much is known about the types of settlements in the region that existed before the development of the cities. But since the cities were built within a very short period of time (Mohenjo-Daro, for examples was built within one century) there must have already been villages and settlements in the region that were used as a basis for urban development. And since hardly any alterations were made to the layout of the towns it is assumed that the master builders had prior experience of building to this layout. There must have been a shared technological, social and ideological knowledge available at the time when the first cities were built (Eltsov 2008). As of today, it can be assumed that the development of denser populated cities was driven by two necessities, firstly the regulation of water, be it the monsoon or the floods of the rivers, and secondly trade that was the driving force of economy which resulted in the development of cities. The most striking elements of Harappan cities were the wharves, dockyards and warehouses at the riverfront which were important to ensure the smooth work of loading and unloading cargo, of sealing the containers, checking goods, etc. To counteract the regular flooding of the Indus River which caused severe damage high platforms of sun- dried mud- bricks and fired bricks were built. The docks were built alongside the inner harbours that had, in many cases, a sluice system that made loading and unloading of the ships easy regardless of the tides. These structures are still impressive today. Important for handling of goods was the establishment of large warehouses. There the goods were stored before the cargo was loaded onto ships or pack animals. The warehouses were built close to the wharves and harbour where ships lay at anchor, often for a longer period of time. Until the 20th century CE sailing overseas was dependent on the monsoon winds: the spring monsoon brought ships for example from the Arabian shores to the Indian coast, whilst the autumn and winter monsoon, blowing in the opposite direction, allowed the ships to sail back across the Arabian Sea (Subramanian 2008). Thus, sailors stayed in a city for a few months, either on the Indian side or on the Arabian side of the sea (Ray 2008). And there is evidence that in Harappan time, sailors and foreign traders were fully integrated and part of the society of the Harappan cities. However, it’s not clear whether any structures were built specifically for foreigners like the later caravan serais. At least in one or two Harappan cities houses were excavated adjacent to the gateways of the cities that were identified as hotel-like structures for example in Mohenj-Daro. Trade was most probably not always peaceful and the hustle and bustle in the harbour area might have become aggressive sometimes. It seems that this was the reason for merchants to build their houses close to the wharves and the harbour. Besides the acropolis of the city which was normally perched on an even higher platform than the rest of the city provided a good overview of the whole area and allowing the governor to interfere when necessary. Although there is no evidence that a military apparatus was deployed on the acropolis it is very likely that there

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was some kind of police or military apparatus stationed somewhere in or around the city which could be summoned when needed (Elstov 2008). Behind the dockyard lies the acropolis. This part lies on an artificial platform and has its own walls, public altars, pools and other public facilities. Archaeologists are not certain if a priest caste had their residences there too, or if the buildings were used only for administrative purposes (Elstov 2008). The acropolis however, appears like a city in its own right next to the main city, and in some of the sites there was not even a direct access between the residential city and the acropolis like in Kalibangan. The residential quarters lay in the lower city which had its own town wall. Generally speaking the lower city was subdivided into several plots for the residential quarters, each of them lying on a raised artificial platform. From each of the platforms a flight of steps led down to the main throughout fares that connected the quarters with the city above. The city above was characterised by a strict system of wide streets laid out in a grid system. An extraordinary feature of the city is the far-reaching network of wells, sewers, soaking jars and the widespread occurrence of private baths, latrines and public pools or public tanks. Establishing and maintenance of these amenities must have been regulated via orders and a town planning culture. Evidence from all the cities that have been excavated so far shows that they were planned in a systematic and centralised way (Shaikh and Ashfaque 1981). As described above, in Harappan times a stratification of labour was common. Artisans, craftsmen or merchants lived in the city adjacent to each other. Interestingly, none of the groups had a spatial expression of their particular identity only the merchants lived closer to the warehouses than the other groups. But Harappan cities were deeply rooted in agrarian life and agrarian production and therefore farmers also lived in the cities. The situation could be described as one where people dwelled in dense clusters of houses but lived mainly from agrarian production. This is evident from the excavated fields close to the cities. From the point of view of agrarian production this is not the best settlement pattern, since there is always a distance between workplace (field) and residence. The farmers preferred to live in the city and accepted the longer distances to the fields. One possible reason could be that the irrigation system of the fields was complex and larger groups had to work together on it and this work force was not available in smaller villages; a very similar system of water sluices is still in use in many parts of Iran (Bornberg 2016) (Fig. 4.4), and from there we can assume how the ancient irrigation system of Harappan people once worked. Another reason for the inclusion of farmers in the cities might be the regular floods that were frequent in these prehistoric times. The river was an important source of water and therefore important for humans, animals, and agrarian production. However floods made it difficult to live in the area. The Harappan society thus invented the raised large platforms on top of which they built their cities. However the technique of building such platforms needs people who are familiar with statics and maintenance of them. Such a task cannot be accomplished in small villages. Thus a large number of farmers coexisted within one town with artisans, craftsmen, priests and merchants (Pamar 2019).

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Fig. 4.4 The ancient water channel system is used until today. Bam, Kreman, Iran. Source Author

An egalitarian social system underpinned the city layout of the Harappan civilization. The individual identities of the different occupations had no spatial expression (Green 2020). This does not mean that all people were considered to be the same. The agrarian population, the merchants, deep-sea sailors, herders, and craftsmen and most probably the ruling priestly class all had their own self-understanding and identity. However, there are no traces of any sort of material expression of one of these groups. The only spatial expression in the towns were the fortifications around the Acropolis and the lower town. Both were narrow and had not defensive character, and it seems that the walls enclosed the territory of an authority, i.e. the acropolis, or the community, the lower town.

4.6 Conclusions The Harappan city was a new identity that derived from the factors described above. It was the symbol and expression of a new development in town planning, stratification of labour and long-distance trade. This was symbolised by the city’s platforms, perimeter and dividing (but not defensive) walls; and by narrow gates, water drainage and water channels, and the new architectural features such as warehouses, wharves and docks as well as the construction of an acropolis and the large platforms on top of which the residential quarters were built. A new mesocosm had been created, one that demonstrated the internal cooperation between a larger group of inhabitants (and most probably also of an authority, although this led to little change in the lifestyle of most residents). These main features particularly the water management and the development of water tanks, the courtyard house, the layout of straight streets and the circumferencing city walls influenced the further development of Indian cities.

References

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References Bianca S (1975) Architektur und Lebensform im islamischen Stadtwesen. Baugestalt und Lebensordnung in der islamischen Kultur, dargestellt unter besonderer Verarbeitung marokkanischer Quellen und Beispiele. Artemis Verlag, Zürich Bornberg R (2016) Water and its profane and spiritual meaning. In: Rieger-Jandl A, Doubrawa I (eds) Traditional architecture on Qeshm Island/Persian Gulf, Iran, with a field study in the villages of Chahu Gharbi and Chahu Sharghi. IVA-ICRA, Vienna, pp 67–77 Chakrabarti D K (2004) Internal and external trade f the Indus Civilzation. In: Chakrabarti D K (ed) Indus Civilisation Sites in India: new discoveries, Marg Publications, Mumbai, pp 29–33 Chanchreek KL, Vajpayee S (2014) Society and caste in Ancient India. Shree Publishers and Distributors, New Delhi Crouch D, Johnson J G (2001) Traditions in architecture. Africa, Asia and Oceania. Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford Darragon F (2015) Ancient fire god and its lingering presence in Southeast Asia. jccs-a 7/2015, pp 36–49 Eltsov A P (2008) From Harappa to Hastinapura. A study of the earliest South Asian city and civilization. Brill, Boston, Leiden Green A (2020) Killing the Priest-King: Addressing Egalitarianism in the Indus Civilization. J Archaeol Res 29:153–202 Guidoni E (1978) Die europäische Stadt. Eine baugeschichtliche Studie über ihre Entstehung im Mittelalter. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart Hasan SK, Ashfaque SM (1981) Moenjodaro: a 5000-year-old legacy. UNESCO, Paris Jansen MR (1993a) Mohenjo-daro: type site of the earliest urbanisation process in South Asia. In: Spodek H, Srinivasan D (eds) Urban form and meaning in South Asia: the shaping of cities from prehistoric to precolonial times. University Press New England, Hanover, London, National Gallery of Art, pp 35–52 Jansen M (1993b) Mohenjo-Daro: Stadt der Brunnen und Kanäle; Wasserluxus vor 4500 Jahren. Wirtschafts- und Verl.-Ges., Bonn Jarrige J-F (2006) Mehrgarh Neolithic. Pragdhara International Seminar on the First Farmers in Global Perspective. Lucknow, India 18–20 Jan 2006, 18, pp 136–154 Lal BB (1997) The earliest civilization of South Asia. Aryan Books International, New Delhi Lal BB (1998) India: 1947–1997; new light on the Indus civilization. Aryan Books International, New Delhi Leshnik L S (1968) The Harappan “port” at Lothal. Another view. SAI, Heidelberg Nayanjot L (2005) Finding forgotten cities: How the Indus civilization was discovered. Permanent Black, New Delhi Pamar N (2019) Harappan civilization. Beyond the Saraswati-Drishadvati Valley. Research in India Press, New Delhi Ratnagar S (2006) Understanding Harappa civilization in the great Indus valley. Tulika Books, New Delhi Ray H P (2008) Coastal settlements and cCommunities: Defining the maritime landscape in Early South Asia. In: Subramanian L (ed) Ports. Towns. Cities. a historical tour of the Indian littoral. Marg Publications, Mumbai, pp 58–77 Rao S R (1979) Lothal- a Harappan Port Town (1955–62). Memories of the Archaeological Survey of India No. 78, Vol XXX , Director General Archaeological Survey of India, New Delhi Shaikh K S, Ashfaque S M (1981) Moenjdaro: a 5000 year-old legacy. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, Paris (a very similar one listed also) Singh B (1995) The Vedic Harappans. Aditya Prakashan, New Delhi Singh U (2008) A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: from the stone age to the 12th century. Pearson Longman, Delhi Stein B (2010) A history of India. Wiley-Blackwell, Chichester et al. Strauß-Seeber C (2007) Der Nil. Lebensader des Alten Ägypten. Hirmer, München

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Subramanian L (2008) Ports. Towns. Cities. A historical tour of the Indian littoral. Marg Publications, Mumbai Tandberg HN (2019) Relational religion: fires as confidants in Paris Zoroastrianism. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014) Archaeological remains of a Harappa Port-Town, Lothal. https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5918/ Accessed on 11 Nov 2020 Wheeler M (1969) The Cambridge History of India: The Indus civilisation. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Wright R P (2010) The Ancient Indus. Urbanism, economy, and society. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

Chapter 5

Episode 3: At Home

Abstract Homes are the smallest units of settlements, such as a village or an urban agglomeration. It is the space that connects the family or individual with the wider city. The size of the houses, the location of their entrances that connect the house with the adjacent neighbourhood, the outlook of the facades, to just name a few specifics, shape the entire cityscape by their plot formats as well as their heights and materiality. The most common type of house in India is the courtyard house, although this varies significantly from region to region. These differences result from landscape and climatic conditions, as well as from the available building materials. The chapter starts with an introduction to the ancient planning rules for houses, followed by a description of five traditional house types as well as contemporary forms, from the desert to the Himalayas to the southern tip of India. They were chosen to highlight how the same concept of courtyard house was adapted to the local needs. Keywords Indian homes · Hierarchy of spaces · Courtyard houses · Bhunga · Nalukettu · Haveli

5.1 Introduction Homes are the most important element in all cities throughout the world. They constitute a private retreat for singles and families, who organise their life, their finances, and live together. The choice of floor plan, construction, materials used, etc., depend on social, cultural and economic factors as well as on landscape and climatic conditions. In India, even now Adams, life is still predominantly characterised by living in large groups. Homes are built for extended families, and houses are situated in quarters where other relatives or members of the same caste or clan dwell. The division between public and private realm differs from the public–private concept of Europe, for example (Bornberg 2009). Many activities are performed in the public open space, and much time is spent in the streets in front of the houses. Furthermore, the concept of private rooms, i.e., rooms allocated to individual members of a family, as commonly used in the western hemisphere, is unknown (Enterria 2010). Families live together in extended groups and even nowadays, some of these comprise up to 75 people (Enterria 2010). A household might consist of the parents, © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_5

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their sons and daughters-in-law and their children, unmarried daughters, grandparents, and other elderly relatives. In India, the understanding of how many people live together is based on the number of people being fed from the same kitchen. As we will see in more detail below, food and eating are major concerns of Hindus, particularly for members of high castes. Food is a medium that transports pure and impure elements into the body, and therefore great care must be taken to not ingest impure food. Housekeepers must always eat away from the core family areas, and food can only be shared with members of the same caste. Kitchens and dining places are therefore designed with great care, according to the planning principles as outlined below.

5.2 Rules for Building a House The rules for building a house are generally outlined in the Shilpa Shastras, as described in Chapter 3. However, the texts contradict each other on this matter, so this book will refer mainly to the Mayamatam (Dagnes 2007). The ideal plot is square in shape and subdivided into several smaller squares, the minimum number being nine, which is known as the Vastu Purusha Mandala (Fig. 3.4). The site for a house should ideally lie on a plot that slopes down to the east, because this would provide the best sunlight in the morning. The next set of rules deals with the shape of the house. If the plot for the house is of rectangular shape, the north–south axis should be shorter than the east–west axis, the latter providing best sunlight for the whole house. The best main orientation for the house is considered to be east, followed by north, then south and finally south-east. North-west and west are the least common orientations (Gray 2006). The centre of the house is dedicated to Brahma, the creator and marks the core of the house, where the family shrine should be placed once construction work was finished (Gray 2006). The first task in the process of building a house is to find an appropriate piece of land in terms of purity. This means that the soil must be good, it should not smell foul, the site should not be located on a former cremation ground or be in close proximity to a river or lake. It also should not be on a former cattle pasture (Ayyar 1994). The ground must be free of worms, white ants, rats, sand, skulls, and so forth. Also, the orientation is important. Preferred are plots that are oriented towards the cardinal directions and are as much as possible square in shape. Such a plot is obligatory for Brahmins. Rectangular plots of a ratio of 1:2 with the longer side in the west is auspicious and should be preferred by all twice-born castes (Gray 2006). However, it is difficult to find this type of plot in densely-populated cities, especially when it is also important that the building plot should be in the vicinity of the main temple. In temple towns such as Madurai or Shrirangam (both discussed in more detail later) Brahmin houses surround the temple district on all sides and all plots are narrow

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strips of significant depth, i.e., never achieving the ratio of 1:2. However, the vicinity to the temple is more important than the perfect plot for the building site (Gray 2006). In a next step the orientation of the house must be determined. The ideal orientation should be in accordance to the Vastu Purusha mandala (Bühnemann 2003). This mandala is not only important for the planning of whole towns, but for private homes as well. It is the master plan of all designs, because it symbolises the cosmic man (as outlined in Chapter 3). The geometry of the Vastu Purusha mandala is the same. The cosmic body lies with his feet to the south-west corner, his head faces north, and his navel lies in the centre of the mandala (Bühnemann 2003). The most private and secured corner is therefore the north-east part of the mandala, and also the most intimate part of the house. Thus, no entrance should ever be located here, nor any other facility that is meant for visitors or guests (Gray 2006). The body of the cosmic men is superimposed with guardian deities: each square is the seat of a deity with a special property. The centre is dedicated to Brahma, the creator, and this space should be the area for the family, normally the central courtyard, as well as the “tulsi tree” and the house altar. North, the realm of Kubera, stands for wealth and the abode of the gods, and this is the perfect location for water resources. North-east is governed by Isan, and is the area of wisdom, purity and knowledge. East is dedicated to Indra, the direction where the sun rises. South is the realm of Agni, the fire god, where a kitchen or fireplace should be placed. South is also the direction of the dead, ancestors and protected by Yama, and south-east is the area of the ancestors and mystery (Gray 2006). After these tasks have been accomplished, the date for laying the foundations has to be fixed. For this purpose, astrologers are consulted to determine the most auspicious day, followed by initial offerings being made. After the site and the perfect day for starting construction work have been chosen, the courtyard must be fixed. The courtyard represents the four corners of the universe and the Brahmastan, the realm of Brahma, must therefore be the centre of the courtyard. It must be kept free for good ventilation, but also for energy to circulate freely: a construction in the centre would block the main energy of the members of the household, and only the sacred Tulsi tree or plant may grow here. Once the mandala is set, conceptual lines and dots must be outlined. They are drawn diagonally and perpendicularly from all intersections of the mandala. These lines visualise the positive energy flow in the house (Randhawa 1999). To ensure the energy flows through the house, no objects or constructions are allowed to be placed or built along these lines. These are the primary principles before one can actually begin to go into the details of the floor plan and construction. However, it would be misleading to believe that all houses are designed strictly according to the mandalas, the cardinal directions or the strict geometry set out in the planning treatises. On the one hand, this is caused by the fact that not all buildings can have the given orientation, especially not in densely built-up cities. On the other hand dealing with the cardinal directions is interpreted differently from merely relying on true geometry. It is much more important to know that the sacred Tulsi plant is in

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Fig. 5.1 Front porch of a Brahmin house in Srirangam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

the Brahmastan, marking the axis between heavens and the human realm. To give another example, the kitchen will be the place of Agni, the fire god, no matter if it really lies in the south–east corner of the house. The relation between the spaces in the house is much more important than the actual geographic orientation (Gray 2006).

5.3 Spatial Hierarchy in the House India’s residences reflect the social reality of how people organise their life as a family. The courtyard house is the main layout that is used throughout the subcontinent, being well adapted to climate, landscape and social needs. As mentioned earlier (Chapter 4), the courtyard house was already being used in Harappan times, with a central courtyard as a main distribution space, adjacent rooms for private use, and a foyer-like space dividing the public realm and the inside of the house (Jansen 1979). Since then, the courtyard house spread throughout India. Of course courtyard houses are also found in other parts of the world such as Syria, Morocco or Iran, as well as in Spain, Italy, and the Balkans (for example Bianca 1991; Pütt 2005). However, in India the courtyard house follows its own rules for the use of space, as well as the use of the house itself. The first area one approaches is the front porch, the “Otah” (Rhandanawa 1999). It is located in front of the house and open to the street. Often it is roofed by the protruding upper floor or a large overhanging roof. It typically measures one to two metres in depth and up to five metres in width. It is often raised above street level, ranging from just a few centimetres, to the height of a grown adult. In the case of

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Fig. 5.2 Front porches of lower caste people. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

the latter, a flight of steps will then lead from street level to the porch (Fig. 5.1). The porch is equipped with benches or sitting stones that are integrated into the sides of the porch. The porch has many uses throughout the day, such as for sitting and overlooking the street (Randhawa 1999). Visitors will stop in front of the porch, and if the visitor is of the same caste, he or she will be invited to come and sit on the porch, whereas people from a lower caste will stand in the street and the conversation will then held between street and porch. In centuries gone by, the porch would be used by high caste members as a reception area for his workers (Randhawa 1999). They would come here in the mornings to discuss their requests with the landlord. Today it has become more of a place to sit when everyone comes home from work, to read a newspaper or gossip with neighbours, or as a meeting space for relatives, neighbours and friends and can accommodate larger groups for festivals and celebrations, such as Holi or Divali (Goel 2007). Thus, the Otah serves as a transition space between the public space and the inner private areas of the house (Fig. 5.2). Since Indian villages and towns are organised into neighbourhoods, the porch and the street in front are the liveliest spaces, at least in the evenings, when everyone has returned from work (Gupta 2013). The most public room of a house is the “Baithak”. In the dwellings of merchants, landlords or Brahmins, this room is used as a reception room inside the house. Unlike the otah, this room is located inside the house, and the visitors who are allowed to enter it are subject to a more stringent selection (Fig. 5.3). For example, no workers or members of lower castes are allowed to enter this room, and women of the house only enter the space when no visitors are around. It is mainly used for business conversations, which need a more undisturbed environment than the otah, which normally has three high openings facing the street, whereas only one small door connects the baithak to the inner area of the house (Goel 2007). Parts of the baithak

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Fig. 5.3 Reception room in a merchant’s house. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

can also be reserved for shop units. Particularly Vaishya, the traders who also have larger houses, have shops built into the façade looking out onto the main street. However, this part will then be less pure, since customers belong to a variety of castes. The entrance to the house, the dahliz, is a narrow passage from the street to the inner parts of the house. Often it is a narrow, dark corridor with doors at both ends (Fig. 5.4). Both doors will be shut at night, but also during the day when nobody is at home (Goel 2007). This passage is only for use by family members, with visitors being allowed to enter this space only on special occasions. In homes with only one courtyard (which is then the family courtyard), this corridor is considered the family’s private realm. The design for the door is of major importance, since it is not only the physical entrance to the private area, but it is also the entry point of energy for the house and its inhabitants (Goel 2007). Thus, it should never be placed in the centre of a façade, it should be larger than all other doors to guide potential guests to the right entrance.

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Fig. 5.4 Small passage into the house. On both sides there are doors that are closed at night. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

The dahliz opens onto the central courtyard, the aangan or koordam, a multipurpose space for all sorts of family activities (Goel 2007). It is (re-)arranged according to the activities it will accommodate: it might be a space where the family gathers, such as for the daily rituals and prayers, the poojas (Randhawa 1999). If there is more than one courtyard, the aangan will also be used for extended family gatherings with relatives, such as weddings or other social events (Fig. 5.5). Selected visitors are also permitted to enter this space. For celebrations like Holi or Divali, men will gather in front of the house, on the porch, whilst women will come together in the courtyard (Goel 2007). The aangan also acts as a kind of hub, as all private areas are accessible from here. The ventilation of the house is provided via the courtyard, because the rooms have no openings to the outside walls; only the baithak has openings to the street as well (Goel 2007). The core of the house is marked by the pooja space. It is the area of the shrines of the house deities and must be of the utmost purity. Its location is therefore of the highest concern when planning a house. The pooja space can be located in the centre of the courtyard, the Brahmastan (Bühnemann 2003). However, most planning treatises argue that the centre of the courtyard should be left empty, and therefore the pooja area is normally placed to one side of the courtyard, ideally in the north-east corner, the “house of Shiva”. In some cases the pooja area can also be incorporated into the kitchen. One important element of the pooja space is the sacred basil plant,

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the Tulsi. It is believed that the twigs and leaves of the plant are the manifestation of goddess Lakshmi, Vishnu’s consort. Whenever Vishnu sees the Tulsi twigs, he is reminded of his love for Lakshmi and will immediately forgive sins, however grave they are (Simons 1998). Tulsi is therefore an important element for poojas, but also for rites and celebrations outside the house. A Tulsi twig will also be used as part of cremations, because the twig ensures that all the sins of the deceased will be forgiven, enabling him or her to a better next life.

Fig. 5.5 Central courtyard. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Erich Lehner

Fig. 5.6 Second courtyard, which is used for domestic duties. Kanadukathan, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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Another important feature of the pooja space is water. Water in the form of a well or, in more recent years, a water tap must be located adjacent to the Tulsi; this is important not only for watering the tree, but also to perform the purifying rituals before prayers start. In larger houses, particularly in houses of traders or landlords, there can also be an audience hall attached to the courtyard—this is best placed between courtyard and entrance. This room can also be used to host the house deity and for displaying its image at celebrations and festivities (Goel 2007). In larger houses with more than one floor, a staircase called a Zeenah will be attached to the courtyard. However, it is closed off by a door, so that visitors would not immediately see it. Since all other rooms that lie off the courtyard also have doors, the staircase is invisible for incoming visitors as long as the doors are shut. The Zeenah should be located in the south, west or south-west corner of the courtyard, never in the north-east or else would be visible from the main entrance to the courtyard (Rhandanawa 1999). If there is more than one courtyard, the second courtyard will be used for domestic purposes, where women carry out their daily chores and children play (Fig. 5.6). Laundry will be washed here, and food will be processed. In this respect it is important to note that food preparation in India consists of two phase: the first is to prepare the ingredients, like peeling, washing and cutting fruit and vegetables, and the second is to cook the food. The first phase of the preparation is carried out in the rear courtyard, and the second is carried out in the kitchen. At the rear courtyard there is the wet area, which used to include the sanitary facilities (toilet and a well, with water for washing). Today, particularly in urban areas, the wet areas are included in the house, and bathrooms and toilets are commonly used. There might be small walls enclosing the working courtyard and in villages, small gateways would lead into the fields beyond (Silveira 2008). In houses with more than one floor, a platform or veranda, the tibari or alodi, is attached to the first floor and overlooks the central courtyard. Together with the courtyard, it is the social nucleus of the house and again, a multi-purpose space (Goel 2007). It is where family members meet, as well as a meeting space for guests. Women will often use this elevated area, whereas men will sit together in the central courtyard. On the upper level of the courtyards there are balconies running around. These balconies connect the rooms that lie behind them. Sometimes, the balcony is extended to become a terrace, and this is then the domain of the women of the house. Kamra, the individual rooms of the house are located around the courtyard, and are accessible from there. The door into the courtyard provides the only means of ventilation for these rooms. The rooms have various functions, from private retreats to bedrooms, and are considered to be the female realm, and thus not accessible to everyone. If a kamra is used as a bedroom, the best location for it is in the south-west corner of the house, because otherwise a loss of sleep or mental problems could occur (Goel 2007). The corners of the house are used as storage space. Store rooms, kothri, are located wherever no daylight penetrates and no appropriate ventilation is possible.

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The chowka, the master kitchen, is a very important part of the house. It should be placed on the ground floor (although in the Himalayas, the kitchen is positioned under the roof (Gray 2006). The important aspect of its location is that it must be as far away from the entrance as possible on the one hand, and on the other, it must be close to the pooja space (Goel 2007). The kitchen is a very sacred space and must be pure. In Brahmin households, in particular, there will be a preparation area or a fore- kitchen, where food is processed and then handed over to the main kitchen. In high Brahmin households, a Brahmin cook will cook the food according to the sacred rules. Entrance to this kitchen is restricted by many rules, and women are not allowed to enter this space. Women will only help with preparing the raw food in the fore-kitchen and hand the items over to the cook in the main kitchen. However, in other households both kitchen areas will be a predominantly female domain. Both, fore-kitchen and main kitchen are located in the area dedicated to Agni, the fire god. The stove, especially, should be located in the south-east corner (Gray 2006). The best location for the dining area is the west or east part of the house. The dining area might be included in the kitchen, or it could be attached to the central courtyard. It should be situated next to the pooja space and have a wash-basin or a well. If the spaces are separated, then there must be a direct link between them. Eating is not a social event, particularly not in Brahmin families. High caste priests will sit alone and eat quietly, without women or children present, and only when he has finished his meal will the other members of the household be allowed to eat. Since food can bring purity or impurity into the body, great care must be taken in preparing the food and also in eating it. Thus, the dining area is seen as a very private space in the house (Silveira 2008).

5.4 Rules for Different Castes Above, we discussed which areas are more private than others and where the family members normally spend their time. It also became evident that there are different patterns of behaviour among higher castes than among lower castes in terms of how the home is used. Brahmins must take great care to keep themselves and their environment as clean and pure as possible, not only in ritual terms, but in physical terms, too. However, even aside from these considerations, there are also other rules that apply to the building process which are related to caste affiliation. Brahmins, for example, should have larger houses with bigger and more spacious courtyards than others, to provide enough space for receiving guests, and for students to learn from the Brahmin priests. Brahmin dwellings should also include a library, and this is to house and store not only books, but also valuables such as pictures, vessels made of brass, items made of silver and gold, and the like (Ayyar 1994). The Vaishya, the merchant caste, have houses with shops attached, and ideally their homes should be located in the streets of the bazaar. As mentioned previously (Chapter 5.3), such shops, are part of the outside of the house and open onto the street. The first courtyard of their dwellings can also be used as a place in which to

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Fig. 5.7 Homes of peasants and low caste people near Gangaikona—Cholapuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

conduct business. However, in that case, there must be a second courtyard which is reserved for the family (Goel 2007). Agriculturists will have granaries attached to their house, and in rural areas the rows of high granaries are a highly-visible feature of these houses. Cows with their calves are housed in low-roofed sheds at the rear of the building, and in front of the house is a wide open space that is used for all sorts of activities, such as processing the harvest, milking cows, house keeping duties, but members of the family will also use the space to rest and for children to play (Silvera 2008). Peasants have less spacious houses, even though they follow the same spatial ideas. Adjoining their house is a cowshed (often housing a single cow) and a shed for storing tools and utensils. The central courtyard often has a small sty made of twigs for pigs or other small animals and is also used for daily work. The materials for their house must be of lesser quality than that of the high caste members, which means they mainly use locally-available, degradable materials, such as earth for the walls, cow dung for plastering walls, or millet for the roofs (Ayyar 1994). The homes of shepherds are simple and comparable to those of peasants. The main difference between these two is that shepherds do not keep animals inside the house: instead, they have corrals in the centre of their residential quarters, where sheep, goats and cows are kept during the night (Ayyar 1994). Finally, the poorer castes have only small huts roofed with grass and walls made of cow dung, grass mats or other widely available materials (Fig. 5.7). They often have very small courtyards in which they can grow some plants and keep pigs, fowl and other small animals. These dwellings do not normally have a supply of drinking water, and it is the duty of the women to fetch water from the wells that are allocated to their caste (Ayyar 1994).

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5.5 Examples of Indian Residential Houses The house types listed above are more a theoretical concept rather than having been realised in every detail. Besides, a number of variations have been introduced over the many centuries that these house type has been in use, starting in Harappan times already. Most certainly, a house type of that age will have undergone several alterations over time. Besides there are the local adaptations to the courtyard house, according to climate, landscape and also to economic factors. Some of these house types are described below to highlight the variety of Indian courtyard houses. First, we discuss the Bhunga which is a predecessor model to the courtyard houses, but is used until today. Thereafter, the Haweli is discussed, which is the predominately used courtyard house of Rajastan. Next, the Nalukettu from Kerala is discussed, and finally two house forms of the Himalayas, the Newar house of the Kathmandu valley and the Ladakhi farm house will be described. The house forms described here are rather extremes of the courtyard house types to demonstrate how many varieties of the courtyard house have developed in India.

5.5.1 The Bhungas of Kutch Bhungas or Bhongas are rural houses in the region of Kutch. Kutch lies in the northwestern part of Gujarat, with a northern border to Pakistan, and is the largest province of India. The area is enclosed by the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Kutch, and by the Great Rann and Little Rann, which are seasonal wetlands. Kutch is divided into three regions (McGinley 2014). The northern area is a desert and here lies the Great Rann of Kutch, which is a wetland and well known for its salt flats that appear white as snow before the Monsoon season starts. The second region, the Banni Grasslands, is in the centre. It is a belt of grasslands which is famous for its wildlife and is the most fertile part. The third area lies in the south and stretches along the coastal lines. Kutch is one of the hottest areas of India, with temperatures that can reach up to 50 °C in summer, and yet in winter, temperatures can drop below freezing point. During the monsoon season, between June and September, the region is very wet, whilst it is a desert-like area during the rest of the year (McGinley 2014). Although people still work the land to earn money, recently, tourism has become an important economic factor, as has a very special type of embroidery specific to the area, and which is highly valued by tourists. Nowadays, income from full-time farming is no longer sufficient to meet a family’s needs (Jamal-Shaban 2007).

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Fig. 5.8 Schematic drawing of a typical Bhonga. Author compilation, not scaled

The region of Kutch is historically important, because it was here that the Indus Civilisation developed, and most probably the citizens of the cities like MohenjoDaro or Lothal intermarried with these local people (Schoenauer 1981). Today, there are 966 villages in the region, and inhabitants come from many parts of India. Some have immigrated from Rajasthan, Sindh, Afghanistan or Pakistan, and even from regions further away. With the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947 (Zain 2006), the pastorals of this region had to decide which side they would stay on in the future. Before partition, people used to breed cattle and buffaloes in the fertile pastures of Sindh in the summer, moving to Kutch—then a rich grasslands—as soon as the monsoon season started. Today, however, this is hindered by the border and people have to find other sources of income (Suman 2017). The Bhunga or Bhonga has not changed much in the past centuries, and is still well-adapted to the needs of the pastoralists. The Bhunga is a unique entity, consisting of one or more cylindrical huts placed on a raised platform (Fig. 5.8). Although only the hut is called Bhunga, the whole platform is considered the family home. The huts are made of earth and have thatched roofs made of grass that is available locally. This construction is ideal in this climate, because earth stops the heat from penetrating into the interior too quickly, so during the day, the house remains pleasantly cool, even when temperatures outside can reach 50 °C (Handa 2018). The inside of the house warms up slowly during the day, and during the night, when it is cool outside, a cosy warmth can be felt inside. Earth constructions are also ideal in a region that is prone to earthquakes, as is the Kutch. This became evident in the earthquake of 2001, where many buildings collapsed or sustained severe damage. Only the Bunghas escaped largely unscathed, and only those that had been poorly maintained collapsed (Choudhary et al. 2002). As a result, much research was conducted into the Bhungas construction, and new buildings are being designed according to the old traditions, leading to a real Bhungas renaissance with competitions between the traditional villages, and guided tours to show tourists their heritage (Jamal-Shaban 2002).

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Fig. 5.9 Schematic drawing of a cluster of Bhongas. Author compilation, not scaled

But what is a Bhunga? The Bhunga is an elliptical or round house made of earth, covered by a conical roof supported by wooden poles and covered with grass. The diameter of the Bhungas is between 3 and 6 m, and each house has one or two small windows and one door. The roof is supported by a central wooden post, which rests on a wooden joist. The inner layer of the roof usually consists of bamboo, covered by a layer of straw. The thick walls are made of earth and have built into them small niches in which household objects are placed (Jamal-Shaban 2002). Benches are also attached to the earthen walls, creating smooth transitions between the wall and the furnishings. Benches are also attached to the outside of the walls such that a smooth transition is created between the wall and the outside seating facilities. Each Bhunga consists of one room, i.e., the kitchen is placed in one Bhunga, the living room in another, a bedroom or a reception room is accommodated in another. In poorer families, however, there will only be one Bhunga housing between 5 and 10 people. However, it is important to note that although all the inhabitants of a Bhunga will be inside at night or in the late evening, during the day the house will be practically empty (Choudhary et al. 2002). All Bhungas of one property are connected through plinths, which should be considered part of the “houses”. A cluster of Bhungas is built on the plinths and this cluster constitutes the family’s “home” or “house”. Other constructions are also placed on the plinth, such as cisterns, cow-sheds, hen-houses, or shelters for other animals; and toilets, storage facilities, but also sheds with day-beds in them for staying outside during the day (Choudhary et al. 2002).

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Although the plinth-space looks rather irregular, the different sections are clearly recognizable to the inhabitants of that area. The entrance, mostly visible, for nonresidence lies opposite the kitchen, and the inner part of the plinth can be interpreted as the central courtyard that can be found in other types of courtyard houses (JamalShaban 2002). The villages consist of many such Bhunga-clusters (Fig. 5.9). The villages are mainly irregular in their layout but are secured by outer small fences. Only a few entrances lead to the village. Irregular lanes connect the Bhungas clusters and the main entrance of the clusters are alongside the connecting lanes. The centre of the village is marked either by the village tree (a description of the function of a village tree see next chapter) or a temple. Although this central element does not lie at the geometric centre of the village, from the social point of view the temple area is seen as the centre of the community (Suman 2017). Recently, new construction materials have begun to be used, partiuclarly after the earthquake of 2001 (Jamal-Shaban 2002). Most prominently, the roofs are no longer made of grass but of roof tiles, simply because grass is no longer available in the necessary quantity. As a result of climate change, not as much grass is available in the region, and therefore people had to turn to other materials (Jamal-Shaban 2002). The second change is the material used for the walls. Nowadays, burnt bricks and stone masonry in cement mortar are used. The new materials for walls are popular because they no longer have to be maintained annually. However, the micro climate of the interior of the houses has changed with the new materials. The beneficial climatic effect of the earth houses is lost.

5.5.2 The Haveli of Rajasthan Leaving Kutch from the north-east part of the district, one enters the Thar Desert, which is part of today’s State of Rajasthan. Rajasthan’s heritage goes back to Vedic times and also to the Harappan civilisation, since Kalibangan or Mohenjo-Daro lie in Rajasthan. Here, the Haveli is the most popular form of residential house. Rajasthan’s climate is hot and semi-arid; it has hot summers with temperatures reaching nearly 50 °C, and warm winters, with temperatures around 20 °C. Rainfall is connected to the monsoon period which sweeps over the region between July and September. The house is adapted to the climate conditions as well as to economic and cultural factors. The Haveli is also found in adjoining states such as Uttar Pradesh or Gujarat, where the climate conditions are similar. Most people are still working as pastoralists or in agriculture. At the same time, since ancient times, trade has been an important economic factor, too, and cities such as Jaisalmer, Udaipur, Jodpur, Jaisalmer or Jaipur are ancient trading hubs on the way from India to Iran and further on to Turkey and Europe. The Haweli is therefore used in villages as well as urban centres (Tillotson 1998). Jaisalmer is very densely packed and allows only small plots for residential houses. The size of the houses varies considerably, according to wealth and caste affiliation.

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The houses are measured in bays, the smallest units measuring one bay, which is the size of the courtyard. If a property extends beyond a certain depth, it will have two big courtyards, one of which will be used for formal purposes, and the rear one will be used for family purposes and all sorts of activities (Schoenauer 1981). The houses have narrow façades to the street and form a coherent street front. The façades of the old houses, particularly along the main commercial routes and those of the rich merchants, are multi-storey buildings and have only small doors as an opening. Often, platforms are attached to the door: these are used for seating and also to support the stalls of the street vendors. In some cases there is an elevated platform that extends across the entire front of the house and is only interrupted by the steps leading to the entrance door (Fig. 5.10). The façade on the ground floor has no windows or doors; this is to safeguard the privacy of the house’s occupants. On entering a house there is a reception room called a “Moda.” This serves the family as a sitting room and lounge and is part of the area that guests are also permitted to enter (Tillotson 1998). The Moda leads to the central inner courtyard which is used as a family space and distribution area. Depending on the size of the house, the courtyard might be small and offer little space for planting, but it can be as spacious that water basins and large flower beds are included (Tillotson 1998). From the first courtyard either one or two staircases lead to the upper floors which are equipped with balconies that overlook the inner courtyard, but which are also used as a distribution area. This balcony, called a “Chaupala”, serves as an area where women perform their daily tasks (Gupta 2013). This floor accommodates the family’s private rooms, the kitchen and various storerooms. The house deities are

Fig. 5.10 A Haweli in Jodpur. Source Rutvi Patel

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placed in one of the front niches. The top floor is a roof terrace, used for sleeping in summer; and a covered area, which can also be used as a drawing room and sleeping area in other seasons. Next to this part is a room that was used for storing the family’s valuables, such as family records, documents, the money chest and jewellery (Gupta 2013). The use of the rooms and spaces within the house changes not only during the day and according to the seasons, but also over the lifetime of the house. During the day, some rooms might be used as work-spaces or as reception spaces, whereas later they are used for resting or sleeping. The seasonal change is a shift of uses caused by weather: in winter or during the monsoon period people will sleep inside the house, but will move to the roof terrace in the hot summer time (Tillotson 1998). In Rajasthan there live Muslims as well as Hindus. The Haveli house type is used by both communities but with some alterations. In Jodhpur for example, which is predominantly inhabited by Muslim communities, the Haveli is completely sealed off from the street, as is the custom in other regions of the Muslim world. The interior of the house may not be visible under any circumstances because the privacy of the family must be ensured at all times (Bianca 1991). For this reason, corridors that run straight into the interior of the house are avoided. Walls that are built orthogonally to the entrance block the view into the interior of a house. In addition, there are no porches with seating areas at the front of the house, as in Hindu homes (Fig. 5.11). The upper floors have some windows facing the street, but these windows have stone lattice fronts, like their counterparts in other Muslim regions, the Mashrabiya (Fig. 5.12). The lattice work is inserted into a bay-window-like opening and provides good ventilation. In cultural terms, it is an area where the occupants have a good overview of the area below without being seen themselves. Therefore, it is used mainly by women, who can observe what is happening in the street outside. In larger Havelis belonging to traders or rulers, where one courtyard is used exclusively for business, such Mashrabiyas will also be attached to the upper floors surrounding the courtyard (Tillotson 1998). In the Hindu form of this house type, as we saw above, this gallery would be open to this courtyard. Finally, the kitchen in the Muslim Haveli does not need to be positioned in the same area as in the Hindu homes. Purity in the Hindu notion is not an issue in Islam, and the kitchen is then the realm of women, who will be responsible for preparing food. Apart from these factors, however, the Havelis are very similar and almost identical in appearance.

5.5.3 The Nalukettu of Kerala Kerala is in the southernmost part of the Indian peninsula, and has a climate with temperatures between 23° and 33 °C (Sudha 2011). However, the moderate temperatures are influenced by the strong monsoon season. Almost all annual precipitation falls in the monsoon seasons, between June and August, and between October and November. The humidity remains very high throughout the year, because all rain and moisture is blocked by the Western Ghats. Because of this extreme climate,

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Fig. 5.11 An entrance to a Haweli in Jodhpur. Source Rutvi Patel

the courtyard house of Kerala developed in a different way, adapted to the tropical climate. It is also perfectly adapted to the Kerala’s main economy, which is paddy farming. Today, certainly society and the economy are changing in Kerala too, and particularly in cities people may work in a range of other professions. The origins of the Nalukettu go back to times when paddy farming and associated activities shaped the lives of the people, but its layout survived until today, and new homes are still built according to the concept of the Nalukettu. It is designed according to traditional design rules, the Manusayalaya Candika (Widiastuti 2018), which is the Shilpa Shastra version used in Kerala. Like the other Indian house types, the Vastu Purusha Mandala is typically used as a base for constructing the floor plan. The centre is created by the sacred Brahmastan, and nothing is allowed to be built here. Superimposed on the grid is a diagonal hierarchical orientation, which gradually slopes down from the north-east to the south-west corner. The next step of the design process is to draw conceptual lines and dots, which are later areas of the house where nothing is allowed to be built: the lines represent the positive energy flow of the family. If these lines were to be blocked by walls or any kind of furniture, the energy would be blocked harming the family severely (Widiastuti 2018). Moreover, this is

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Fig. 5.12 A Mashrabya, Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Alain Viaro

also reasonable from a practical point of view, as it allows air to flow through the building, which is an important aspect in this climate. The first noticeable element is the high-pitched roof, which has large ventilation openings in the upper part of the gable walls. East gust of wind is directed into the interior via these openings where it cools down (Widiastuti 2018). The second element that is different in the Nalukettu house is its sunken central courtyard (Fig. 5.13). This element helps to reduce the heat inside the house, because, coupled with the openings in the roof, it acts as an air condition: air from outside is blown downwards through the openings in the roof towards the courtyard, where it meets the hot air inside and then leads it upwards (Widiastuti 2018). The lowered courtyard has also the advantage that the earth that surrounds the courtyard enhances natural cooling. Thus, a sunken courtyard helps survive in the hot climate. The roof of the house extends far beyond the outside and inside walls and thus protect the walls from direct sunlight and from the rain. Finally, large lattice windows made of timber are arranged on opposite walls to allow cross ventilation. The lattice elements prevent direct sunlight from entering the building, but at the same time allow air to flow through (Kesavaperumal and Ravindran 2017). The word Nalukettu means actually “four halls house”, meaning that around four independent halls are built around a central courtyard, facing the four cardinal directions, and between these four halls are more spaces. The typical Nalukettu is square-shaped consisting of four blocks arranged around a central courtyard which

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Fig. 5.13 Varikkasseri Nalukettu, Tamil Nadu. Source https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: Varikkasseri_Nalukettu_2.jpg, accessed 24 May 2022

measures only between two and five metres, it is much smaller than other Indian courtyard houses (Widiastuti 2018) (Fig. 5.14). The south-west corner of the house is used as the entrance, followed by a semi-open space which is used as a reception area, but also as a sitting room for household members. The kitchen and the adjacent pooja space are ideally located in the north-east corner, whilst the dining room should be located in the north, in the proximity to the kitchen and pooja room (Kesavaperumal and Ravindran 2017). Between these spaces are several rooms for the private use of the family members. The most basic Nalukettu is a small rectangular house without an inner courtyard. Instead, there is a platform or veranda encircling the house, which is covered by the overhanging roof. The front part of the veranda is used as a reception space, whilst the rear veranda is used as the family living space (Rhandhawa 1999). The size of the house depends on the importance, status and wealth of the family. In bigger houses there will be a small courtyard that is used as a water cistern and for work, and a larger one for leisure and family activities. Between these two courtyards is a granary, which is a very important area in the house because it contains the livelihood of the people. Around the granary there are also several rooms, verandas and passages. Originally, there were no furnishings in these houses, only built-in sitting platforms that were attached to the walls alongside the verandas. But since the 1900s western style furniture has steadily made its way into the homes of Kerala,

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Fig. 5.14 Schematic floor plan and section of a typical Nalukettu, Author compilation

which will most probably also change the house type in the long run (Thiagarajan 2001).

5.5.4 The Newar Houses of the Himalayas In regions that are difficult to access, vernacular architectural types have been preserved. Local traditions, the building forms with their underlying concepts are also different from those on the continent. One of these regions is the Himalayan region with its steep slopes and almost impassable terrain and long and very cold winters. Landscape and climate conditions led to a different type of building than elsewhere. First of all, courtyard buildings with an extensive ground floor space cannot be constructed on the uneven terrain. Secondly, the winters are cold and long and warmth must be kept inside the house—and not, as everywhere else in India, kept out of the house. Consequently, Himalayan houses are compact, with several floors to keep the inside as warm as possible and the central fire place is the most important element of the house.

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A typical Himalayan house type is the Newar house of the Kathmandu valley, Nepal. Although Nepal is not part of the Indian subcontinent, it was for many years influenced by Indian rulers who left their legacy in the region. This had a lasting impact on the region and today many historical structures of the built environment are more apparent than on the Indian subcontinent. This applies also to the residential buildings that are and were traditionally built in the mountains of the Himalayas. In the bigger cities, such as Kathmandu or Bhaktapur, there are courtyard houses too, particularly in the centre, where the terrain is more even (Gutschow 1985). However, on the outskirts and in smaller cities such as Changunaryan, there are usually multi-storey buildings (Gray 2006). The landscape, which is rugged and jagged, means that hardly any even ground is available and thus houses must be built on small plots and must be multi-storey. All the functions of the courtyard house are then “stapled” and built on top of each other. Houses have normally three to four floors and are arranged in closed rows along the streets (Auer and Gutschow 1974). Here, there are no verandas or porches such as they are usually found in India’s courtyard houses in the plains. Even the narrow sit-outs of the Havelis in Rajasthan are missing here. The only place to sit out on the street is the steps leading to the entrance. In more rural areas, the ground floor is used as a storage space for agricultural tools, to store the harvest and as a stable for water buffaloes (Auer and Gutschow 1974). In the town centres the ground floor is used for shops and workshops (Fig. 5.15).

Fig. 5.15 The ground floor houses shops and workshops, Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author

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The first floor is used as the main family space, with several rooms that are used for sleeping and for family activities. The second floor is the space for housework (Auer and Gutschow 1974). This floor looks out onto the street via a large window that is often richly carved. Below this window, benches run inside along the window to allow a glimpse of the hustle and bustle in the street. The third floor houses the kitchen and the dining room. This is the most sacred area, where the gods of the family have their shrine and are worshipped. Sometimes there is a small terrace on this level where ritual flowers are grown. The kitchen floor is traditionally made of earth and has a stove in one of the corners, which consists of a small, raised platform also made of earth (Fig. 5.16). Jugs for water are stored close by and have to be carried up every day. Next to the kitchen area, which can occupy most of the floor, lies the pooja area, the prayer space with the house altar. For lunch and other meals people sit on the kitchen floor. As mentioned, the strict caste rules regulate the cooking ingredients and procedure, as well as who is allowed to eat with whom (Cahn 1997). Opposite the kitchen area is a narrow balcony, only 60 cm wide, which runs along the whole façade of the building. It is used for morning and evening prayers, as well as for washing dishes. If the area is large enough, it also serves as a family room. Since there is no chimney, there is a small fire opening in the roof eaves that allows the smoke to escape (Gray 2006) (Fig. 5.17) Further above, the concept was discussed from the transition between the public areas to the very private areas in the courtyard house: the public areas are along the streets, while the very private areas, such as the pooja room or the kitchen, are in the area furthest from the entrance. This concept is also followed in the Newar houses houses, only that here the areas are not arranged on one level, but stacked on top of each other. Fig. 5.16 Kitchen and pooja room in a typical Newar house. Changunaryan art museum, Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author

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Fig. 5.17 Schematic section of a Newar house. Author compilation, not to scale

5.5.5 The Khang Pa Houses of Ladakh Very similar to the house types of the Kathmandu valley, are found in Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir. Most of the people in this region belong to the MongolianTibetan-speaking tribes that are thought to have been inhabiting the region since the middle of the first millennium BCE. Some tribes still live in the area, and continue to follow local ancient traditions and religious beliefs, but most people today are Tibetan Buddhists (Handa 2018). In these parts, insulation is of crucial importance—even more than in the Kathmandu valley—because the winters are even more severe here. The main building material is sun-dried earth bricks which are used for the walls. Timber constructions are used for thatching, and this is covered with a top layer of grass or straw— whichever is available. Cow dung is used for further insulation, but also to fuel ovens and lamps (Handa 2018). The traditional farm house was structured to the inside, like a fortificationlike enclosure with thick walls and only few small openings (Rieger-Jandl 2002) (Fig. 5.18). Walls made of earth, stone or a combination of both, have foundations up to one meter in depth, tapering upwards. All houses have flat roofs that are used for storing straw, twigs and dung, but they are also used for work and in summer they are common place to sleep. Since so many activities take place on the roof terrace, they are secured by narrow balustrades (Rieger-Jandl 2002) (Fig. 5.19).

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Fig. 5.18 Schematic view of a Ladakhi farmhouse on plain ground, and in the hills. Author compilation, not to scale

The Khang Pa, the Ladkhi farm house, has a clear spatial structure. The ground floor is allotted to cattle, sheep and chicken, and provides storage spaces (RiegerJandl 2002). The ground floor is very low with ceiling heights often as low as 1.8 m. A small area on this floor is the winter kitchen, which lies in the centre of the ground floor. It has usually no window, and only an air vent on top of the oven releases smoke from the kitchen to the terrace above. The winter kitchen is used between November and February, the coldest months of the year. During this period the family will gather here, because it is the warmest place of the house. Since the kitchen is embedded by the stables and storage spaces, no heat gets lost. However, the winter kitchen is very dark, the walls are full of soot, and the air smells smokey (Rieger-Jandl 2002). Thus, people spend as much as possible outside the house also in winter times and return home only during the night. As soon as the weather gets warmer, which is around March, the whole household moves to the second floor, the summer living space (Rieger-Jandl, 2002).

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Fig. 5.19 The facade of a Ladakhi farmhouse. Source Andrea Rieger-Jandl

Narrow and steep leather-like stairs are located either in one of the corners of the cattle barn or they are attached to the outside wall, where they lead to a small landing on the second floor. The second floor is the main living space of the family in the summer (Rieger-Jandl 2002). Here are the kitchen, the house shrine, a reception room, a toilet and sometimes a storage room. The reception room or guest room is used for receiving visitors or for celebrations. If a house is very small, the reception might also take place in the kitchen. The most important rooms on this floor are the kitchen and the shrine. The room for the shrine is located at the highest level of the house and is used for the daily prayers and offerings and is the place when a lama, the Buddhist priest, visits the family (Rieger-Jandl 2002). The summer kitchen is larger than the winter kitchen and connected to the courtyard. Family life unfolds between kitchen and courtyard. Behind the stove is a large varved wooden shelf, where pots made of brass or copper and pottery is displayed, because they express the wealth of the family and are thus the pride of each household. For sitting there are carpets on the floor that run alongside the walls. In front of the carpets are foldable tables, and this is about all the furniture that is used in the house. The most important seat lies in the proximity of the oven and is reserved for the grandmother or grandfather. The women of the house sit next to the oven from where she can easily handle cooking and serving (Rieger-Jandl 2002). The Khang Pa, the Ladakhi farmhouse, is a stacked model of the courtyard house, similar to the Newar house of the Kathmandu Valley. The functions that normally lie behind each other are stapled, but the logic of the transition between

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private and more public areas stays the same: the further away from the main entrance a room is the more private and sacred it is.

5.5.6 Contemporary Homes To this day, the main concepts of building a home have remained the same. The courtyard house is still the preferred dwelling type, as can clearly be seen from the advertisements run by estate agents. Interestingly, the advertisements still focus on the Indian courtyard house, not a Western style house. The porch is still an important element for the outside of the house; the courtyard still forms the centre of the house, which serves both as a distribution space (providing access to other parts of the house) and also as the core space for the family. Until today, next to the entrance is a reception area and the kitchen is at the rear of the house. In almost all of the plans that were seen in online advertisements, there are two kitchens: one being the working area, which is connected to the rear part of the garden, and one for the final preparation of food. Between the kitchen and the courtyard is the dining room, a pooja room, as well as a small washbasin. In all other parts of the house are bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms, and since each of these constitutes a separate unit, this house type is suitable for extended families, which still seems to be the prevalent configuration.

5.6 Conclusions The most common house form in India is the courtyard house. This has been in use since the Indus civilisation, and has since spread throughout the Indian subcontinent. The courtyard house was further developed over the millennia and adapted to the climate and landscape, as India has very different climatic regions. The bhonga, for example, is built in dry, hot desert regions, as this construction method is best adapted to the climate. In the south of India, where the weather is subtropical, the nalukettu has developed, with a sunken courtyard and outer walls that allow the best possible air circulation and thus cooling. In the Himalayan region, where there are cold winters, a different courtyard house form has evolved, with solid stone or brick constructions to keep the warmth inside the house. However, the principle of Indian residential buildings is the same everywhere and follows the mandala for residential buildings: towards the street there is an area in front that is used as a semi-public space. Behind this is the central courtyard, which is used both as a distribution space and as a lounge for the families. The room furthest from the entrance is the kitchen, and the pooja room, the prayer room. The kitchen is divided, space permitting, into two areas, a preparation area and a cooking area, as the preparation of food is subjected to utmost purity. This indicates that the Indian

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courtyard house suits the people in their every day life and the way they live together. The logic of the floor plans and the sequence of spaces should live on.

References Auer G, Gutschow N (1974) Bhaktapur. Gestalt, Funktion und religiöse Symbolik einer nepalesischen Stadt im vorindustriellen Entwicklungsstadium. Techn. Hochschule Darmstadt, Darmstadt Ayyar C P V (1994) Town planning in ancient Dekkan. Asian Educational Service, New Delhi Bianca S (1991) Hofhaus und Paradiesgarten, Architektur und Lebensformen in der islamischen Welt. C.H. Beck, München Bornberg R (2009) Die europäische Stadt und ihre Wechselbeziehung von öffentlich und privat. In: Bornberg R, Habermann-Nieße K, Zibell B (eds) Gestaltungsraum Europäische StadtRegion. Peter Lang- Europäischer Verlag der Wissenschaften, Frankfurt et al., pp 65–86 Bühnemann G (2003) Mandala, Yantra and Cakra: Some observations. In: Bühnemann G (ed) Mandalas and Yantras in the Hindu Traditions. Brill, Leiden, Boston, pp 13–56 Cahn TM (1997) Kitchen: Newar. In: Oliver P (ed) Encyclopedia of vernacular architecture of the world. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 442–443 Choudhary M, Jaiswal K S, Sinha R (2002) Housing Report. Traditional rural house in Kutch region of India (bhonga). World Housing Encyclopedia, an Encyclopedia of Housing Construction in Seismically Active Areas of the World, an initiative of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) and International Association for Earthquake Engineering (IAEE) Dagnes B (2007) Mayamatam. Treatise of housing, architecture and iconography. Vol. I, Vol. II. Motilal Badarsidass Publ., Delhi Enterria A (2010) India from within. A guide to India’s history, religion, arts, culture and society. Indica Books, Varanasi Goel M (2007) Spatial Segregation in House Form: Analysing Dwellings of Rohailkhand Region, Uttar Pradesh. In: Desai M (ed) Gender and the built environment in India. Zubaan, an imprint of Kali for Women, New Delhi Gray J (2006) Domestic Mandala. Architecture of lifeworlds in Nepal. Ashgate Publishing Limited, Hampshire Gupta R R (2013) The courtyard house of Maharashtra. Council of Architecture. A NIASA Publication, New Delhi Gutschow N (1985) Courtyard Buildings in Nepal – the palaces, temples and monasteries of the Newars. In: Dallapiccola A, Zingel-Avé Lallemant S (eds) Vijayanagara—city and empire. New currents of research. Steiner, Stuttgart, pp 362–379 Handa OC (2018) Panorama of Indian indigenous architecture. Pentagon Press, New Delhi Jansen M (1979) Architektur in der Harappakultur. Eine kritische Betrachtung zum Raum im Industal des 3.-2. Jahrtausend. Rudolf Habelt Verlag GmbH, Bonn Jamal-Shaban N (2002) Nani Dadhar Housing, Bhuj, India. On Site Review Report. https://archnet. org/sites/5112/publications/1568. Accessed: 18 Jul 2019 Kesavaperumal T, Ravidran R (2017) Analyzing Green Building Technologies in Indian Vernacular: A case study of Kerala. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320196063. Accessed: 18 Jul 2019 McGinley M (2014) Rann of Kutch seasonal salt marsh. The Encyclopedia of Earth. https://editors. eol.org/eoearth/wiki/Rann_of_Kutch_seasonal_salt_marsh. Accessed: 22 May 2022 Pütt K (2005) Zelte, Kuppeln und Hallenhäuser. Wohnen Und Bauen Im Ländlichen Syrien. Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg Randhawa TS (1999) The Indian courtyard house. Prakash Books, New Delhi

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Rieger-Jandl A (2002) Architecture in the global tension of increasing cultural interaction. An anthropological approach towards building in developing countries underlined by a fieldstudy in Ladakh. PhD thesis, University of Vienna Schoenauer N (1981) 6.000 years of Housing. Volume2. The Oriental Urban House. Garland STPM Press, New York, London Silveira A C (2008) Lived heritage, shared space. The courtyard house of Goa. Yoda Press, New Delhi Simons F (1998) Plants of life, plants of death. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wisconsin Sudha T M (2011) Opportunities in participatory planning to Evolve a Landuse Policy for Western Ghats Region in Kerala. Department of Town and Country Planning, Kerala. https://web.archive.org/web/20160325095604/https://www.moef.nic.in/downloads/pub lic-information/tenth/Annexure%203.pdf. Accessed: 22 May 2022 Suman S (2017) Kutch’s Bhunga: moving across borders. https://www.makeheritagefun.com/kutchbhunga-borders-india-pakistan/. Accessed: 21 Nov 2019 Thiagarajan D (2001) Vernacular domestic architecture in Tamil Nadu. In: Proceedings of the seminar: traditional and vernacular architecture. Madras Craft Foundation, Madras Tillotson S (1998) Indian mansions: a social history of the Haveli. Orient Longman, New Delhi Widiastuti I (2018) Typology study of vernacular courtyard-house in Kerala, South India. Jurnal Sosioteknologi 17(3): 365–372. https://doi.org/10.5614/sostek.itbj.2018.17.3.4 Zain, O F (2006). Siachen Glacier Conflict: Discordant in Pakistan-India Reconciliation. Pakistan Horizon 59(2): 73–82. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41394127. Accessed 5 May 2022

Chapter 6

Episode 4: Public Spaces

Abstract The overarching structure that makes up cities are the public spaces which are discussed here. These include the public areas of a neighbourhood, such as streets, small neighbourhood squares or neighbourhood temples. There are also public spaces meant for the entirety of the city population such as central temples, markets, thoroughfares, public buildings, town walls with the city gates, large water tanks and step-wells, and burial grounds. In India these areas are regularly reaffirmed with rituals to validate the functions of each public space which are described in detail in this chapter. Keywords Public spaces · Streets · Shrines · Neighbourhoods · Water bodies · Cremation

6.1 Introduction In city descriptions a distinction is often made between the private and public spheres. In some cases terms such as semi-public and semi-private are introduced. However, this distinction is much too vague and inaccurate for Indian cities and villages. The “semi-public” area in India is much more complex as certain semi-public areas can only be entered by certain groups of people. The first transition between public and private is the verandah or porch and the area in front of the house which is to be used by the visitors of the household. These visitors normally belong to the neighbourhood, who traditionally are linked to each other. Therefore, it is important to have a closer look at the neighbourhoods with their facilities to understand the peculiarities of India’s cities. Moreover, there are many different types of public or semi-public areas each of which serves a specific function. These elements like community centres, markets, gates and gateways, water tanks, community temples and cremation sites are discussed in this chapter since all of these elements make up the entirety of the city.

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6.2 Purity and Space One of the most important issues of Indian town planning is the concept of ritual purity. The caste system, although officially abolished (Article 17 1949), is still important and intricately linked to the idea of purity: As was outlined above (Chapter 2.6) the system of purity begins with food. There are kinds of foods that are taboo for certain castes but allowed for others. Brahmins, for example are strictly vegetarian and there are even restrictions as to what vegetables they are allowed to eat (Dumont 1976). Some sub-categories of castes are allowed to drink alcohol or eat certain meats, like chicken, fish or buffalo. The consequence of this concept is that a high caste member may accept some food from a lower caste member such as raw rice, raw vegetables, as long as they are not washed (Dumont 1976). However, such food may not be consumed in the presence of the person who offered it, otherwise the impurity of the lower caste member would immediately be transferred to the higher ranked person. Even the presence of a low caste member in the house during preparation of the meal will immediately render the food inedible for the high caste member (Rao 1974). When it comes to public space, this means that picking the fruit from any of the trees that are planted in the village or town alongside the streets, at the entrance to villages, or at the rest houses in villages, where pilgrims and visitors might stay is a problem particularly for members of high castes. The fruit is there for anyone to pick but if a high caste member picks and actually wants to then eat that particular piece of fruit they must ensure that no lower caste member is in the vicinity (Dumont 1976). The same applies to drinking water. For example, if a Dalit were to draw water from the well of a person of high caste would immediately cause the well to become impure, which must of course be avoided at all costs. Consequently, each caste has its own wells or water sources that are to be used solely by their caste members. And if the water source is a river, then the high caste members will have spots from where they draw water upstream whilst the lower caste members will have spots downstream (Rao 1974). Consequently, the concept of purity also corresponds to the distribution of quarters in a city. The centre, which is the Brahmastan must be left free and only shrines may be located there. In previous centuries royal cities existed with their own logic of space distribution. In a royal city, the king’s palace was built in proximity to the main shrine or temple (Dumont 1976). In villages without a permanent leader the north–south street would have a Shiva temple at one end and a Vishnu temple at the other end. Sometimes the nucleus is formed by a large chowk, a plaza in the centre of a village or town which is used for social gatherings (Gupta 2013). Around the Brahmastan the residential quarters of the Brahmins are located. (Ayyar 1994). The main street which ideally would be north–south oriented would then be the main axis along which the noble families (i.e. the high caste members) would dwell: thus the closer a house is to the centre, the more important the family. Conversely, the further away from the centre the neighbourhood the lower the caste

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of those living in that neighbourhood. This means that adjacent to the Brahmin neighbourhoods are those of the Kshatriyas, then of the Vaishyas and finally the wards of the Shudra will be located close to the town walls (Dumont 1976). As mentioned previously the Dalit are not allowed to dwell inside the town because they are not considered to be part of society.

6.3 On Streets Roads and streets are among the most important elements of villages and cities because they connect the neighbourhoods, the working areas, the main public elements and finally the city with the surrounding countryside. Streets are most essential for all sorts of transport be it pedestrian or vehicle traffic, for the purpose of commuting between two places or transporting goods (Das 2007). Design, layout and distribution of streets was a major concern in India since antiquity. As outlined in Chapter 4, Harappan cities were planned with straight streets, with exact locations of the intersections of main streets and there was a differentiation between the large streets in the city core and the small lanes in the residential units (Das 2007). All planning treatises deal with streets. Their design and distribution is precisely described in the Shilpa Shastras and other texts related to planning (see Chapter 3). In the Arthashastra, for example cities are classified according to the number of crossing streets. It says that all cities must have at least one main street running north–south and another one intersecting the centre, running east–west. For larger cities or villages several such streets are required (Shamasastry 1996). In Medieval times the façades facing the main streets had no windows or openings and resembled walls (Dutt 1977). Gradually windows were allowed on the second floors and shops were leant against the house walls. Finally the shops were incorporated into the houses, as seen everywhere in India today. Normally, a city will have more than one pair of intersecting main streets but several large streets that divide the city into blocks, often connected to build ring roads. The innermost ring road that encircles the temple is of highest purity. If a temple district lies in the city it is enclosed by a wall and nothing must be attached to them (for more details see Chapter 7). The other ring roads just separate the various wards of the residential blocks. The houses of the inhabitants are then connected via narrow lanes (Das 2007). The very centre of a city is the Brahmastan, the area dedicated to Brahma, the creator just like the centre of the house (Singh 2009). This centre lies at the intersection of the two most important streets of a city or village. Here a larger space is reserved for the village council tree, the sacred tree from where the village goddess emanates her powers (Jain 2011) (sometimes the sacred village tree lies outside the village: see Chapter 6.3.3). The village tree is used for rituals and poojas, the prayers but is also used as a meeting place for the men of the village. Around the tree pedestals can be placed, shrines and even a pavilion can be close by. The main streets of the city used to connect to the wider system of highways that criss-crossed the whole of the Indian subcontinent (Dutt 1977). These highways

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were important for trade which has always been an important economic factor in India. Supporting the flow of goods between the villages that manufactured and the markets in the trading hubs was therefore particularly important. Secondly, these streets were also used as pilgrimage routes. The planning treatises suggest that these streets should also be lined with fruit trees, such as mango or durian to make travelling easier (Das 2007). Other streets lead to the pastures outside the village. At the intersections of these roads, whether they are main roads or paths to the fields outside the towns or villages, fountains and shrines resemble important elements in many rites and processions. The paths lead from the temple or the village centre to the pastures beyond village boundaries and connect village to its surrounding. The shrines and roads together form mandalas that are regularly circumambulated and by performing this rite the village and the pastures are ritually connected (Gutschow 1982).

6.4 The Quarters Until today, it is common for caste or varna members to live together in one ward. The reason for dwelling in the same neighbourhood is that people who have the same profession have the same demands on public space (Das 2007). Adjacent special spaces are built within the neighborhood such as areas for handling goods, drying crops, meeting places for certain occasions or sleeping places for visitors. Besides, members of one caste have similar daily routines, it therefore makes sense to group them together in one neighbourhood (Rao 1974). Brahman priests, goldsmiths, perfume dealers, or simple workers will have different needs in their daily routines and thus different demands for facilities in public space. Public facilities which are located within one ward or quarter are designed and maintained by the group living together and each group designs semi-public facilities for their needs (Fig. 6.1). In this context, the Indian city is no different from the Islamic, oriental Fig. 6.1 Water distribution in a residential quarter in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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town which is also divided into several quarters, the Muhallas (Bianca 2000). Each Muhalla works as an individual unit and is often separated from the neighbouring Muhallas by walls. The main difference to Indian quarters is that it is clan membership in the Muhallas and not professional membership as it is the case in Indian cities. Thus, cities and villages consist of several quarters that are grouped around the main connecting streets, and other places serving the whole city, such as temples or markets. Each quarter is a unit in its own right, and a main identifier for its inhabitants. Smaller villages, however, will be considered a single unit, and their villagers will be associated with their village only but in all other cases inhabitants of a quarter are related and belong to the same clan (and thus also to the same caste). Unmarried women, widows and young girls are called “daughters of the quarter” and are under the protection of the quarters. This functions as an independent unit and has its own panchayat, the local government (a more detailed explanation is provided further on). The panchayat (Dey 1961) meets in the central chowk, the plaza, which is also where the shrines of the deities of the quarter, the sacred tree, and benches for people to sit and discuss, are located. This area is the centre of the quarter. The dwellings of the outsiders, the Dalit consist of hamlets outside the village or town boundaries. They are arranged around informally-defined chowks. In rural areas these hamlets will be surrounded by a boundary such as small fence, whose function is rather to mark the territory than to be a defensive boundary (Gupta 2013). The chowk of a Dalit quarter is a multi-purpose space for all and gender restrictions do not apply here as they do in quarters of twice-born caste members, i.e. Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas (Singh 2009). In cities Dalit hamlets are located at outbound roads, e.g., next to the city gates. Being close to the city gates is important for the Dalit, because their services are much needed by the twice-born castes. Since Dalit are considered impure and high-caste members must lead a life that is as pure as possible Dalit are often engaged as cleaners, plumbers, rubbish collectors, street sweepers and so forth. Since they work in the city in order to keep distances manageable (often, they cannot afford public transport and so have walk these distances) the Dalit live right by the entrance(s) to the city.

6.5 The Neighbourhoods The next concept which underpins the organisation of cities and villages into neighbourhoods is the hierarchy in families. Until today India’s society is organised along patrilineal lines, although this is gradually changing. Families live together as extended families with the oldest male member being the head of the household (Goel 2007). He is responsible for all other members and decides on all matters concerning the household. Consequently, the members of a clan live together in a quarter of the city. The quarters are then subdivided into neighbourhoods, thoks and these are the residential units of several households of the same extended family. Each thok is a more or less independent unit and again led by the oldest and most

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Fig. 6.2 A porch or verandah in a neighborhood in Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

respected man of the family. The thok is the unit of social interaction, social control, cooperation and affective relationship (Rao 1974). Women are expected to stay indoors and within the thok and are traditionally only allowed to leave the house to run errands, fetch water, or go to work in the fields (Goel 2007). Even today it is common among families that women have to ask their husbands for permission if they want to go out in the evening or even if she wants to go out to work. Therefore it is very important that the few public spaces that can be used by women are assigned to and controlled by the neighbourhood (Goel 2007). Social interactions are regulated within the ward, and strangers would not enter the thok. Thus, it is safe for children, elderly or women in general. The most important part of the neighbourhood or thok is the veranda or porch in front of the houses (Gupta 2013). Male members of the family in particular sit here to read the newspaper and observe the comings and goings in the streets. Every movement is monitored, and whoever is leaving or entering is immediately ‘logged in’ mentally (Rao 1974). This social control is maybe perceived as a nuisance because every step taken is notified by neighbours. Especially for the youth and for women in general this may lead to difficult situations as many informants explained to the author. On the other hand, it means that children can play without the supervision of their parents and old and sick people are cared for even if they live in another house. In a society in which there is no state-provided care for the elderly, sick people or children, it is the neighbourhoods that caters for these functions (Fig. 6.2). The transition between public and private is not as clear-cut as it is in Europe. The private realm becomes gradually more public, starting from the inside of the house to the veranda or porch, then on to the central neighbourhood chowk, which can be flanked by religious buildings or shrines. There the sacred tree will be placed, or ritual

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stones coupled with a bench or maybe a well. The next higher level of public space is then outside the neighbourhood formed by further neighbourhoods the centre of the town and also the fields and pastures beyond village boundaries (Dutt 1977). The further one is outside the house the more public the space will be as much as there is a gradual decrease of privacy as one goes from the very private area of the kitchen to the less private area of the central courtyard through the semi-private area of the entrance and finally the semi-public space of the veranda or porch.

6.6 The Central Manram Traditional villages or towns have an open space in the centre called a manram (Ayyar 1994). The Manram is located at the Brahmastan of the village. It is the heart of the community and used for the village panchyat an important form of local village government which is anchored in the Indian Constitution (The Constitution Act 1992). The Gram Panchayat acts at village level with members that are elected by the most respected men of a village (Dey 1961). As such, the panchayat deals with all local administrative issues such as the repair and maintenance of roads, issues regarding the bodies of water and public spaces, the planting of trees and other elements connected with recreation as well as providing education or registering births and deaths. It is also in charge of the construction of marriage halls (local halls where marriages can take place), ghats (steps and platforms that lead to the water surface of rivers and ponds), guest-houses and so forth. Another of the responsibilities of the panchayat is to establish cooperative credit societies and to ensure a fair pricing system in the shops of the village. Finally, the panchayat often has a judicial function for matters that can be dealt with at village level (Dey 1961, Ananth 2014). At the same time the manram will also be used by all as a social meeting place. Men in particular will sit there chatting and exchanging the latest news and spend much of their spare time there, more than in their home. To serve its purpose the manram must be easily accessible to all the inhabitants of all quarters. The manram consists of an elevated platform around a fruit tree which covers with its leaves the platform. The fruit tree is an important element even today: it both provides shade for those sitting on the platform, and the fruit can also be picked and eaten. Nowadays some shops for daily purpose are placed around the manrams, such as food stores, bookshops, stationary shops or a bank.

6.7 Markets In the Mayamatam the correct distribution of markets is ranked very highly particularly their placement is described in detail. In India markets are usually bazaar streets. The Mayamatam suggests that the main bazaar street should be located alongside the main roads, starting at the main gateways of the city and leading to the residential

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Fig. 6.3. A market adjacent to the main temple selling goods for the temple offerings. Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

quarters of merchants and traders. According to the Mayamatam markets should be divided by the main products that are sold. For example weaver markets should lie in the southern part of the bazaar, the potteries in the north and all other artisans are allowed to sell their products anywhere in the bazaar. If a bazaar street encircles the Brahmastan only betel, perfumes, gold, silver or silk may be sold (Dagens 2007). Alongside procession streets that circumscribe the cities there should be rows of houses for merchants, starting with weavers in the south, wheelwrights in the north and artisans who work with precious stones and gold and silver jewellery are located alongside the main ceremonial paths. The closer the stalls of the market are to the temple the finer the goods. Finally, the goods are distributed in the marked in plots that correspond to the guardian gods of the designated plot: The quarters of Ishana (guardian of the north-east) are suitable for the sale of meat or fish; edibles can be sold next to the square dedicated to Agni (god of fire) as well as earthenware products (Dutt 1977). Although this theoretical concept was written down in the eleventh or twelfth century markets today are still laid out according to this concept. (Fig. 6.3). Bigger cities have both, a main bazaar street and many smaller markets for everyday use (Fig. 6.4). The latter will be located alongside the main roads that the inhabitants pass on their daily routes. Everyday products are sold in the proximity of the residential quarters and there will be many markets in one town. Luxury products on the other hand will only be sold in one central location because there is

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Fig. 6.4 A local market, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

no daily demand. However, the differentiation of markets by the products is similar to those in Europe, Africa and Asia. The Bazaar or Souk of the Islamic world in particular has many similarities to the Indian bazaar: luxury goods and books are sold next to the mosque; other products will be found further away (Bianca 2000).

6.8 Main Public Buildings In past centuries, there was a town hall in bigger villages or cities, the Sabha or Nagara-Mandira. It was used as an assembly hall for the regular meetings of the city council, where issues regarding the entire city were debated. In Pre-Colonial times there was the court of justice which was often attached to the palace complex. The court of justice had to be visible from the main shrines of the town deities because jurisprudence had to be safeguarded by the powers of the deities. Finally, in PreColonial times there were museums, theatres and libraries that were open to the public (Begde 1978). Another very important element of Pre-Colonial times was the Marga-Sala or the Chattram. It was a rest house which was placed at major highway intersections, but sometimes also inside the cities. The rest houses outside the cities were used by pilgrims and traders, and those inside the cities were also used to host guests for longer times. Some of the guest houses were provided by the state and some by private individuals who provided these guest houses for their own clientele. Rest

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Fig. 6.5 An old pilgrim house, which was used as a sleeping place by pilgrims who visited the temples. Changunaryan, Nepal. Source Author

houses were shed-like structures often equipped with fruit trees and a well or other source of water close by (Ayyar 1994) (Fig. 6.5). Other important public buildings were the hermitage and the monastery as well as colleges. Colleges were equipped with debating halls, reading rooms, apartments for professors as well as hostels for students; very important elements of the colleges were a flower garden, a temple or shrine and a water source. Monasteries were similarly equipped but larger than colleges and comprised many buildings, courtyards and gardens. Monasteries were important for cities because they attracted students and scholars which was a source of income for inhabitants of cities. However, monasteries were ideally located outside the town walls or at the periphery of cities (Begde 1978). The logics behind the location was not only that colleges and monasteries were larger in terms of dimensions but, more importantly residents of these institutions came from far and wide and many of them would not stay long. As such, they would not be part of the local community and therefore kept outside the city.

6.9 Gateways and Walls Cities and villages had boundary walls. These were not much meant as defensive elements but rather they marked off a certain territory. In Pre-Colonial times even

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Fig. 6.6 Gateway and city walls of Bhaktapur, Nepal. Source Author

quarters were often encircled by a wall to separate them from the other quarters. A very illustrative example is Srirangam in Tamil Nadu. The city consists of several rings with the temple district in the centre, followed by the residential quarters of the Brahmins and further out the residential quarters of the other caste towards the city walls (Dutt 1977). Each quarter is encircled by a wall in many cities even today this concept is well visible. The only connections between the quarters are gateways in the middle of each side and these are marked by high gateway towers the “Gopurams”. While Srirangam is an “ideal city”, where the interplay of town wall and gateway is particularly pronounced, gateways can be found in all Indian cities and towns (for more details please see Chapter 7). These gateways have various functions. For example, gateways on the main thoroughfares lead to the centre of the town or village. Smaller gateways connect the quarters with the city. Finally, there are also gateways that are only used to bring the bodies of the deceased to cremation sites (Gutschow 1982). Therefore, one would never pass through such a gateway for the dead unless it cannot be avoided, i.e. a dead relative has to be taken out of the city to the cremation ground. Gateways that lead into a foreign neighborhood would also not be passed. Gateways are landmarks that mark the transition between different realms and are therefore highly visible (Fig. 6.6).

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6.10 Water Tanks Water management has been an important feature around the globe, ever since humans were hunter-gatherers. For societies with larger populations water management is of paramount importance for crop irrigation and providing edible water for humans and animals. Different techniques have been developed by different societies and areas around the globe to manage water resources. In Persia for example a pipeline system was created called the qanat system, via the qanat water flows from the glaciers in the high mountains down into the steppes which lie beyond (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2016). In desert areas where there were no snow-capped mountains large underground water reservoirs were created (Bornberg 2016). Thus, each region developed a solution that was appropriate for their particular water sources and weather conditions. India also developed various strategies to ensure a permanent supply of water. Apart from the region of the Himalayas the Indian subcontinent has a monsoon-driven weather system. This means that at times water is more than plentiful contrasting with long-lasting droughts. Therefore large water tanks were developed (Pieper 1974). These are large basins where water is collected during the monsoon season and provide water during the dry season. The tanks vary in form and size. While some tanks are as large as artificial lakes (Fig. 6.7) small basins of a few meters length are also found. Tanks are available for a wide range of purposes. There are tanks in

Fig. 6.7 A large artificial water tank with a shrine in the centre. At the end of the dry season there is no water left in the basin and grass and other plants start to grow. Source Author

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Fig. 6.8 A pond in a neighbourhood in Chidambaram. Source Author

the neighbourhoods that provide a water supply for local residents (Fig. 6.8). Water from these neighbourhood basins is used for several purposes: for washing clothes, for being taken home as domestic drinking water, as watering places for animals and for bathing. Having a neighbourhood tank is a necessity in the caste system: as outlined above members of upper castes are not allowed to use the water from the same water sources as lower caste members (Singh 2009). For this reason alone each neighbourhood must have its own tank. Next, some tanks serve larger areas of a city. These tanks may have elaborated flights of steps leading from street level down to the water surface. Often pavilions are attached to provide shelter from the sun and heat and they are also used as changing rooms if the tank is used for bathing. Particularly for women such a facility is necessary to escape the gaze of passers-by (Aparna 2007). Such tanks are normally dedicated to a goddess or god and in such a case a shrine with the image of the deity will be placed either in the centre of the tank or on one side of the basin. Many of the larger basins are assigned to temples. A priest will look after the tank and maintain it and will also take care of the surrounding structures. These tanks will then be included in ritual circumambulations and processions will lead from the main temple to the tank. Such tanks will also be used for ritual bathing, particularly pilgrims will use these tanks before entering the temple precinct (Fig. 6.9). Water basins are also an essential feature of temple complexes. In centuries gone by devotees would wash themselves in the basins before entering the inner part of

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Fig. 6.9 Tanks are normally dedicated to a god or goddess, who safeguard the tank. Their presence prevents people from contaminating the water. Source Author

the temple although this is no longer common practice. Temple tanks are elaborately decorated with stone sculptures and in the centre the image of the guarding god is placed which will be discussed in more detail in Chapter 7.

6.11 Stepwells In regions with sufficient groundwater deep trenches were dug into the ground until groundwater was reached. The trenches were then finished with stones and long flights of steps led to the very bottom of the water level to have easier access to fetch water from down there (Lautmann 2017). Water might rise as high as street level but it might be very low as well and therefore the steps must lead to the bottom of the trench which is why they are called stepwells (Fig. 6.10) The long flights of steps are interspersed at regular intervals with platforms to make access easier and more comfortable. Sometimes galleries and chambers are attached which in some cases are elaborately decorated. Some of the stepwells had more than one main staircase and sometimes also narrow and hidden staircases which were particularly designed for women, to provide extra protection and privacy for them. One famous example is the Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen’s Stepwell) at Patan, Gujarat, which was inscribed

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Fig. 6.10 The Argasen Ki boali stepwell in New Delhi. Source Author

onto the World Heritage List in 2014 (UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014a, b). Four “storeys” down and 23 m from the surface is a rectangular basin which is 30 meters deep. The galleries and walls along the stairwell are sculptured with many religious and mythological images, highlighting the fact that these water reservoirs are always associated with higher spirits. Fetching water was a time-consuming task and thus the many galleries were also used as a meeting place for social interaction particularly for women who were responsible for fetching water. Besides, temperatures are much cooler at the water level, and in the hot Indian summers it is also pleasant to be down there which added that women spent more time than necessary in the stepwells (Aparna 2007). Nowadays particularly in big cities water is no longer drawn from these wells and many houses have been connected to the main water supply in recent years. However, the stepwells are still heavily frequented mainly by young people who are “less monitored” here than in their quarters, or by all people of the neighborhood on hot weekends when people enjoy the cool air at the bottom of the flights of steps.

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6.12 Ghats Ghats are a series of steps and platforms built along the banks of rivers, on the shores of lakes or ponds that lead down to the water. Ghats are very important elements in India and fulfil many different purposes. First of all they are used for the daily washing and ritual cleansing before moving on to the poojas, the prayers. They are also used for more profane, everyday reasons such as washing clothes or fetching water from the river or lake. There are separate ghats for each caste such that lower caste members cannot pollute the area of high caste members. Therefore, the ghats of the high caste members lie in the areas furthest upstream and the areas furthest downstream are the low caste ghats. Brahmin ghats are also equipped with elements such as wooden platforms from where they can perform their daily poojas. Some ghats are reserved for high-caste women to take their baths unseen by passers-by, thus ensuring their privacy (Aparna 2007). Even nowadays most married women are housewives although the situation is changing in India, too. Traditionally, the women’s role is to be responsible for the household and thus limit themselves to the domestic domain. However, even traditional living women have duties outside their home and ward and one of these duties is to visit the ghats to take their morning bath. Often there will be a caretaker who will chase away men trying to get a glimpse of the women bathing. But the ghats are also secured by buildings. Such ghats will be surrounded by arcades, buildings and pavilions (Aparna 2007). A typical womenonly ghat is shielded from the street by a chowk enclosed by porticoes. Next to or behind the ghat will be the shrine dedicated to a deity, for example a Shivalinga to which the women go in the morning to perform their morning prayer rituals, the poojas (Singh 2009). Walls and porticoes shield the area from other adjacent bathing areas and the porticoes lead to the steps that go down to the water. Here the women can bath undisturbed. Adjacent to the ghat are often small market streets or bazaars where women buy food or other things on their way home. Temple offerings can also be purchased here (Aparna 2007). Elaborate ghats lined with stones are found only in cities or larger towns. They are only accessible for those women who live in the adjacent area and thus belong to the caste which is allowed to use the ghat. Low caste women have other bathing places which are less ornamented and have few amenities: often only simple platforms, thus the women are not protected by porticoes or walls (Aparna 2007) (Fig. 6.11). Big pilgrimage destinations also have ghats specially for pilgrims. Before pilgrims are allowed to enter a sacred town such as Benaras (Eck 1989) they must take a ritual bath. Therefore the ghats are located alongside the main pilgrimage routes and are essential elements for the sacred routes that take pilgrims from one shrine to the next with porticoes and small shrines built adjacently to the ghats (see Chapter 7). Ghats are also used in connection with cremations. The ghats along the River Ganges and her tributaries are very important: being cremated at one of the ghats along the Ganga will help the person to leave the circle of birth and rebirth. Ghats are used for the ritual washing of the corpse; from there it is brought to the cremation platform and finally the ashes are scattered into the river from the ghat (see below).

6.13 Places of Worship: Natural Elements

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Fig. 6.11 Flights of steps, the ghats, leading into the Ganga River, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro

6.13 Places of Worship: Natural Elements The pooja spaces within a house comprise the shrine of the house deity and the sacred plant, the tulsi (Simons 1998). These shrines are located in the rear of the houses so that visitors might not immediately see this space; it is considered the family’s private area. The pooja space is also located close to the “pure” kitchen (the part where meals are finally prepared, and not the preparation kitchen) and adjacent to the family dining space (Goel 2007). This has been described above (Chapter5). The next largest element is the community shrine which is located in an area that all can easily access. The shrines consisted of natural elements such as stones, a tree or a bush, a river or a mountain (Jain 2011). In rural areas and in the quarters where lower-caste people live these elements are still in use. Trees in particular are used because they symbolise the cosmic axis (Bühnemann 2002). The roots of the Peepal tree for example, are associated with Brahma, the creator; its trunk is considered to be the seat of Vishnu, the preserver and the leaves are associated with Shiva, who destroys and rebuilds constantly, very much like the leaves that regularly fall off and are replaced by new ones (Schumann 2001). Trees are always an element in temples, since they, too, represent cosmic order and universal power can be transmitted through a tree. The goddess (natural objects are usually considered to be females) must be invited daily to pour her energy into the tree and from there it spreads over the whole village, a greater portion to higher caste members and a lesser portion to lower caste people. In the morning people will go to the shrine and thank her for her kindness,

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invite her to stay throughout the day and leave at dawn (Bharne and Krusche 2012). Often trees and bushes are decorated with flags, sometimes sculptures are added and even pedestals are arranged around it (Fig. 6.12). In larger villages or towns there are wayside shrines or natural elements which are assigned to the neighbouring community. Each group, usually divided by caste affiliation, but also by affiliation to a clan, has its own deity that resides in a particular wayside shrine (Bharne and Krusche 2012). All poojas will take place here. These shrines are often hardly recognisable as such, since they can be almost anywhere alongside streets. Often they are even placed in a hotel car park, and devotees come here to bring their offerings. However, this peculiar situation seems to be an issue to do with urban design and town planning because the individual neighbourhoodshrines are linked together in some of the ceremonies: via some of the processions, when a deity is taken out of the central temple, such shrines are visited (Gutschow 1982). During the Indra Jatra festival it is not only the local community who celebrate at their shrine; the main deity from the central temple will join and visit all the shrines. In ceremonies that are celebrated throughout the town or city, the portable image of the god or goddess will be carried around in large temple carts pulled by people or elephants (UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014a, b). The path Fig. 6.12 A sacred tree with a platform and a shirne. Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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Fig. 6.13 A community gathering for the Indra Jatra festival. Kathmandu, Nepal. Source Author

then leads from shrine to shrine along predetermined paths. In the Newar cities of the Kathmandu valley in each city a little girl given the name of Kumari will be carried around in a procession. Kumari is believed to be the manifestation of the female energy of the cosmos, Devi or Durga (Ranjikar 1999). All Newar cities have a Kumari and in each city she will be carried along a path in a long procession, visiting all shrines of the major clans. By doing so the society is ritually connected to a whole: the various clans again are ritually connected to be parts of the city, be it Kathmandu, Bhaktapur or Patan. (Gutschow 1982) (Fig. 6.13).

6.13.1 Community Shrines In larger villages or towns there are wayside shrines or natural elements such as stones or trees which are assigned to the local community (Fig. 6.14). Each group, normally divided by caste affiliation has its own deity in this wayside shrine. Poojas, the prayers, are performed here regularly. These shrines are often difficult to recognise as such, since they be placed practically anywhere along the streets. Often, they are even situated in hotel car parks, and devotees take their offerings there. The shrines will be used for certain celebrations where the community comes together and thus the shrine promotes a sense of belonging to the group.

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Fig. 6.14 A neighbourhood shrine in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

6.13.2 Village Temples In small villages, particularly if no Brahmins live it the particular village, the village temple lies outside the village boundaries. Such a village temple might be located somewhere in nature and might consist simply of a path alongside which statues or figures of the deities are placed. In such a case none of the lower caste members should live too close to this temple (Begde 1978). The temple together with its trees is home of a goddess that exerts her powers over the villagers throughout the day (Kinsley 1986). These powers would be too strong for lower caste people and therefore the temple must be outside the village. One such example is the Ilangudi Ayyanar Forest Temple of Namunasamudram near Pudukkottai in Tamil Nadu. This temple lies in the forest near the village. From a path connecting the village and the temple a lane leads into the forest with a gateway marking the entrance to the temple (Fig. 6.15). From this temple gateway a path leads further into the forest lined with many brightly-painted sculptures. After some 200 m the path ends and opens up into a clearing which is then the main part of the forest temple. There a low platform made of stone serves as the main shrine of the temple. The sides of the platform are painted in red and white stripes, like the outer walls of the big temple complexes. Many images of the deities of the temple are placed there, and these deities are decorated with clothes, flowers and necklaces (Fig. 6.16). A priest is in charge of the temple and the poojas, the daily prayers, are performed regularly.

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Fig. 6.15 Gateway to the Ayyanar Forest Temple, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

Fig. 6.16 The sanctum sanctorium of the Ayyanar Forest Temple, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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In front of the Ilangudi Ayyanar Forest Temple entrance there is a water tank and beyond this the village premises begins. This setup creates a large distance between the residence of the village goddess and the human realm of the villagers to secure that the realm of the goddess is not disrupted by humans. Further more no lower caste member should live too close to the temple, anyway.

6.14 The Underworld Cremation is a very important rite in Hinduism, much more so than in most other religions. Funeral rites help the dead to either end the circle of death and rebirth or to help them to be reborn into a better life, both desirable proceedings of the following life. For the bereaved on the other hand the death of their loved one brings solemn responsibilities. Even in normal times death is inauspicious and it is feared that just talking about death can cause death itself (Peyer 2002). At weddings, celebrations around the birth of a child and during temple rituals it is strictly forbidden to mention death at any time. When a death happens in a family all members of that family and their house are considered to be impure. Therefore utmost care is taken to re-establish purity of the place by performing several rites which can last up to a year (Gutschow 1982). When someone dies it is important that all the relatives have a chance to see the deceased person for a last time. Male relatives wash the body and dress and decorate it with flower garlands. Then the body is carefully seated on a chair or laid down on a bare (Siebert 2011). If the dead did not die in the house of his family the corpse must be brought there. Once the body has been prepared for viewing the family mourners arrive and then all the relatives pray in front of the body. After a number of further rites have been performed the body is carried out of the house and the sons and their wives walk around the body three times. The women then stay behind turning away from the deceased and will not look at the body any more. In the house several further rites must be performed in order to re-establish purity and thereafter the deceased should not be mentioned again (Siebert 2011). However throughout the following year (depending on the region and the particular rites) the women, especially the widow, and the sons of the household will have to perform several rites to overcome the phase of impurity (Gutschow 1982). Meanwhile, the men, normally the sons, put the body onto a vehicle and take it to the cremation ground along a predetermined route: not all streets may be used and as mentioned above there is a special gate in the town walls whose only function is as a gateway for the dead to pass through (Gutschow 1982). All the way from the house to the cremation ground rice and other seeds are thrown onto the body (Siebert 2011). The men will take great care to turn the corpse around three times at each junction they meet; this is important as it prevents the spirit of the dead finding its way back to the house of the living (Fig. 6.17). Cremation grounds vary greatly in size and location. Cremation ghats alongside one of the important rivers of India, such as the Ganges or Yammuna, or a tributary

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Fig. 6.17 Male members bring their deceased to the cremation ground. All the way from home to the cremation ground they scatter flowers. Source Author

river, are particularly valued. In this respect, being cremated in Banaras is most desirable, since there the Ganges points exactly towards east here, the house of Indra. Furthermore, since Banaras is also the home city of Shiva, it is believed that for someone to be cremated in Banaras and for their ashes then to be thrown into the river will lead to the best possible afterlife which can be achieved (Eck 1989). Certainly, a cremation in Banaras is very expensive and only the very rich Brahmins and other twice-born can afford such a ceremony on one of the cremation grounds in Banaras. Either way, the ideal cremation ground should lie at a river, preferably alongside the Ganges River. The next best locations are rivers that are tributaries of the Ganges, because if the ashes of the dead person are thrown into the Ganges River, this will help them to leave the circle of birth and rebirth (Figs. 6.18 and 6.19). It is also important for each caste to have its own cremation ground and Brahmins in particular must be cremated with special care. Thus each community has its own cremation ground which always lies outside the city walls and should have a separate gate which is only used for cremations. Burning ghats are equipped in different ways: some have raised platforms made of stone and pavilions for the relatives to wait in until the body is burnt, while others are only sandy riverbanks with a few shrines around.

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Fig. 6.18 The deceased is washed in the river by his male relatives before the corpse is then transferred to the cremation platform. Pashupatinath, Nepal. Source Author

Fig. 6.19 Burning platform at the cremation ghats in Pashupatinath, Nepal. Source Author

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Fig. 6.20 Cremation site in a rural area, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

Inland, where there is no river nearby, the cremation ground will just be a space outside the village where the bodies are burnt and their ashes then handed over to the relatives, normally the oldest son, who will take the ashes to the river, preferably one whose waters flow into the Ganges (Fig. 6.20).

6.15 Conclusions In this chapter the elements of the built environment that shape and make up Indian cities were described. Traditional villages and towns in particular are still built according to the planning rules. The distribution of castes into quarters designated for them is planned to this day. The respective quarters are still lively centres of the community that resides there. Each neighbourhood is equipped with markets, water points, and shrines, so that everything the community needs for daily life is in close proximity. In addition to the facilities for the neighbourhood there are also public facilities that are available for the entire city. These include large water reservoirs, bathing ghats and temples dedicated to the entire city. They also include cremation grounds located in the outskirts of villages or towns, preferably by a river. Needless to say there are markets, temples, and places of worship all over the world. But the particular appearance and specific location of the urban elements inscribed in an overarching city mandala is unique to India.

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References Ananth P (2014) Panchayati Raj in India. J Educ Soc Policy 1(1), June 2014 Aparna (2007) Pakka Ghat in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh: spatial expression of gender identity in a public place. In: Desai M (ed) Gender and the Built Environment in India. Zubaan, an imprint of Kali for Women, New Delhi Ayyar C P V (1994) Town planning in Ancient Dekkan. Asian Educational Services, New Delhi Begde P (1978) Ancient and Medieval Town-planning in India. Sagar Publ, New Delhi Bharne V, Krusche K (2012) Rediscovering the Hindu Temple: the sacred architecture and urbanism in India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne Bianca S (2000) Urban form in the Arab world. Past and present. Thames & Hudson, London Bornberg R (2016) Water and its Profane and Spiritual Meaning. In: Rieger-Jandl A, Doubrava I (eds) Traditional Architecture on Qeshm Island/Persian Gulf, Iran. IVA-ICRA, Vienna Bühnemann G (2003) Mandala, Yantra and Cakra: Some observations. In: Bühnemann G (ed) Mandalas and Yantras in the Hindu tradition. Brill, Leiden, Boston, pp 13–56 The Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act (1992) Part IX The Panchayats. https://www. india.gov.in/my-government/constitution-india/amendments/constitution-india-seventy-thirdamendment-act-1992. Accessed 10 Dec 2020 Dagens B (2007) Mayamatam. Treatise of housing, architecture and iconography. Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi, and Motilal Banarsidass Publishers PVT. DLT., Delhi Das AK (2007) Urban planning in India. Rawat Publications, Jaipur, New Delhi Dey SK (1961) Panchayat-i-Raj. Asia Publishing House, London Dumont L M (1976) Gesellschaft in Indien. Die Soziologie des Kastenwesens. Europa Verlag, Wien Dutt BB (1977) Town planning in Ancient India. New Asian Publishers, Delhi Eck D (1989) Banaras. Insel Verlag, Frankfurt/ Main, Stadt des Lichts Goel M (2007) Spatial segregation in house form. In: Desai M (ed) Gender and the built environment. Zubaan, an imprint of Kali for Women, New Delhi Gupta R R (2013) The courtyard house of Maharashtra. National Institute of Advanced Studies in Architecture, New Delhi Gutschow N (1982) Stadtraum und Ritual der newarischen Städte im Kathmandu-Tal. W. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart, Berlin, Köln, Mainz Jain M (2011) The India they saw. Foreign accounts: 16th–17th centuries. Vol. III. Ocean Books Pvt. Ltd, New Delhi Kinsley DR (1986) Hindu goddesses: visions of the divine feminine in the Hindu religious tradition. University of California Press, Berkely, California Lautmann V (ed) (2017) The vanishing stepwells of India. Merrell, London, New York Peyer N (2002) Death and Afterlife in a Tamil Village. LIT Verlag, Münster, Discourse of low caste women Pieper J (1974) Die anglo-indische Station. PhD thesis RWTH Aachen, Aachen Rao M S A (1974) Urban sociology in India. Orient Longman, New Delhi Ranjikar S B (1999) Kumari. The virgin goddess. Book Faith India, Delhi, Jaipur Schumann H W (2001) Die grossen Götter Indiens. Grundzüge von Hinduismus und Buddhismus. Hugendubel, Kreuzlingen (et al.) Shamasastry R (1961) Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Mysore Printing and Publishing House, Mysore Siebert S (2011) Kaste, Karma, Kremation. Die soziale und kulturelle Dimension des Todes in Nordindien. Tectum Verlag, Marburg Simons F (1998) Plants of life, plants of death. The University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wisconsin Singh R (2009) Cosmic order and cultural astronomy: sacred cities of India. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014a) Rani-ki-Vav (the Queen’s Stepwell) at Patan, Gujarat. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/922. Accessed 8 Dec 2020

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UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2014b) Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam. https:// whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5894/. Accessed 9 Nov 2016 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2016) The Persian Qanat. http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/ 1506/. Accessed 8 Nov 2020

Chapter 7

Episode 5: Gods and the City

Abstract The worship of the gods still plays an important role in India today. As already explained in the previous chapters the spatial arrangement of temples and shrines played a central role in the worship of gods. The underlying mandalas represent the connection from the divine world to the human world. Especially when temples are built the city is therefore included in the planning process, which is the topic of this chapter. After basic considerations about the design of temples the connection between city and temple is explained here by drawing on three important temple cities, namely Varanasi, Madurai and Srirangam. Varanasi was chosen, because it is until today the most important pilgrimage site for Hindus. In Madurai, the ancient city was dominated by the temple, and although the town walls were demolished in the nineteenth century the original layout of the city is not only visible in the layout of the town, the sacred routes and structures are still used by the inhabitants. Finally, Srirangam is discussed as a planned city. In this case the temple walls surround not only the temple precinct itself but also the residential quarters of the Brahmins in particular. Keywords Hindu temples and design of cities · Varanasi · Madurai · Srirangam

7.1 Introduction Religious buildings have a special significance in all cultures of the world which is also reflected spatially: Religious buildings are often located in the centre of a settlement or at places that are important in the performance of certain rites. In Hinduism temples are located in the centre of mandalas, i.e. in the city centre. The examples discussed here show that the city centre cannot be occupied by commoners as a place to live, regardless of caste or position in the state—but only by the deities who are worshipped here. This stems from the idea that the holy of holies of a temple represents the axis between heaven and earth. From this axis emanates a strong energy that affects the surrounding city: only high-ranking Brahmins can live near the temples, who are the only people who can cope with the strong energy of the celestial energy. Therefore, in the important temple cities not only the temple precincts are built according to the planning guidelines of the Shilpa Shastras but © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_7

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also the surrounding city. This is shown by the example of Varanasi, probably the most important pilgrimage city in India. The second example is Madurai in Tamil Nadu where the city layout is subordinate to the Meenakshi Amman Temple, an important pilgrims’ destination to this day. The last example is Srirangam, a city with an outer temple walls already contain the residential quarters of the high castes. The three examples illustrate how strictly mandalas, which often represent more of a theoretical framework in urban planning, were transferred into the built city.

7.2 Gods and Their Place on Earth Worshipping the gods is still an important issue throughout India. Daily poojas, the prayers and offerings for a deity, are performed at home or at a shrine (Padfield 1908). At temples poojas are performed at several times a day, depending on the deity. All gods take on human form and emotions when they are on earth; they can get angry, fall in love or are hungry. Therefore they need to be looked after and devotees have to bath, feed, dress or ornament the image of the deity with flower garlands (Harshananda 1979). There are house deities who are the guarding spirits of a family, others that protect a neighbourhood and finally deities who spread their powers over a whole city or even over the whole Indian subcontinent (Doninger 2009). All these deities must be taken care of on a daily basis and on further special occasions throughout the year. The shrines of the deities vary in size, ranging from small house altars to large temple complexes as is the case with temples of the important pilgrimage sites (Eck 1981). Whatever the size or overarching significance of the site, these shrines and temples are all subject to rigorous planning. Temples are the seats of gods on earth and cosmic order is represented here, too. Temples are the symbol of the mythic Mount Meru that transcends space and time. The same way that Mount Meru is considered the centre of the universe so is the Hindu-temple (Bharne and Krusche 2012). Therefore special care must be taken in the planning of temples. A temple replicates the heavens and therefore reflects cosmic powers. The cosmic order is translated into parallels which characterise the universe and the human world. The link between the two realms is represented by a central axis that marks the centre of the temple and revolves the cosmos around this axis. The holy shrine which marks the centre of the temple thus serves as a communication link between the human world and heavens (Singh and Pravin 2006).

7.3 Constituents of Temples Temples have been cultural and religious centres from the very beginning of Hinduism. Temples were centres of education, philosophical and religious dispute as well as prayers and offerings. Soon after Hinduism became a major religion in

7.3 Constituents of Temples

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Fig. 7.1 Mahishasura Marthini caves from the seventh century CE, Pallava Dynasty in Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

northern India temples were built all over the Indian subcontinent and thus facilitated the spreading of Hinduism throughout the Indian subcontinent (Harshananda 1979). However, there is no precise knowledge of the first Hindu temples since they were built of perishable materials such as earthen constructions, timber, leaves, etc. (Singh 2009a, b). We can only infer how these early temples looked like by analysing temples such as the rock cut cave temple Mahishasuramardini Mandapa near Mahabalipuram (Fig. 7.1). It’s builders replicated in stone the elements that were originally made from perishable materials and from this it can be concluded what the original temples had looked like (Singh 2009a, b). A second source of the original outlook of temples are the planning treatises, where the constructions and layout of the different parts of temples are described in detail. There, the design of the images of gods, their shrines and portable seats, temple carts and floats are as well described in detail (Dagens 2007). Today there are local styles of temple design but the basic philosophy and the planning concepts of temples were salient ideas known throughout the entire subcontinent, from the early days until today. It is remarkable that the temple layout has hardly changed over the millennia, particularly when considering the vast dimensions of the Indian subcontinent. All temples follow a strict concept for representing cosmic order through their layout and architecture. Temples are always oriented towards the cardinal directions, following the pattern of a Vastu Purusha Mandala that inscribes the Cosmic Man that lies outstretched on the floor (Meister 2003) (Fig. 3.3). Temples are always oriented east to west, with the part representing the feet of the Cosmic Man in the east and his

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Fig. 7.2 The Sanctum Santorum with its gold plated roof, the Shikhara, and a gatewaytower, a Gopuram, Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

head in the west. Along the axis between the feet and the head are different “energy nodes” and, accordingly, there must be corresponding parts of the temple: the fire pit, the main shrine and the the main entrance (Harshananda 1979). Additionally, the four cardinal directions create the second framework of the temple and after all axis have been set the temple complex can be inscribed. The perfect temple would be square shaped because it is the shape of cosmic order (Michell 1977). However, hardly any of the temples has this shape because of landscape conditions or because they were extended over the centuries and there was not the space to form a perfect square. A temple does not comprise a single area but is subdivided into several concentric rectangles or “Prakramas”. Prakrama literally means “proceeding” or “stepping forward” (Wisdomlib 2021) and refers to the circumambulations that devotees will perform in a temple. In smaller temples there will be three Prakramas each enclosed by a wall, but in larger ones there can be up to seven. The innermost Prakrama contains the shrine of the main deity which is placed in the Garbhagriha. Above the Garbhagriha rises the “Shikhara” a dome like structure that represents the spire between the human world and universe. A Shikhara may follow a different layout. They can have the form of a small roof that is visible in the temple complex only as it is covered with gold others are towering turrets that taper upwards. However, the underlying principle which is immanent to all Shikharas is their perfect geometry and precision which symbolises the significance of the location (Michell 1977) (Fig. 7.2).

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Fig. 7.3 Temple elephant, blessing devotees. Kumbeshwara Temple, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

The Sanctum Sanctum Sanctorum, the “Garbhagriha”, is a narrow room without any openings apart from the entrance which is facing east to be entered by the rising sun. In its centre the image of the main deity is placed as well as a portable image of the deity which is used for processions (Harshananda 1979). A circular narrow path winds around the image such that only few people can stay inside at the same time. Another corridor surrounds the Garbhagriha which is used for further circumambulations (Michell 1977). The Garbhagriga and corridor are the first and innermost Prakrama which is separated from the second Prakrama by a wall in particular in South India. In the second Prakrama the main insignia of the divinity are display, as well as the flagpole that indicates if the image of the deity resides in the temple or is partaking a procession. A further element in this section of the temple is the treasury of the temple as well as one or more “Mandapas”. Mandapas are pillared pavilions for various uses such as resting of the devotees or areas for performances, storage spaces for temple chariots, or for the temple elephant or sacred cows, from where these animals are taken to the temple to bless devotees (Harshananda 1979) (Fig. 7.3). In the third Prakrama smaller Mandapas for dance and musical performances, for resting or for discussions of scholars with their students are located. The main temple water tank is placed here, too, which is used for the ritual baths of the deity. In previous centuries the water tanks were used for ritual cleansing of devotees before entertaining the sacred area of the temple, for prayers, offerings and for group rituals

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Fig. 7.4 Water tank inside a temple. Around the basin are steps towards the water. Ekambareswarar Temple, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

(Harshananda 1979) (Fig. 7.4). However, nowadays the temple tanks are often fenced off such that the masses of people (which also include tourists) cannot pollute the water body (Harshananda 1979). In the third Prakrama smaller shrines of associated deities can too be located and a small temple within the temple is secluded which is dedicated to the female companion of the main deity. Although this small temple lies in a distance to the main Garbhagriha believers consider it to be almost equally important as the main shrine. Finally, administrative facilities of the temple are too located in the third Prakrama, like temple kitchens, halls for eating, store rooms or the stables of the temple cows and elephants (Bharne and Krusche 2012). Temples need administration and maintenance. Over centuries, an elaborate hierarchic system was developed to ensure that all necessary duties in pursuit of temple maintenance were performed. In Medieval times the kings were the highest temple attendants. Below them were the high temple priests, the Rajagurus (Michell 1977). At the next level were the temple attendants who were in charge of a certain temple duty such as ensuring that all was clean, that the deities were washed and dressed, that rites were performed correctly, securing the inner sanctuary and so forth. Many of these functions have survived in their original form; some have just been modified. For example, in past centuries rich patrons were invited to donate for big ceremonies by post (Michell 1977). Nowadays the big temples have a website where devotees can donate or request a certain ritual to be performed on their behalf and for which they make a generous donation.

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7.4 Temple Rites A Hindu temple establishes a link between human beings and the celestial world: It is the place where the deity dwells on earth, to bless humans and to exert their powers over humans (Michell 1977). These powers help the devotee to overcome the circle of birth and rebirth. Hindus have four aims of life, the “Purusarthas”, that must be attained during a lifetime. Their first aim is to achieve “Dharma”, i.e. to understand order and duty. Secondly, there is “Artha”, material prosperity. “Kama” is the concept of love and enjoyment, but also deals with action and reactions. Finally, there is “Moksa”, the most important aim which is about self-knowledge (Potter 1963). Through rites and ceremonies human negative tendencies can be overcome, and the cycle of birth and rebirth can be overcome. The powers of a deity help to achieve the goals of the Purusarthas, and therefore temples are of paramount importance. Worshipping in temples must be regular because only so the deity will remain in the temple and not abandon it. Certain rites must be performed several times a day, the first just before sunrise, the next in the morning, then at noon, in the evening and the last one at night (Harshananda 1979). As highlighted above the images of the deities must be bathed, their clothes changed, must be anointed with “ghee”, clarified butter, or with sandalwood paste and all these tasks must be performed whilst music is played and prayers are chanted. The rites vary from temple to temple since they depend on the main deity who inhabits the temple (Harshananda 1979). Shiva, for example, must be awakened in the morning just like humans. His consort will be brought back to her Garbhagrha, her shrine, where she will remain throughout the day. Vishnu, on the other hand never sleeps; during the night he meditates. Therefore, in the morning he only needs to be reminded that the sun has risen. Accordingly, a completely different set of rites is required than for Shiva (Bharne and Krusche 2012). In addition to these daily prayers there are festivals. Some are performed on a regular basis others only once ever. Among the most important rites are those performed when a new temple is finally completed. There must be a consecration ceremony which introduces the deities to their new home and this is a very complex task that takes several days (Harshananda 1979). It starts with several offerings whereafter the image of the deity must be placed on a temple cart, a “Ratha” after the image was bathed, dressed and a sacred paste is smeared around the image (Fig. 7.5). Finally, the image will be brought in a long procession to the temple, all gates will be opened and finally the image will be placed in the shrine. The minor deities who shall also dwell in the same temple will have a similar procedure and finally the inauguration of the temple is completed. Only thereafter, it is believed that the deities have been successfully translocated to their new palace (Bharne and Krusche 2012). For the considerations in this book those temple festivals that take place in the urban realm are of particular importance. These festivals are celebrated at several occasions throughout the year, like celestial wedding anniversaries, the anniversaries of the inauguration day of the temple, the increase of the duration of the day or the end of the monsoon season (Fig. 7.6). During such celebrations, many of them lasting

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Fig. 7.5 A Ratha, a temple cart. Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

for several days, the images of the temple deities are taken from the temple and are carried on special temple carts along predescribed paths of the city. Fig. 7.6 A portable image of Ganesha, ready for a procession. Kumbeshwara Temple, Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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7.5 Ancient Gods and the City: Kashi, Varanasi Kashi, the sacred district of Varanasi, has been a spiritual centre for millennia because gods and goddesses of various pre-Vedic religions were worshipped there before the city became a centre of philosophy and religion in early Aryan times, around first millennium BCE (Eck 1989). The city has been ritually so important for such a long time because of its geographic location: the Ganga River is wide and makes a crescent-shaped turn and at the end of this turn the river points directly to the east towards the rising sun. The city lies between 12 and 21 metres above the water level on the left bank of the river. Accordingly, when the sun is rising the river seems to lead directly to heavens as well as towards the direction of Indra, the god of water (Eck 1989). Therefore, the area along the riverfront is called Kashi, “city of light” (Fig. 7.7). From archaeological findings we know that the first settlements date back to the twelfth or eleventh century BCE. It seems the inhabitants practised an animistic religion where natural elements such as trees or small rocks were worshipped, very much like today (Sharma 2014). Between 1400 and 1000 BCE Varanasi became one of the first Aryan cities in the Middle Ganga Valley. From the scripts of early Hindus but also Jains and Buddhists it is evident that the city was an important commercial centre which was secured against plundering by fortifications, moats

Fig. 7.7 An overview of the ghats alongside the Ganges River, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro

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and earthen walls (Eck 1989). In early Aryan times the city became the centre of one of the 16 tribal kingdoms but rulers did not impact the city in terms of building activities or establishing new rules and regulations for inhabitants. In Medieval and Early Modern times the city was often plundered and destroyed and rebuilt thereafter. In the following centuries many rulers tried to get Varanasi under their control but Varanasi maintained its status as a centre for philosophers, theologians and for education (Singh 1955). Even today Varanasi is famous for its medical sciences and its scholarship in philosophy and religion. It is one of the seven sacred cities where Moksa, self-knowledge, can be attained. The city holds this status since prehistoric times which is evident from the Vedic epics: Varanasi is already mentioned in the Mahabharata, one of the ancient epics written in Sanskrit (Eck 1989). Furthermore Varanasi is among the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. All important pilgrim sites of India have at least one myth about their foundation, and that is also the case in Varanasi. The most prominent founding legend tells that Shiva wanted a home for himself and his wife, Parvati, daughter of the Himalayas. After a long search he finally settled on Kashi, the area alongside the riverfront because of its already countless temples and palaces. Shiva sank his trident (one of his insignia) into the ground where it is still visible: there are three hills surrounding Kashi and these are taken as Shiva’s trident (Eck 1989). This myth reveals for two reasons that Varanasi was already an important town before the Aryans arrived. First, it is indicated that the city was already a vibrant place before Shiva chose the city to dwell in Kashi with his family. Secondly, a Shiva-like god was known in the Harappa culture (Wheeler 1960). As outlined in Chapter 4, the Harappa people went on towards the Gangetic Plain and brought along their culture (Lahiri and Sharma 2004).

7.5.1 Goddess Ganga In the Himalayas two rivers, the Bhagirathi and the Alaknanda, merge to become the Ganga. Mythologically, however, the glacier Gangroti in Uttarakhand, upstream of the Bhagirathi River, is considered to be the source of the Ganges (Kinsley 1986). The Ganges or Ganga then passes through gorge-like valleys of the Himalayas and then cuts through the Siwalik foothills before reaching the pilgrimage city of Haridwar which is the gateway to the Gangetic Plain. At Prayaga the Ganges joins the Yammuna and the mythical river Sarasvati. At Varanasi the Ganges makes a crescent turn and continues to flow towards east. It ends in the Bay of Bengal, where it flows into the sea. The fact that the river flows in an east–west direction for a long distance is of outstanding importance for Hinduism because it is the direction of the beginning of everything (Eck 1989).

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The River Ganga itself is also worshipped as a goddess (Fig. 7.8). The waters of the Ganga are considered to be a liquid version of Shakti, Shiva’s wife and vital force in the world (Kinsley 1986). But Ganga is also the wife of the other main gods: she is Brahma’s consort and accompanies him in a vessel and she is also a consort of Vishnu. Shiva’s relationship to the Ganga is the most intense one and it is said that Parvati, his wife, is often jealous (Kinsley 1986). It is believed that a bath in the River Ganges can bring absolution from previous sins. It is believed that if one dies in Varanasi one can be liberated from the circle of birth and rebirth Eck 1989. Therefore, people take a bath, draw water, scatter the ashes of the deceased into the river or make offerings of flowers or oil lamps that are placed on the river. The access to the river is provided by many different ghats which are platforms for various purposes and different castes. There are bathing ghats for pilgrims, others for monks, ascetics, or priests to perform rites and for discussions, there are ghats for each caste that lives in the city, as well as for outsiders (Eck 1989). Fig. 7.8 Image of Goddess Ganga. Mul Chowk, Patan Palace, Patan, Nepal. Source Author

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7.5.2 The Sacred Divisions of Varanasi Varanasi is situated on the west bank of the holiest of all Indian rivers, the Ganga or Ganges. The relationship between the sacred river and the city is the essence of Varanasi—‘the land of sacred light’. The Ganges is believed to have flown from heaven to wash away the worldly sins of mortals. Varanasi is roughly organised into a series of concentric rings (Fig. 7.9). The outermost ring of the city is encircled by the Panchakroshi Road which is the outermost pilgrim’s road. The land around Banaras is also held sacred since Shiva is believed to have lived here (Eck 1989). There are thousands of temples dedicated to different gods and goddesses particularly to the deities of good fortune and prosperity-and to the sun and the planets. The most important are those that honour the diverse manifestations and attributes of Shiva. Alongside the Panchakroshi Road, the outermost pilgrim’s road, 108 shines and small temples are placed that each have to be circumambulated in a clockwise direction. Since it is impossible to complete a whole circuit in a single day guesthouses called Dharamshalas are positioned at the terminus of each day’s stage. Traditionally the resting points have also water tanks nearby which were used by the pilgrims to bathe in before proceeding on their journey (Singh 2009a, b). The next smaller concentric ring is Varanasi. This part is the main part of the city, extending from Asi Ghat and circling around to the confluence of the Ganges and the Varuna. Alongside the ring road that encircles the area there are shrines and

Fig. 7.9 Structural map of Varanasi; Kashi, followed by Avimukta, then Varanasi. The red line indicates the Atargriha pilgrimage route. Source Author compilation. Not to scale

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temples that have to be visited by the pilgrims. Yet a smaller area, Avimukta, starts at Kedara Ghat in the south and ends at Trilochana Ghat. It is the next smaller ring after Varanasi, going inwards. Again, shrines and small temples are located alongside the boundary of this section (Eck 1989) that have to be circumambulated by pilgrims in a clockwise direction. Most important of all is Antargriha, the “Inner Sanctum” around the Vishwanatha Temple, which encompasses Dashashwamedha Ghat, Surya Kund, the lingam of Bharabhuta, and Manikarnika Ghat. The major shrine is the Vishwanath Temple, the abode of Lord Shiva, the most important of the trinity, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara, the Lords of this universe. Around this temple evolved the spiritual identity of Varanasi. This part is thus called Kahsi, the luminous one or the “city of the light” (Eck 1989). To the east, the city ends at the River Ganga. In geometric terms, the circle should continue on the other side of the river, however none of the pilgrim paths leads along the other side. It is even said that those who die on the eastern bank will be reincarnated as donkeys in their next life which everyone wants to avoid.

7.5.3 Spatial Elements of the City Banaras is the most sacred city for Hindus and thus would normally have been designed according to the Shilpa Shastras (see Chapter 2). However, the city is so old, and it was a sacred city for many different religions, such as Jainism and Buddhism, that it has many different cultural layers. Also, the city was conquered, destroyed, and looted several times (Eck 1989), which also adds to cityscape’s composite appearance. Therefore, the underlying mandala (see Chapter 2) is marked only by the shrines and temples which line the pilgrim routes, and the circular mandala is rather a mental map that devotees know about than a shape which can be deducted from the urban layout. Even the central element of the town, the Vishvanatha temple (Singh, Pravin 2006), is hardly recognisable as such in the urban realm. Akin to as the city not following the strict planning principles for such a sacred place, the layout of the residential quarters is blurred, too. On the one hand this relates to the fact that the city has grown over such a long period of time and on the other to the fact that many of the residents have only lived and continue to live in the city temporarily. Scholars and even more so the students came to Varanasi from all regions of India to conduct philosophical discourses and study religion (Eck 1989). However, many students and scholars returned to their old homeland after a short time (Singh 2009a, b). In addition, millions of pilgrims still pass through the city nowaday, which is a burden for residents of the city: neither can traditional quarters be implemented where each of them is a coherent unit on its own nor can the city as a whole follow the Vastu Purusha Mandala which would demand sections of highest purity being placed in the centre and the less pure regions being at the outskirts of the city. Too tight is the space, cramped with shrines, temples and ghats.

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For residents foreigners are yet another burden they have to cope with: thousands of pilgrims start their tours already early in the morning and end their circumambulations late at night. Therefore it is never quiet in Varanasi. But residents are also disturbed by the accommodations for tourists that are also placed within the core of the city. This, too, means stress for residents because their every day life is disturbed. The Ghats In Banaras there are 88 ghats; these include the platforms themselves but also larger areas with temples, shrines, pavilions, other smaller structures as well as elaborate stairways (Singh 2009a, b). The Kedar ghat, for example is one of the main ghats in terms of size, which is located in front of the Shri Kedareshwar Temple that rises high above the river bank at the end of the long hill which is thought to be the south fork of Shiva’s trident (Eck 1989) (Fig. 7.10). The outer wall of the temple and the flight of steps towards the river are painted in vertical red and white stripes which indicate that the temple is administered by priests from South India where it is common practice to paint walls of temples in red and white stripes. Past the temple the flight of steps leads to the water. The Kedar ghat is believed to be one of the most important bathing places of Varanasi because it is seen as one of the oldest ghats, not least because it is mentioned in the Puranas, a collection of ancient legends that are also mentioned in the Vedas and the Mahabharata (Enterria 2010). The hustle and bustle starts in the early morning when people proceed to the ghats for their morning bath. Then they scoop up water with their hands, raise their hands towards the sky and then let the Fig. 7.10 Kedar Ghat, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro

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water flow back into the river to symbolise that all water taken from the river will finally go back to the goddess Ganga (Singh 2009a, b). The Dashaswa Medth Ghat is the most important ghat because it is located at the Vishwanath Temple which is described below. It is the space where Brahma is said to have offered his sacrifices. Ritual offerings to the River Ganga are held every day at dusk and hundreds of people convene to witness the priests perform their rituals (Köckmann 1982). The most sacred of all ghats is the Manikarnika Ghat which lies almost in the middle of the Varanasi riverfront. The nearby shrine is particularly important for Shakti’s followers because it is believed that Shakti’s earrings fell to earth and were enshrined (Köckmann 1982). A sacred tank lies next to the ghat, and it is believed that this is where Vishnu performed his rites. It is also one of the two most important cremation ghats because believers say that Shiva guides the deceased towards heaven by speaking a mantra into their ears (Gohil 2020; Siebert 2011). Along the water’s edge, there are the burning ghats (Fig. 7.11). The water of the River Ganges is seen as the “nectar” of immortality and if the body of the deceased comes in contact with the water of the river new life is given to him or her. For those who do not die in Kashi it is important to be at least cremated here because the presence of Shiva helps them to be freed immediately (Eck 1989). Therefore relatives will bring the ashes of their loved ones here and pour them into the river. Interestingly while cremation grounds normally lie outside the city boundaries and far off the human settlement, this is different in the case of Varanasi as the burning ghats lie next to the residential areas and as temples. Even more the most sacred burning ghat, the Manikarnika Ghat, associated with Goddess Parvati, Lord Shiva’s

Fig. 7.11 Burning ghat at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Source Alain Viaro

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wife, lies in the centre of the shoreline of Varanasi. This is to do with the fact that the sacred sites were there first and the city having developed around them. The Vishvanatha Temple Varanasi’s most important temple is the Vishvanatha Temple because it houses the most important Shiva Linga, which has been around for at least 1000 years, according to Sanskrit texts (Eck 1989). In terms of appearance, however, the temple appears to be very small. Over the centuries the temple was repeatedly destroyed, looted and rebuilt such that the architectural style of the building falls far short of the expected architectural design. After the last Muslim invasions in the sixteenth century, the temple was partially destroyed and partly converted into a mosque. Today the mosque is much more prominent in the city scape than the temple. The much smaller Vishvanatha temple stands on the site of the previous temple, but the space is very narrow. Although it is comparatively small, narrow and crowded, it is one of the main pilgrimage centres and approximately 25 000 pilgrims daily visit the temple (Eck 1989). In front of the temple whose main entrance is in the narrow and busy Vishwanatha Galli street many shops sell all the items that pilgrims need for their visit to the temple: silk, incense sticks, sweets, betel and oil lamps for the pooja rites inside the temple (Sherring 1868). In the centre of the temple the main shrines are located. The most important element of the temple is the shrine of the Shiva linga. It is located below ground level and placed in a square basin made of silver; the upper part of the linga is made of black stone. The central shrine has one central dome and two towers, the “Shikharas”, and dome and towers are covered with pure gold. The dome and towers together represent Shiva’s trident (Sherring 1868). Adjacent to the central shrine there are a number of other shrines belonging to other gods such as Ganesha, Devi, Vishnu and many others. At the back of the temple grounds, north of the temple complex, lies the “Well of Wisdom”, the “Jnana Vapi” which is some three meters in diameter. It is one of the main sites within the temples because for pilgrims it is essential to drink from the well at the beginning and at the end of a pilgrimage. For their convenience the well is covered by a pavilion, a Mandapa (Eck 1989).

7.6 Goddess and the City: Madurai The city of Madurai lies in today’s Tamil Nadu, in the south-east of the Indian peninsula. It is the oldest city in South India being more than 2500 years old and one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in the world. The original settlement was most probably a small village in the Kadambaram forest which is described in ancient Tamil verses and is also mentioned in Kautilya’s Arthashastra (Krishnan 2017) dating between second century BCE to third century CE (Fig. 7.12). The ancient city was a walled fortress, the ruins of which are still visible on the north bank of the Vakai River. Some of the old streets, such as the Veli Street are still

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Fig. 7.12 Structural map of Madurai with the Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple in the centre. Source Author compilation, not to scale

part of the city and are a reminder of the old fortress with its walls and four main gates. The centre of the town is occupied by the Meenakshi Amman Temple one of the oldest and richest Hindu temples in India. Today, Madurai is the third largest city in Tamil Nadu with a population 1.766.000 people in 2021 (Macrotrends 2022). Historically the city was always strategically important and a succession of rulers conquered the city. It was the capital and centre of the Pandya Kingdom and later conquered by the Medieval Cholas again later it was the Madurai Sultanate. After that it was conquered by the Vinjayangar Empire, the Madurai Naykas kings and finally it was occupied by the British (Krishnan 2017). Of all these different rulers the Pandyas were most influential in terms of the spatial and intellectual development of the city. When the Pandyas conquered the city around 300 BCE Madurai was already a well-known religious centre and as soon as the Pandyas came to power they made Madurai the centre of their kingdom which encompassed the entire tip of the peninsula (Narajanan 2017). The Pandya kings were patrons of many different arts such as music, dance or literature, particularly Vedic rites. They worshipped Vedic gods and Shiva in particular. Their emblem was a carp which is connected to the myth of Meenakshi, the carp-eyed goddess, the patron of Madurai. (Ganesan 2013).

7.6.1 Meenakshi Myths In Hinduism all matter is the feminine manifestation of the supreme creator of the world, the highest goddess. The world itself is one form of her, represented by earth, rivers and nature. Therefore all villages and cities are an aspect of the goddess who

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manifests herself in the village but also within all humans living within her realm. People in this realm are inside her body and the goddess chooses whom she manifests herself in more intensely than in others (Kinsley 1986). Therefore each city or village is not only the place where a goddess settles and spreads her “fiery” energy to all human beings; humans are all an integral part of her embodiment. The main goddess of Madurai is Meenakshi, the carp-eyed girl and sister of Vishnu who inherited her empire from her father. Carps produce immense numbers of eggs and symbolise fertility, nurturing but also fighting. When a goddess is carp-eyed she is most beautiful and erotic though also being fierce. Like the fish Meenakshi never blinks. She was born with three breasts and it was foretold that she would lose one as soon as she meets her true husband (Hudson 2010). She was a warrior queen and conquered many regions until she stepped into Shiva’s realm. As soon as she stood in front of Shiva she lost one breast and she knew she had found the right husband. Shiva made Meenakshi stay home in Madurai thereafter and so she was transformed from the warrior queen into a loving wife (Bharne and Krusche 2012). Meenakshi on the other hand made Shiva live in Madurai (Hudson 2010). The second important story is that of Alagar, an avatar of Vishnu and Meenakshi’s brother. Alagar was tricked by Indra, who delayed him so he was late for his sister’s wedding. When he arrived the city walls were already closed and he and his entourage could not enter. This was an affront because not only was he an important god he was also the brother of the bride and therefore in charge of giving his sister away to her husband (Narajanan 2017). However, Shiva often acts impulsively (Schumann 1996). This made Alagar angry with Shiva and after sending a wedding present to his sister he left the city. At Vandiyur, a small town some twenty kilometres away, he made camp with his followers and spent the night there. The next day Meenakshi and Shiva came to see him at his camp after their wedding celebration was over (Narajanan 2017). Both stories reveal a lot about historic events. Firstly, they reveal that the Pandyas came to the city when it was already a well-known city with an important temple. Also by associating the Pandya kings with descendants of Shiva, they attempted to legitimise their status and their taking over the city (Narajanan 2017). The local population living in the area was then excluded from the city and this is shown by the second part of the legends: Vishnu is too late for his sister’s wedding and must camp outside the city walls. Since Vishnu is the conserver, calm and wise (Schumann 1996), he obeys Shiva. This event is still celebrated in Madurai at the Chirhirai festival: Each year the city gates are closed such that nobody can enter or leave for the entire time of the wedding of the two gods. The statues of the gods are taken around the city in their carriages. After the celestial wedding the images of the gods are taken to the Kallazhagar temple which lies at the foot of the Azhagar Hills, some 20 km north of the city centre: the place that is believed that Alagar and his followers had camped (Narajanan 2017).

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7.6.2 The Townscape When the Pandyas came to Madurai the city already had its present-day shape which was considered to be the perfect lotus, the symbol of Brahma and Vishnu and the symbol of the centre of the universe (Schumann 1996). In Hindu believes the lotus gives birth to time and space and so was Madurai seen as the metonym for the celestial lotus on earth, inasmuch as Brahma emerged from a lotus and expanded from there. The Pandyas saw themselves as the descendants of the celestial couple and believed to rightly rule over the city. The Pandyas imagined that, as much as out of the self-born Lotus Brahma created time and space at Madurai, the kings created their kingdom from this city (Ganesan 2013). With Meenakshi manifesting herself in all the city’s buildings she expressed her powers through the kings (Hudson 2010). However, not the palace of the Pandya kings occupies the centre (although it is not clear where their palace once was located (Vandhana 2013), but the Meenakshi Amman temple. The square-shaped temple district is surrounded by walls that divide the temple precinct from adjacent residential areas. There are four concentric main roads arranged like the petals of a lotus: Chittrai Street, Avani Mula Street, Masi Street and Veli Street, each of these four major streets being named after the month during which the main festivals are celebrated on them (Krishnan 2017). Again, this is a ritual pattern that links urban space and celestial universal powers. The entire old city is laid out in concentric squares that are connected by radial roads. This is in line with the strict adherence to the Shilpa Shastras. The temple precinct is enclosed by walls that are painted in vertical red and white stripes and a ring road encloses the whole area. No buildings or structures are attached to this wall (Narajanan 2017). As is the case elsewhere the areas closest to the temple walls are the quarters of the high priests and Brahmins and these areas are also enclosed by walls. The next area is occupied by the other castes set out according to strict rules as described in Chapter 3. Until 1857 the whole city was enclosed by high walls and a moat (Vandhana 2013). Today the moat and walls are covered by rows of houses and only on the foundations of the former ring roads and the boundaries of the old town are recognisable. This way the new city blends in with the old and one cannot tell the difference between both. However, for Madurai’s inhabitants the old city boundaries are revived by the temple ceremonies that take place in the streets and when devotees circumscribe the city on prescribed routes that follow the old city boundaries (Fig. 7.13). Adjacent to the temple are the quarters of the high-caste members (Fig. 7.14). The entrances of these quarters are oriented towards the temple and do not follow the cardinal directions, as would be prescribed in the planning treatises (for more details see Chapter 3). Nearly all the buildings have shops at the ground floor, and items offered for sale include betel, fruit, flower garlands and other items used for rituals and ceremonies. Today souvenir shops have also been incorporated into the blend (Fig. 7.15). Further away are other markets for meat, fish, dried products, vegetables and items for everyday use and shops selling clothing. Electronics can also be found in

170 Fig. 7.13 A gateway tower, Gopuram. Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai. Source Author

Fig. 7.14 Brahmin houses adjacent to the temple walls. Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

Fig. 7.15 Shops on the ground floor of Brahmin houses. Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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the same area. This part of Madurai is inhabited by the lower castes. As mentioned in a previous chapter, the lowest castes lived adjacent to the town walls, and the Dalit, the untouchables, lived beyond the city gates. Since the homes close to the temple were (and often still are) inhabited by members of the higher castes, their homes were also allowed to be larger and higher than the houses of other caste members. Today, the spatial distribution is not as strict as it used to be and the population is more mixed than before, since the original city has expanded and all castes have settled in the new areas. In some cases high-caste members have moved out from their original area and let their old homes to newcomers to the city. Between the old city core and the river there used to be cremation ghats, a separate one for each caste. The corpses were burnt and their ashes were then scattered into the river. Around the ghats were some shrines, and the huts of those Dalit, who are responsible for cremations. However, in the past few decades the city has grown on both sides of the river and the old ghats now lie in the middle of the contemporary city so the cremation grounds were moved just beyond the new city boundaries.

7.6.3 Spatial Elements of the City The Meenakshi Amman Temple The most prominent and important part of Madurai is still the Meenakshi Amman temple which marks the centre of the old town. It is oriented east to west and forms a near-square. It follows the Vastu-Purusha Mandala with the cosmic man lying outstretched on the ground with his feet pointing east, where the entrance is located and his head lies in the west, where the main shrine of Shiva is located. The temple complex, which has three “Prakaras”, concentric square, is enclosed by six metres high walls with a “Gopuram”, a gateway tower. The Gopurams point towards each of the cardinal direction and is located in the centre of each side (Narajanan 2017) (Fig. 7.16). The imagined connecting lines between the Gopurams form the main axis of the temple. The most important Gopuram with the main entrance lies in the east. At the intersection of the main axis lies the main shrine of Sundareshvara (Shiva), which has a gold-plated roof. To the south is the Meenakshi shrine. Both shrines are enclosed by walls with Gopurams in the centre of each side. The temple tank with a golden lotus flower (Vishnu’s icon) and a Lingam (symbol of Shiva, Fig. 7.17) in its centre is also very important. Mandapas are placed where they are needed and host the chariots and other items that are needed for the temple festivals and daily rituals. The “Thousand pillars Mandapa” occupies a large part of the temple complex and is a broad, long corridor leading to a shrine representing Shiva as the cosmic dancer (Narajanan 2017). The temple has also shrines and Mandapas of minor gods, the temple tree which is always an important element of all temples and then temple kitchens, storage spaces, cowsheds and the like.

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Fig. 7.16 Gateway tower of the Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

The Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal The original palace of the Pandyas no longer exists and furthermore it is not clear where exactly it was located. However, it must be assumed that it was close to the Meenakshi temple district. The palace which still exists was built in 1636 by Thirumalai Nayak and lies south of the temple district, outside the ancient city walls and south of the sacred city. Such a location is very unusual in that normally a southbound direction is associated with death, evil and the underworld. However, for whatever reason this spot was identified as being the perfect site for the palace (Fig. 7.18). The Nayaks ruled from 1545 to 1740 but in the eighteenth century they left Madurai for their old capital, Tiruchirapalli. Much of the old palace in Madurai was torn down and materials, interiors, ornaments, jewels and gold plates were removed to be reused in the new palace (Shekar 2019). The Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal lay in ruins until the mid-nineteenth century when the British governor of Madras set out about restoring whatever possible (Fig. 7.19). It is believed that the original palace complex was four times larger than the site it occupies today, with twelve metres high walls surrounding an area of 300 by 220 metres (Department of Archaeology 2020). The original palace had two residential areas, one with the meeting courtyard, the theatre, and the royal bandstand and the other with the palace shrine, the harem, and the private chambers (Department of Archaeology 2020).

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Fig. 7.17 A Lingam, Meenakshi Sundareshwarar Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

7.6.4 The New City Development The population has risen significantly in recent decades, so that new settlement areas are also located across the river. In 1866 the city had 46,000 inhabitants and by 2011 Greater Madurai’s population today was 1,766,000 people (Macrotrends 2022). The city outside the ancient walls follows contemporary concepts of urban design, influenced by western and international styles. On the one hand traffic planning follows mainly motorised traffic which results in high (sometimes as high as 40 cm) pavements, and these are almost everywhere in bad condition: there are large holes in it or the slabs covering the pavements are tilted or pushed aside. Thus for pedestrians it is difficult to walk along although the majority of people walk. However, the traditional concept of neighbourhood units still exists. Building plots are narrow and long and accessible from the streets. The courtyard houses are placed back-to-back, leaving no gap between neighbouring homes. This pattern can be found in the whole city, be it the old town or the new city. Also, the differentiation between the plots of high caste families and lower caste families is apparent in the city: in Brahmin quarters some 50 persons per hectare dwell, whilst in the poor neighbourhoods is 600 and more persons per hectare live (Rao 1999). The neighbourhoods are still used in the traditional way, with the street in front of the houses

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Fig. 7.18 The central courtyard of the Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author Fig. 7.19 The Royal Audience Hall, Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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Fig. 7.20 Perumal Koli Water Tank, Madurai, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

as a semi-private area for the families living here. Neighbourhood shrines are located just where there is appropriate space for such a small shrine which can even be on a car park of a hotel. In the new areas of Madurai large water tanks were built and they are still in use because not all of the houses have running water (Fig. 7.20), particularly in the quarters of the lower castes. Today, nearly half of the population (400 000 people out of a total of 1.016 000) were dependent on the water of the tanks at the last census in 2011 (Census of India 2011). Unfortunately, the Vaigai River and the tanks are polluted these days and many diseases such as malaria or dengue fever are spread (Rao 1999).

7.6.5 Ritual and the City In the Madurai region there are more than 300 temples, Hindu temples being the most important ones. But next to Hinduism a number of other religions are practised: Islam, Christianity, Jainism and the natural religions of the five “Tinais”, the natural regions of Madurai country with their many gods (Ganesan 2013). Religion is still very much part of life in Madurai and woven throughout its urban fabric, also because there are many religions festivities celebrated in the city. The most famous of the celebrations is the Cittirai (Chittira) festival which takes place during the hottest part of the summer and which lasts for twelve days. Pilgrims

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from villages and further afield flock to Madurai for the festival. As soon as the flags are hoisted the city gates are closed and no one is allowed to leave the city until the celebrations are over (Ganesan 2013). This festival commences with the marriage of Meenakshi and Lord Sundareswarar/Shiva and the transformation of Meenakshi from a warrior queen into a domestic wife (Bharne and Krusche 2012). After the celestial wedding Meenaksi is crowned and taken along predescribed paths through the town. As soon as the transformation and crowning ceremonies are over, all move to the foot of the Azhagar Hills, that lie some 20 km north of Madurai. Here, the meeting between Vishnu (he was too late for the wedding of his sister; see above) and the bride and bridegroom takes place (Hudson 2010). With this the three gods are unified. But it is also perpetuating the historic event: that the Pandaya kings conquered the city and subjugated the residents of the surrounding villages. With the ceremony, the two groups (citizens and villageres) are ritually connected.

7.7 The Ideal City: Srirangam Srirangam is an island which is formed by the Cauvery River and the Kollidam River and is today part of Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu. A shrine was already in place in Srirangam in the fifth century CE, but it was forgotten for several decades until the Cholas chose Uraiyur (now part of the Metropolitan area of Tiruchirappalli) as their capital (Beck 2006). In this time the Cholas transformed the shrine into a temple of Vishnu. In the fourteenth century Chola power declined and the region fell under the dominion of the Pandyas and soon after the temple and city were plundered by the Delhi Sultanate. But the Padyas could re-establish Hinduism and the destroyed structures were rebuilt and soon after. The temple once again became a religious and philosophical centre (Nayagam 1970) and has upheld its spiritual significance until today (Kuppuram 1988) (Fig. 7.21). The area is also significant because of a second temple which is located in Tiruchirapalli, a city separated from Srirangam only by the Cauvery River. Close to the riverfront is a prehistoric rock, 88 metres high and on top of it are the Ucchi Pillayar Temple and the Thayumanaswami Temple (Fig. 7.22), dedicated to Shiva. The area around this so called Rock Fort is one of the oldest inhabited cities of Tamil Nadu and was a centre for philosophy and religion for Jains (the word “palli” refers to a Jaina residential and worship settlement). Traces of the first settlers can be dated back to the second millennium BCE. (Kuppuram 1988).

7.7.1 The Townscape The layout of temple towns follows the strictest Mandalas (see Chapter 3), because of their spiritual importance. They should be as close to square-shaped as possible.

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Fig. 7.21 Schematic map of Srirangam. Clearly visible are the concentric rings of the city. Source Author compilation, not scaled

Fig. 7.22 The Rock Fort temple of Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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The temple forms the centre and often occupies the largest part of a town and quite often the temple was built before residential quarters were added. As is shown in the case of Madurai the city develops around the temple site. The example of Srirangam makes the overarching importance of the temple within a city even clearer for the town is a planned one and has changed little since Medieval times (Fig. 7.23). Srirangam is well known because of its seven Prakaras, enclosures, that in this case not only include the temple area but also the ancient city (UNESCO Tentative List 2014). Thus the distinction between the temple district and residential area is blurred. The innermost five Prakaras are occupied by the temple and each one is cordoned off by a wall. The outermost wall of the temple district is painted in red and white stripes indicating the holiness of the area. Accordingly, no structures are attached to the wall around which a strip of grass is placed (Somasundaram 1965). The temple district is encircled by the first and innermost ring road, the North, East, South, and West Uthrai Street. Around the Uthrai Street lies the first residential quarter of high Brahmins (Fig. 7.24). The plots of the houses are comparable narrow and long, having a depth of approximately 35 metres to the south, west, and north, and up to 60 metres to the east because this is the most sacred area to live and therefore only rich and high Brahmin families can dwell here. Many of the houses are still traditional courtyard houses with a porch facing the street. In some of the houses shops are located that sell precious goods such as jewellery, books, silk sarees as well as offerings for the temple. Fig. 7.23 A view from one gateway tower, a gopuram, to the next. Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

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Fig. 7.24 Brahmin houses alongside the Chittari Street, the innermost ringroad, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

The whole Prakara or enclosure is again encircled by a wall, which separates the house plots between the sixth Prakara and the next, the seventh Prakara. The seventh Prakara has again a circular road from where the houses that are located on both sides of the street can be accessed. Also this Prakara is mainly inhabited by Brahmin families. Their houses are courtyard houses, too, that are erected on plots of approximately 30 m length. The back of the houses of the seventh Prakara is again separated from the eighth Prakara by a wall that embraces the whole enclosure. In the eighth Prakara there are two, in some areas also three ringroads that divide the houseplots. Many houses are smaller than in the other enclosures, but also here many Brahmin families live. The reason for the exceptionally large number of neighbourhoods inhabited by Brahmins results from the fact that in an important temple town, such as Srirangam, a considerably high number of Brahmin families live who serve in the temple (Subramaniam 1974). Beyond the outermost enclosure the outer districts of Srirangam are less strictly planned. Outside the city walls are residential quarters that grew steadily. To the north, however the city could only grow up to the Kollidam Flood Bank Road since the land beyond is very prone to flooding. To the south, the side of the Cauvery River, houses are built very close to the river. West of the outer walls of Srirangam are mainly coconut fields with only a few farm houses here and there. The city sprawled most to the east and this area is now of equal size as the walled city. The residential quarters lie between the railway line and a motorway, which ends in a bridge and leads towards the town of Tiruchirappalli, also called Trichy. As mentioned above, each of the Prakarams (the enclosures of the temple as well as of the residential quarters) is enclosed by a high wall and access is only possible via large gateway towers, the “Gopurams”. These gateway towers are placed in the middle of each side of the dividing walls. The highest towers are placed in the outer city walls and the smallest Gopurams are located in the wall of the innermost, first Prakaram which encircles the main shrine of the temple. Thus, a view from the

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outermost part of the city shows a row of towers descending in size towards the city centre and the main shrine. The towers are also an aid for orientation such that the shrine can be located from any point in the old town. Beyond the western side of the outermost city walls lies the Sri Rangam Pond which is used by pilgrims for ritual bathing before entering the main temple but also for temple festivals. The Sri Rangam Pond is connected via the West Gate Street one of the main streets that leads into the city, accentuated by the western Gopurams.

7.7.2 The Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple For the faithful the island setting of Srirangam (as outlined above, Srirangam is an island formed by the Cuahvery River and the Kollidam River) is more than just a city with a large temple complex but refers to the main deity of the temple: Vishnu. He is normally depicted lying on the world’s snake, Shesha, who forms a bed for him and swims in the primordial ocean of chaos. Srirangam’s natural setting echoes this image: an island in one of the most ritually important Indian rivers (Younger 1993). The Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple is also one of the 108 “Divya Desams” (temples that are dedicated to Vishnu and mentioned in the works of saints) and therefore the temple is an important pilgrim centre (UNESCO Tentative List 2014). Fig. 7.25 The Sanctum Sanctorum with the gold plated roof. Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

The temple complex embraces the five inner Prakaras, enclosures (Fig. 7.25). The innermost is occupied by the central shrine around which a circular path is located. In the next Prakara many small shrines are lined alongside the corridors that are dedicated to less important deities (Younger 1993). These two enclosures are solely for high-caste Hindus; members of other castes are not allowed to enter this area. The third Prakara is mainly used for the preparations for the worship: this is where the large temple kitchens, the granaries and storage spaces are located as well as spaces

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Fig. 7.26 Image of Garuda, Sri Ranganatha Swamy Temple, Srirangam, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu

for the temple chariots and two temple tanks, the moon and the sun tank, both used for ritual purposes (Younger 1993). Finally, there is a “Mandapa”, a pillared hall, for Garuda, Vishnu’s animal mount. This Mandapa is in the axis of the temple directly in front of the shrine to show that Garuda is always ready to carry Vishnu (Fig. 7.26). The fourth Prakara is the largest area and used to be the area of worship for the lower castes. Here is also the Thousand Pillar Mandapa (although in actual fact there are only 953 pillars) (UNESCO Tentative List 2014) which used to accommodate pilgrims overnight, but this is no longer practised. Today the Mandapa is used for many festivals, for example one with 4000 Tamil hymns being recited over several days (Younger 1993). A second very important structure is the Ranganayaki temple of Rangangayaki Thayar, an avatar of Lakshmi, the female consort of Vishnu. Although it is not within the inner enclosures, and is not easy to find, pilgrims and devotees will seek out this temple and go to it before they proceed to the other shrines. This enclosure also contains the stables for the temple elephants and several other shrines and small temples (Younger 1993). The outer wall of this enclosure is also the outer wall of the temple complex. The temple is oriented towards the south, which is unusual for a temple and a temple town which are normally designed strictly according to the Shilpa Shastras. This can be explained by the myths of the creation of the temple: a shrine with the image of Ranganatha sprang from the ocean, a prince from Lanka got the shrine from Rama in Ayodhya (the legendary city of the Ramayana, see Chapter 8.2). On his way back home to Sri Lanka he stopped off at the island of Srirangam and rested there. But when he wanted to continue his journey, the shrine could no longer be lifted,

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and the deity informed everyone that he wished to stay on the banks of the Cauvery River, but would like to face south, so that the prince would be able to worship him from Sri Lanka (Younger 1993).

7.7.3 Temple Festival and the City Similar to other major temple towns in India, many festivals are celebrated in Srirangam. Since each festival lasts for several days there are religious celebrations in Srirangam on 332 days a year (Mittal and Thursby 2005). The most important and grandest festival in South India is the Vaikuntha Ekadasi or Tiru-adhyayana Ulsavam Festival which takes place in December/January and lasts for 21 days. The latter was introduced by the Nayak rulers and was a special procession where the king sang and the queen danced in front of the deity. This very exclusive celebration is slightly different nowadays and some temple musicians sing and a few selected devotees are allowed to listen to the singing. After this festival a cart festival takes place in January, another one in February/March and then one in April (Mittal and Thursby 2005). A float festival, the Theppam Festival, is celebrated in March and the deities are carried through the streets on floats (Somasundaram 1965). Interestingly, there is even a festival where the central figure is a Muslim: it is for Sultani, who was the daughter of a king of Delhi. She found Hinduism so fascinating that she became a devotee of Vishnu. Therefore her sanctum was built in the sixth Prakara of the temple. When her festival takes place—the Thulukka Nachiyar Festival—a typical Muslim breakfast is offered to her and Sri Ranganatha, the main deity of Srirangam’s temple, wears a Kaili, a typical Muslim dress, throughout the whole festival (Somasundaram 1965). In most of these festivals (as well as minor ones), the urban space is ritually linked to the temple by the processions. Circumambulations are a fixed part of the rites. The “Pradakshina”, the circumambulation of the main shrine, is done regularly. To a larger extent, circumambulations are done on the scale of the whole city, and these Pradakshinas are nothing else but the small circumambulations of the shrine echoed on a larger level (Michell 1977). For the latter, large, heavy temple carts are pulled by the temple elephants through the city along fixed paths. As these carts are very heavy and large, turning them at every corner is very time-consuming and requires a lot of space. Therefore, small roads have been built as extensions at all corners of the main ringroads. These rites unify the people with their habitat and make inhabitants aware of the protective deity that is located in the city. With the exact sequence of the stations that are visited each individual is also referred to his or her place: the high caste (and thus pure) members in the centre, the lower caste and gradually less pure people towards the city limits. In each procession this social construction is reiterated: high caste members will perform the rites and chant repeat prayers and songs, they will lead the processions and guard the images of the deities. Lower caste members will have to carry or push around the chairs sometimes heavy seats or carts.

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7.8 Conclusions In this chapter, temple cities were analysed. Especially in temple cities, the observance of city mandalas is of utmost importance. City mandalas are best observed in cities that have been laid out according to plan, as can be seen very impressively to this day in the case of Shrirangam. But even in Madurai, the regular city layout, which goes back to the mandala, is still clearly visible. In Varanasi, which was built over so many centuries and was repeatedly destroyed and then rebuilt, it is rather the shrines that follow the mandala. As has been shown, the city rituals and the associated city layout are still a lived tradition today. Temple cities have a long tradition and until today they are important for the people in India. A temple city is created around the belief that the whole city is divided into several sections, each safeguarded by a deity. Therefore, new developments must be planned in accordance to the underlying mandala to avoid “disturbing” the guarding deity of a certain plot. Particularly temple cities are the physical reflection of a believe—namely Hinduism. Since this tradition is already so old it is important to take this into account in urban planning in the future.

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Wheeler M (1960) The Cambridge History of India: The Indus Civilisation, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Wisdomlib (2021) Prakrama: 11 definitions. https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/prakrama. Accessed 6 July 2021 Younger P (1993) Srirangam. In: Michell G (ed) Temple towns of Tamil Nadu. Marg Publications, Bombay, pp 76–93

Chapter 8

Episode 6: Kings and the City

Abstract As kings gained power tin early Medieval times they soon started to manifest these powers also by designing their cities, particularly their capitals. Of core importance was the design and location of their palace, since it should demonstrate the claim to power to the outside world. As an emperor, the palace should be located in the city centre. However, kings were usually not descending from Brahmins, who were the only caste entitled to live close to the city core, so this claim provided difficult. Therefore, in early Medieval times kings started to spin a narrative that linked them to the gods, particularly to Lord Rama, the legendary king and Avatar of Lord Vishnu. According to the Ramayana, one of the major ancient epics, Lord Rama was a just and benevolent ruler and his subjects had achieved prosperity. He lived in his capital Ayodhya which is described as the most beautiful and wealthy city one can think of. In Ayodhya the palace is described to be the most beautiful building of the city, and is located in the vicinity of the city centre. Thus, kings were eager to create magnificent palaces, close to the city centres. Furthermore, kings planned their cities according to the planning treatises to demonstrate their direct nexus. This correlation is discussed in this chapter based on three examples, namely Bhaktapur, Jaipur and Udaipur. Keywords Design for royal cities · Bhaktapur · Jaipur · Udaipur · Ramayana

8.1 Introduction Kingdoms started to emerge in early Medieval times in northern India. With this kings started to claim their place in the city. Until then temples were monuments, decorated in royal grandeur and were placed in the Brahmastan, the centre of the city (Thapar 2003). However kings emerged mainly from the warrior caste, the Kshariya, who were originally warlords or landlords who could command somewhat larger territories than others (Kulke 1993). In the early Middle Ages it was the Brahmins priests who led the states, took care of education and had to be asked for advice by everyone. Brahmins implemented the mandate of the gods on earth (Kulke 1993). Consequently, the centre, be it the spiritual or the geographical centre, was reserved for the main deity and those who took care of the god or goddess, namely the priests. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_8

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Most of the Shilpa Shastras (Chap. 3) propose that the centre of a town should be the place for the temple, particularly if the main deity of the town is Vishnu (Acharya 1980) or Shiva, and around the main temple high priests should dwell (Chap. 7). But in early Medieval times kings gained power over larger territories particularly where trade dominated economy (Thapar 2003). Kings strived to consolidate and legitimise their newly achieved entitlement to power. They wanted to be the rightful rulers of their territory which inevitably put them in competition with the priests who also claimed their rights to executive powers in the service of the gods (Kulke 1993). Kings were therefore soon keen to develop genealogies with local and Puranic myths: as soon as a kingdom was founded a link to the Puranas was formed, particularly to the heroes of the hymns. With this a genealogy between the ancient heroes and the new dynasty was established (Thapar 2003). Soon the Ramayana, one of the major Indian epics, was favoured because Lord Rama, the hero of the verses is an Avatar of Lord Vishnu. Rama is described as the just king who reigns over his subjects in such a way that all were prosperous. His capital Ayodhya is described as the most beautiful and wealthy city one can imagine and the most outstanding building of the city is the palace of the king which is located close to the city centre (Valmiki 2000). The description of the royal palace enabled kings to claim residence in Brahmastan, i.e. in the immediate vicinity of the temples. It, too, confirmed the claim of the kings that the palace should be the largest and most beautiful building in the city. A second approach for the perfect royal town was planning the city according to the planning treatises. The closer to a square shaped town mandala a city was planned the more the connection between the divine and the ruler was established. The city overall should represent the powers of a king and his connection to the gods. The urban realm was supposed to demonstrate the connection between the ruler and the gods to justify the claim of the kings to be the true rulers over a region. Town planning and urban design was therefore soon a foremost means to legitimise their right to reign their kingdoms. Until today Hindu kings refer to be descendant from Lord Rama. This reference started in early Medieval times and spread soon throughout the Hindu sphere of influence. Kings from Nepal, India, Sri Lanka or Cambodia used the reference to Lord Rama. The king of Thailand is even today associated with Lord Rama as he officially is called Rama X (Wikipedia 1 n.d.). Therefore it is interesting to consider the Ramayana in order to understand the town planning and palace design of Hindu rulers in India.

8.2 The Ramayana The Ramayana is one of the two important major Hindu epics and was composed between the seventh and fourth century BCE. The epic consists of 24 000 verses that are divided into 7 books which makes it one of the largest epics of antiquity worldwide (Brockington 1998).The essences, as far as it concerns its importance for urban design, is summarised in the following.

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The king of the celestial city Ayodhya1 had three wives and after a long time of being childless performs a Yantra. Each of his wives bore sons therefater: Rama, Bharata and the twins Lakshmana and Shatrughna. The four sons had received the different essences of Vishnu because Vishnu wanted to come to earth to fight the demon Ravana. When Rama was 16 years old he and Lakshmana started helping destroying Ravana and other demons. At the same time Sita and her sisters grew up in another kingdom and it was agreed that Rama should marry Sita, and his brothers Sita’s sisters. Sita and Rama loved each other very much and return to Ayodhya (Valmiki 2000). After twelve years the king decided that Rama was ready to reign the country and thus should be crowned. All Brahmins, ministers and all inhabitants of the city were glad that Rama was chosen to become the king. “On hearing the glad news of Rama’s installation, all Avadh resounded with songs of jubilee” (Growse 2017, Doha 7, p. 4). But Bharata was out of the country and so it was decided to wait for his return because Bharata should participate the coronation. Rama, on the other hand, would have preferred to be enthroned with all his brothers because he considerd all four of them as equal. Only when Lakshmana and Shatrughna assured him that they agreed not to share the crown with Rama, Rama accepted to take the crown and considered this was his duty and faith (Valmiki 2000). But Bharata’s mother, who was bewitched by a demon demanded that her son Bharata should be crowned and Rama exiled for fourteen years to which the king finally agreed, although this agreement broke his heart. Rama accepted being exiled with absolute self control and submission to the crown. Sita, who was warned by gurus and others that the forest was full of wild beasts and demons, was determined to join Rama for exile. “The lord of my life would go to the woods, how can I merit to accompany him? Whether in the body or only in the soul, go I must.” (Growse 2017, Doha 56, p. 32) Lakshamana also joined them. Soon after the king died and immediately thereafter Bharata searched for Rama because he wanted him to be enthroned. Rama refused because he had to carry out the will of his father and his destiny. Over the next thirteen years Rama, Sita and Lakshmana lived in the forest, defeating smaller demons every now and then, which made Ravana, the high demon, furious. Ravana decided to destroy Rama. He captured Sita and took her to Lanka (the mythological island—fortress of demon king Ravana), where Ravana asked Sita to marry him which she refused instantly. Meanwhile, Rama and Lakshmana searched for Sita and heared that she was kept in Lanka. With the help of Hanuman, the god of courage, wisdom, self-discipline and strength, the brothers could enter Lanka. Rama, Lakshmana and Hanuman destroyed the settlements of Ravana, freed Sita and returned across the ocean. But the fight was not over because Ravana followed them. Soon afterwards a lengthy battle between Rama and Ravana started but finally Rama was victorious and killed Ravana (Growse 2017). 1

Ayodhya is also an existing ancient city in Uttar Pradesh. It is situated on the banks of the sacred Sarayu River. Although the city is seen as the birth place of Rama, there is no evidence that Ayodhya of the epic is the same as the city in Uttar Pradesh (Bakker 1986).

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Rama and Sita returned home but rumours about her purity would not subside. Thus she asked Rama to undergo the test of fire, the “Agni Pariksha”: white smoke rising from the fire would proof her purity. Rama loved Sita and did not want her to undergo this test, but finally agreed because he submitted to the demand of the people. Sita stepped therefore into the fire, but Agni, the fire god, protected her and she returned unharmed. Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman return to Ayodhya and Rama was finally coronated. The following years were called Ram-Rajya, a period were all commoners lived a happy and satisfied life (Menon 2003). Rama is always just, everyone loves him, wherever he goes people are happy and cheerful. He submits to his Dharma, the duties of his caste and lives his life by following the rules and does not try to change it in his favour, even if that means that he has to go to exile or agree to let Sita undergo the fire test that his people asked them to do. He is brave and strong and also goes into exile without hesitation because it is his father’s will. He fights the demons with determination and pacifies Lanka, ultimately ruling over Ayodhya after the thirteen years are up. Thus, Hindu kings all over the Hindu sphere claimed to stand in line with the epics and their dynasty descending from Lord Rama.

8.3 Planning of Royal Cities But not only the connection between the kings and Rama was of importance, Hindu kings also tried to establish a city that resembles Ayodhya, the mythical city. Ayodhya is described as prosperous and of outstanding beauty. The buildings have inlays of jewels and gold and all palaces are glistening and lofty (Menon 2003). The city has fortresses on each corner of the city walls which are all painted brightly. All inhabitants are well dressed, happy, bright and no poor people live within the city walls. Streets are sprinkled with fragrant waters and temple for all gods are magnificent in size and facilities (Menon 2003). The most outstanding building of all is the palace of the king. It has doors of gold with gem inlays and the mansion of Sita is described as being so beautiful that there are no words for it. The palaces of the ministers and high military also are splendidly decorated looking very much like the king’s palace (Growse 2017). The perfect capital of a kingdom in the notion of Hindu kings must therefore have at least one splendid palace. The second source for planning of capitals of emperors are the texts of the Shipla Shastras (see Chap. 3). In these texts the connection between the king and Vishnu, i.e. Rama is evident because it recommends that a temple of Vishnu shall be built in the core of the city (Sachdev and Tillotson 2002) and the palace of the king should be located to the west of this temple. However the palace of the king can also lie in the centre of the city if it is a king of the highest class. In this case the palace will be constructed forming many concentric rectangles, following similar ideas as in temples, as outlined for example in the Arthashastra (Shamasastry 1996). Much attention was paid to the layout of the palace that depend on the rank of the king. According to the Mayamatam (Dagens 2007) and the Arthasastra (Shamasastry

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1996) there are several categories of kings. The highest rank is the “Cakravartin”, which can be translated into “universal monarch” or emperor. Then there is the “Adhiraja” who rules over seven kingdoms, the “Narendra” who reigns in three kingdoms, the “Parsnika” with one kingdom, the “Pattadhara” who controls half a kingdom, the “Mandalesa” who has a province, the “Pattabhaj”, the “Praharaka” and the “Astragraha” as the least important local chiefs. A king has to build a palace according to his class. The Mansara (Acharya 1980) as well as the Mayamatam (Dagens 2007) describe in detail how each class of palace has to be built and are defined to follow the dimensions of the town. The palace has to be built in several enclosures and the enclosure might be square, circular, rectangular, elliptical, chariotshaped (most probably of trapezoid shape) and so forth. The greatest width of a palace is 528 poles, an ancient Indian measure, and the shape can be square or rectangular, but also triangular and so forth (Dagens 2007). For each category of palaces differ in size and equipment. The height of the palace is defined according to the caste of the king: the highest monarchs may have palaces with eleven storeys, Brahmin kings nine, Kshariya kings seven, four for Vaishya kings (Acharya 2004). The number of courtyards and enclosures depend on the category of king. The smallest palaces should have at least one courtyard which lies ideally in the east or south and should have more than three enclosures, each equipped with a wall and lanes running alongside the walls. But palaces of high kings will have many official courtyards and further courtyards for residential use of the king and his family, in maximum seven (Michell and Martinelli 2004). In these cases the innermost area is reserved for the king and his family, the outer courtyards should be used for administration of the state and therefore several buildings for administrative purpose as well as residences for officers should be built here. Some water tanks should also lie in the outer and more public courtyards (Begde 1978). Water tanks and water reservoirs accompanied with gardens are a main element of the palaces. The palace should also have parks and stables for animals such as elephants, horses, cattle, sheds for monkeys, peacocks and even deer (Michell and Martinelli 2004). All categories of palaces should have at least one gateway, but never more than four. If there are more gateways, then the position of the main gateway should correspond to the largest inner courtyard in size and height. Walls and gateways should be safeguarded by sentinels (Begde 1978). The Shilpa Shastras are strict about what sort of facilities must be housed in the palace. There is a number of chambers and spaces for the king and his family such as chambers of the princesses, the queens, dance halls, kitchens, store houses, dining halls, pavilions for pleasure, pavilions for studying, private wells and so forth (Acharya 2004). These private chambers and buildings should be the core of the palace. An important element here is the house altar which should be placed in the centre and the surrounding space must be kept free from any other built structure. In a distance to the house altar the other pavilions and buildings should be placed: South of the altar the chambers of the king, to the north the chambers of the queen and west of the altar the coronation hall should be located (Begde 1978). The palace should include public buildings, like dance, music and drama halls, halls for storing the instrumental music, a public audience hall, the arsenal, sheds for

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chariots, a gymnasium and a theatre, medical stores, a chambers for the priests, the main kitchen, dining halls and pavilions for performances, a pavilion for watching parades and also a room for charity meals are some of the features that must be included in a palace. A very important part is the seat of justice and the council hall because the palace is also the seat of administration and jurisdiction. The council hall should have elevated walls such that nobody can overhear the conversations. It should be in the centre of the complex and of square shape with high walls in the south and low ones in the north. Finally, the treasury of the king and a hall for the ritual weighting have to be included in a palace (Dagens 2007). Of high importance is the location of the palace within a town or fortification. The highest class of kings, the “Narendras”, have the privilege to build their palace on the Mandala square that is dedicated to Indra (South-West), and if a palace is built on the Mandala square of Brahma it is said that this is a place for good fortune and success. Kautilya states that the palace should occupy one-ninth of the total area of a town (Shamasastry 1996). Safety and protection of the palace are the key factors for building a palace and the town around. Therefore a town must have a quarter for the royal army which should be best placed in front of the palace. The quarters of the merchants should be on the sides of the palace. To the west should be a large tank and the quarters of the royal residents (Begde 1978). These planning regulations were rather theoretical in nature and were never implemented in all consistency. To demonstrate how royal cities were planned and built three royal Hindu cities will now be discussed, namely Udaipur in Rajasthan, Bhaktapur in Nepal and Jaipur in Rajasthan. Unfortunately, not many royal Hindu cities have survived. The invasions of the Muslim emperors in the late thirteenth century had disastrous consequences for the Hindu kingdoms (Thapar 2003). In the south almost all Hindu states came to an end and their territory was taken over by the Delhi sultanate. The Nayak rulers who reigned over most of today’s Tamil Nadu could withhold the attacks of the Delhi Sultanate. Particularly Madurai the most southern city of their empire as well as the wealthiest could resist the attacks and so the city was not plundered. However, the palaces were often dismantled and the material was used in other buildings. In the case of Madurai most of the building materials of the palace was taken to Tiruchirappalli where the new palace was built. In the seventeenth century the Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, the palace of the Nayak rulers was described as the largest palace of all (Michell 1995). Today, however, only a small part of the original palace has survived and since all marble structures were transported to Tiruchirappalli it is difficult to judge what the palace once looked like. Most cities particularly in the north were torn down, their gold and jewellery taken to Delhi and soon after nothing was left of the original palaces. We only can adumbrate the magnificence and splendour of these palaces from the notes of European traders from the sixteenth and seventeenth century who described these palaces as richly decorated with jewels, ivory works and textiles. However, in most cases only the stone walls of the foundations remained but nothing survived of the multi-storeyed towers, carved columns and interior decorations (Michell and Martinelli 2004).

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8.4 The Royal Palace and the City: Udaipur Udaipur lies in the southernmost part of Rajasthan. The city is surrounded by the Aravail Range, behind which the Thar Desert begins and on the banks of the Ahar River. The banks of the Ahar River were inhabited since 2000 BCE (Teuscher 2002) and the Mewars kings had their old capitals in the region. However, the Mughals drove the Mewars out of their homelands and after 200 years of skirmish the Mewars surrendered, had to pay war indemnity but were allowed to return to the banks of the Ahar River (Teuscher 2002). In 1559 CE Maharana Udai Singh II founded Udaipur as the capital of the Mewar kingdom. The new capital Udaipur was chosen because it lies between two hills where a dam helped to build an artificial lake between these hills (Teuscher 2002) (Fig. 8.1). This area was seen to be more defensible than the old fortification 100 km further to the east. However, Udai Singh II still feared attacks from Akbar, the Mughal emperor and so he built a six km long wall around the city with seven gates. Today this area is referred to as the walled city. Around the shore of lake the city was established. On the east bank of the lake the massive palace was built and its construction works continued until the eighteenth century. Further changes and additions are made to this day (Teuscher 2002), because the palace belongs to the family until today.

Fig. 8.1 Udaipur city map. The city palace and the lake palace are highlighted in grey Source Google maps and author compilation.

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After the decline of the Muslim rulers in the early eighteenth century the Mewars could reassert their independence and Udaipur remained the capital of their kingdom. Under British India it became one of the princely states and until today the Mewar family lives in the palace (Udaipur Government 2021).

8.4.1 Planning Ideas of the Mewars The Mewar kings originated from tribal chiefs, who lived scattered in Rajasthan in early Medieval times. Between the seventh and tenth century CE they started to formulate their claim to power by referring to Hindu traditions. Being neither members of the Kshariya nor the Brahmin caste they started to create genealogies that would legitimise their position as the rightful rulers—which was in line with many other Hindu kings. But although other kings mainly referred to Vishnu the Mewars mainly built temples for Shiva. This fact can be explained by the existence of powerful and influencial Brahmin priests in the area around Udaipur who were close to Shivaism. Thus the Mewars built many Shiva temples to foster the relation between the Brahmin priests and themselves. There was a symbolic relation between the kings and the Brahmin priests which was manifested in the temples. But over the centuries power shifted from the Brahmins to the kings, who worked steadily on their claim to power, also by referring to their relation to gods: the serving aspect of kings was emphasised and it was claimed that the king carries out his duties in the spirit of the god (Teuscher 2002). The claim to power was supported by the fact that many cities had developed as hubs of trading routes and with the rise of the cities the kings also could gain power and thus could get local lords under their dominion. In this process their courts were gaining power and finally the Brahmin priests had to share their monopoly with the kings (Kulke 1993). Such a narrative was in line with the Ramayana which was outlined above. For Mewar kings the Aparajitapracha, a planning treatises formulated in the twelfth century was essential (Teuscher 2002). Particularly in these texts it was emphasised that a representative urban design helps the king legitimise his powers. In this planning treatise the design of the king’s palace is stated to be of core importance as well as its location in the centre of the city. City and palace should be regularly unified by city festivals and parades. In some texts from the twelfth century it is apparent that military parades and city festival were taking place in all capitals of the Mewars (Teuscher 2002). When the Mewar kings chose Udaipur as their new capital the city already existed. Starting already in 2000 BCE, the area was inhabited by indigenous people who are still living in the city (Lodha 2010). Therefore the city could not be planned any more as an entity that follows the Shipla Shastras. Only the palace was planned according to the planning treatises.

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8.4.2 The City Palace The City Palace was and still is the seat of the Maharajas of Udaipur. The palace is located on the shoreline of the Pichola Lake on a natural hill (Fig. 8.2). From there a good overview is proviced over the lake and other important structures of the city, like the Neemach Mata Temple, the Jagdish Temple and the palaces that were built on islands in the lake. The side facing away from the lake adjoins the city where high walls separate palace area and the realm of the commoners. The main entrance, the Badi Pol, is located in the north where it opens into the bazaar street (Teuscher 2002). Via the main gate, the Badi Pol, one can enter the first courtyard. At the other end of the courtyard lies a triple-arched passage, the Tripolia Pol, which leads to the second courtyard, the main courtyard, the Manek Chowk (Fig. 8.3). Around this courtyard all administrative facilities are grouped as well as the audience hall and the armour hall. The private areas of the palace can be accessed via the Toran Pol, the next gate, from where the oldest part of the palace lies. Walking through the Toran Pol one enters into the Moti Chowk, a private courtyard which leads then to the service area and kitchens. From here access is given to the Lakshmi Chowk which has a gallery running round the second floor. From this gallery the private apartments are accessed (Michell and Martinelli 2004).

Fig. 8.2 Udaipur palace seen from lake Pichola in the foreground the Mohan temple. Source Jakub Halun, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20191207_City_Palace,_Mohan_Temple_ and_Lake_Pichola,_Udaipur,_1523_7262.jpg, accessed on 12 Oct 2021

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Fig. 8.3 Manek Chowk, city palace Udaipur. Source Henrik Bennetsen, 2006. https://commons. wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Udaipur_City_Palace.jpg, accessed on 12 Oct 2021

The palace complex was built over a long period of time, but all alterations were made such that a homogenous appearance is the result (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Over all times the materials for the surfaces were the same, granite and marble and some of the rooms have mirror works on the walls with inlays of silver, coloured glass and paintings (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Today the palace is still owned by the Mewar family, but is partly used as a hotel, partly as a museum and has craft shops and public facilities included today (Bautés 2007). In mid eighteenth century the summer palaces were created in Udaipur, like the Lake Palace which lies in the centre of the Pichola Lake and is east-west oriented to worship the sun god Surya. This palace was used as a summer resort of the princely family. The Jag Madndir Palace is also located on a small island in the Pichola Lake, again a summer residence and leisure place. The Monsoon Palace is perched on top of a hill from where a good overview of the region is granted (Michell and Martinelli 2004). All of these palaces were used as summer residences or leisure places, whilst the only administrative centre was the City Palace.

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8.5 A New Capital: Bhaktapur Bhaktapur is one of the Newar cities of the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal. The Kathmandu valley is a plain with altitudes around 1500 metres above sea level. The Bagmati River crosses the valley. It rises in the Himalayas and flows into the River Ganga, which is why the river not only has spiritual significance for Hindus and Buddhists but has also been a trade route between Tibet and India over millennia (Gutschow 1982). Bhaktapur was already inhabited by the Newars, indigenous inhabitants that created the first civilisation in the valley around 300 BCE. They ruled over the valley for two millennia and controlled trade between Tibet and India. A road between Tibet and India was established in the seventh century CE and diplomatic relations to China were established (Wiesner 1976). The valley was an ideal stop over on their journey between these regions and this led to an immense wealth of the region. Around 879 CE the first cities were founded. A sophisticated urban civilisation developed soon with a unique architecture, literature, music and hand crafts (Gutschow 1982). In 1200 CE the Mallas entered the region who fled from the invasions of the Turks in their homelands, the northern part of India. The Mallas fled from the Turk invaders who soon after established the powerful Delhi Sultanate on the lands of the Mallas. The Malla kings, in the turn, departed from the Delhi area and migrated up the Himalayas. In the Kathmandu valley they set up their new kingdom (Wiesner 1976). They brought the valley under their dominion and introduced their culture and religion in the region and even established the caste system. In the fifteenth century CE the region was divided into three independent kingdoms, Patan (Lalitpur), Kathmandu (Kantipur) and Bhaktapur (Bhadgaon). Bhaktapur became one of the capitals of the Malla dynasty. During the reign of the Mallas the region faced a relatively stable time and art and culture was further developed. This stable time lasted until the eighteenth century when the British crown gained power also in the Kathmandu Valley. After the AngloNepali war between 1814 and 1816 the British killed the Malla princes and established a new dynasty, the Ranas who were pro-British local princes (Wiesner 1976). The Ranas ruled with tyranny and economic exploitation of the Newars which led to a decline of arts, culture and led to poverty of local people (Rana 1970). The independence of India affected Nepal, too, since the Panchayat system, the local government structure, was installed in the Kathmandu Valley and the Rana kings were deposed. At the end of the twentieth century a long civil war began with more than 12.000 people killed including many members of the Royal Family. Finally a democratic republic was declared in 2008 and since then the Maoist and Leninist parties rule the country. In 1979 the whole Kathmandu Valley was included into the list of UNESCO world heritage sites (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1979). In April 2015 two earthquakes (7.8 and 7.3 on the Richter Scale) struck the Kathmandu Valley and killed 8.500 people, injured 21.000 people and ruined many of the palaces, temples and Buddhist stupas. Until today many temples and palaces lie in ruins or are badly damaged (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2016).

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The Malla kings introduced Hinduism to the Kathmandu Valley that had been a predominately Buddhist region (the mountain regions with their still 50 small independent states had and still have animist religions). Patan and Kathmandu kept to a great extend their Buddhist traditions only Bhaktapur was undergoing the most significant transformation of a city and its people into a Hindu society (Wiesner 1976). The Malla kings were eager to create their kingdom as much as possible according to Hindu rules which also included the creation of cities according to the Shilpa Shastras. As the Muslims soon ruled over almost all of India and pushed Hindu kings further and further back the Newar cities of the Kathmandu valley were spared. Therefore they are today better witnesses to traditionally planned Hindu cities than on the Indian subcontinent.

8.5.1 Spatial Elements of the City 8.5.1.1

The Durbar Square

The Durbar Square, the King’s Square, is the centre of the town. It has an almost rectangular form. Several temples and shrines were placed around and on the square making it look narrow and overloaded (Fig. 8.4). In 1934 an earthquake destroyed most of the structures and we only can imagine how it once looked like from drawings and from the foundations of the former temples. Another earthquake struck the region in 2005 and yet another in 2015 which again severely damaged many of the remaining buildings. Therefore the Durbar Square has a totally different appearance than before (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2015). Today it is a vast open space making way for a perfect vista of the king’s palace main front that is placed on the long side of the square. Some other temples have survived, such as the Siddhilakshmi Temple or the Yaksheshvara Temple and much is currently under renovation. The east-west oriented square has a small plaza at the west end, where the main gate to the Durbar Square is placed (Fig. 8.5). In this area is a fountain as well as some smaller temples, again some of them being destroyed today. This main gateway was used by pilgrims who could wash themselves at the fountain before proceeding to the core of the city with its temples and the palace. A long hall-like building at the long side of the Durbar Square served once as a sleeping place for pilgrims (Fig. 8.8). This building used to protrude more than 20 metres into the square (today this part does not exist any more) which caused the place to look cramped and crowded (Gutschow 1982) (Fig. 8.6). The square façades are formed on three sides by the residences of high priests and monasteries (Fig. 8.7) and by the king’s palace in the north (Wiesner 1976). The palace occupies the whole northern front of the square with the “Golden Gate” in its centre (Fig. 8.8). In front of the Golden Gate is the column of Bhupatindra Malla which was placed there by his son, Ranajita Malla, in the eighteenth century (Fig. 3.1). In Kathmandu and in Patan such columns were already placed in front of the palace which made Ranajita Malla create the iconography a little different to the

8.5 A New Capital: Bhaktapur

Fig. 8.4 Bhaktapur city map. Source Author compilation, not to scale

Fig. 8.5 Durbar square, Bhaktapur. Source Author compilation, not to scale

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Fig. 8.6 Durbar square, Bhaktapur. To the left the palace facade is visible, to the right the destroyed Vastala Durga Temple, in the front the Chayasilin Mandapa. Source Author

others (Wiesner 1976). The top of the column shows Shesha, the universal snake, out of which a lotus flower springs and on top of the flower the king is sitting looking towards the Taleju Shrine. The Taleju shrine is the most important sacred structure in Bhaktapur and in this case is located inside the palace. The Mallas had brought their gods and goddesses with them when they entered the Kathmandu valley. When Bhaktapur was chosen to be the capital one of the three Malla kingdoms, the Goddess Tajeju was brought to the city and she got a new home in the palace in the Mul Chowk (Gutschow 1982). The pose of the king on the column is a strong reference expressing the connection between the king and Vishnu: Shesha and the lotus flower are part of Vishnu’s iconography. Behind the column is the Taleju bell which is important for rites and celebrations. Secondly, the king is portrayed looking towards the Taleju Shrine indicating that he hosts the goddess in his palace (Gutschow 1982).

8.5.1.2

The Palace

The palace of the Malla king flanks the northern side of the Durbar Square. In the early Middle Ages, there stood already a fortress, which the Malla kings then converted and expanded into their palace. The oldest surviving structures are the inner courtyards that are dated to 1324 CE. The palace has been extended and rebuilt over the centuries, parts have been demolished and others added, particularly in the seventeenth century major alterations have been made. According to records the palace once had between 12 and 19 courtyards and gardens (Wiesner 1976). The earthquakes of 1934 and 2015 have demolished large parts of the palace such that today it no longer gives the impression of what it once was. The main front facing

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Fig. 8.7 Shelter for pilgrims on Durbar square, Bhaktapur. Source Author

the Durbar Square has been reconstructed but many of the buildings inside are not existing any more and the entire western part of the palace is destroyed (Wiesner 1976). The palace is oriented north-south and follows the traditional concept of a courtyard house. The central courtyard, the Mul Chowk, hosts the Taleju shrine for the main goddess of the Malla kings and of Bhaktapur (see above) and was built first. Next the Bhairav Chowk was added for Lord Bhairav, a very fierce form of Shiva. Later a leisure house for the queens was added in the west part of the palace and then further ponds, pavilions, gardens and courtyards whilst other were dismantled over the years. In 1678 the palace was extended with a wing between the Mul Chowk and the Durbar Square east of the already existing wing which is today called the “Palace of 55 windows” (Gutschow 1982) (Fig. 8.9). This wing of the palace has a stone base that extends over two floors. In these two floors there are large windows made of timber, with lintels made of wood. Above this is a wooden construction with a window strip that runs around the entire building, facing the inner courtyard and the Durbar Square. This window strip consists of the 55 lattice windows, hence the name (Fig. 8.7). In the early eighteenth century the stone images of Hanuman were placed in the Malati Chowk, which lies between the Durbar Square and the Mul Chowk with the shrine of Taleju. Hanuman, who is an important supporter of Rama (see above) and essential in the narrative of the Malla kings guards the entrance (Korn 2016). Very important is also the Eta Chowk which lies west of the Mul Chowk and is the home of Kumari, a human girl who is seen as a manifestation of Devi and Durga as a child. In Bhaktapur mainly goddesses are worshipped, such as the Nine Durgas,

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Fig. 8.8 Sundari Chowk temple gate, which is located between the old and the new part of the palace. Source Author

Taleju, the Eight Mothers, or Kumari. All goddesses had to legitimise the king in his position once a year where the images of the goddesses were brought to the Mul Chowk and Kumari inaugurated the king in this ceremony (Gutschow 1982). From the Durbar Square the palace appears as two buildings with the Sun Dhoka gate in the centre (Fig. 8.8). This gate is made of gilded copper and displays the goddess Taleju with her ten arms and four heads (Gutschow 1982). Via this gate the Bhairav Chowk can be accessed, behind which the main court, the Mul Chowk with the Taleju Shrine, is located. In front of the Sun Dhoka is the Taleju Bell which is important for many ceremonies. Next to the Taleju Bell the Bhupatindra Malla Column is placed which represents the Malla king who is here adorned with the insignia of Lord Rama (Gutschow 1982) (Fig. 3.1). The Mala kings established measures to legitimise their status of standing in line with Rama and thus Vishnu. This included the Taleju Bell and the Bhupatindra Malla Column or the ritual legitimation of the king by the goddesses. The most striking element, however, is the placement of the Taleju shrine, the shrine for the main goddess of Bhaktapur being located in the centre of the palace. So far, gods and

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Fig. 8.9 Palace with the 55 windows. Bhaktapur, Durbar square. Source Author

goddesses are always housed in shrines far off the human realm. In the previous chapters it was described that in rural areas the shrines and temple like structures are placed far off the residential areas, because the emanating powers of the gods and goddesses is too intense to be endured by humans. Only in Brahmin villages the temple can be located closer to the quarters of high Brahmins, because twice- born

Fig. 8.10 The sacred tree of a neighborhood, this particular one was used as the first stop for pilgrims before they entered the city. Source Author

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people can cope with the divine energy. In temple towns the temple is the centre of the city and—with a gap of walls and streets—the residential quarters of high caste priests can then follow—again at a certain distance from the main shrine. In the case of Bhaktapur this changes strongly, since the main shrine lies in the centre of the palace. Their connection to Vishnu which was envisioned by the Malla kings, is strikingly present.

8.5.2 The Adjacent Town The city is further divided into several neighbourhoods, Tols, that are named after the main deity of the neighbourhood. Each Tol is equipped with a temple or shrine of the deity, dance platforms for ritual celebrations, a tank and often also a resthouse for visitors and a sacred tree (Korn 2016) (Fig. 8.10). Some of these trees are decorated with small flags, other have even a small platform or a pavilion around it.

8.5.2.1

The Taumadhi Chowk

The trade route between Tibet and India crossed Bhaktapur but further south of the Durbar Square with its palace (Wiesner 1976). The Durbar Square was built on top of a hill where originally a fortress was located and not the palace as it appears today (Wiesner 1976). Trade, on the other hand was an important economic factor but it seems that upheavals among traders were frequent. Therefore the palace and the shrines of the city’s most important gods had to be located at a distance from the marketplace and thus the area of the Taumadhi Chowk was chosen (Fig. 8.11). The trade route between Tibet and India traverses Bhaktapur in its South-West. At the Taumadhi Chowk the street widens up into a large square. It is nearly of square shape with 40 metres lateral length (Gutschow 1982). Once the Taumadhi Chowk was a large open space and the square was 130 metres long. Today this area is significantly narrowed down by residential buildings that were built in recent decades. It is also no longer the lively trading place where merchants go about their business. The Taumadhi Chowk is flanked by several temples. First, there is the Nyataploa Temple to the north, from where the square slopes down. The Bhairava Temple flanks the Chowk in the East and finally there is the Temple of Til Mahadev Narayan in the south (Wiesner 1976). Behind the temples are residential houses mainly of the traders who lived permanently in Bhaktapur.

8.5.2.2

The Neighbourhoods, the Tols

A “Tol”, the neighbourhood, is inhabited by a certain caste. The closer a neighbourhood lies to the palace the higher is the caste living adjacent to it (Wiesner 1976). According to the Mandalas the importance of a family is not only measured by the

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Fig. 8.11 Taumadhi tole seen from the Nyatapola temple, giving a view into the city. To the left is the Bhairava temple. Source Author

distance from the palace but also how much a house lies to the east or to the north of the palace. In these adjacent spots live priests, doctors or astrologists. Craftsmen and workers, the Shudras, have their quarters close to the city wall, far away of the Brahmins and the palace. For them the orientation with north and east have no

Fig. 8.12 The gateway into the city at the Mangal Ghat. This gateway is mainly used to take the deceased to the burning Mangal ghat, which is one of the burning ghats of Bhaktapur. Source Author

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meaning. The outermost quarters are those of the butchers that lie directly at the town walls. The Dalit, the untouchables, have no quarters inside the walled city but outside, for example between the riverbed and the city gates. This location results from the need of the twice born castes who require their labour urgent. Thus the areas around the city gates are appropriate settlement spots to enable the Dalit to reach their workplacements fast (Gutschow 1982). The segregation of the society continued at the Burning Ghats, the burning places, where the members of the Tols have their own Burning Ghats. Bhaktapur has three Burning Ghats, the Hanuman ghat, the Brahmayani Ghat and the Masan Ghat. The eastern parts of the city have to cremate their dead at the Brahmayani Ghat, the quarter called Inaco uses the Hanuman ghat and all other 18 quarters of the city use the Masan ghat (Gutschow 1982) Some ghats still exist, although they seem not to be in heavy use. They lie directly at the river bed and some shrines and images of gods surround the place. This area lies outside the city, and behind the ghat lies the city gate to the city. The only people living here are the Dalit, or the urban poor, who dwell in small tin sheds or other huts (Fig. 8.12).

8.6 A Planned City: Jaipur Compared to Bhaktapur and Udaipur Jaipur was planned relatively late in India’s Royal history, already at the advent of the British Colonialism. Nevertheless, it was built according to the planning treatises and is an important because very late example for a Hindu city. It was intended to be a commercial hub in the region which the city has maintained until today. Therefore it was listed as a World Heritage Site in 2019 (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2019). Although planning treatises give clear instructions of how to build a city the implementation depended on many factors such as political circumstances, the natural setting, the emperor’s likings, his epoch and the region he lived before creating a new city. Jaipur is one such case that was founded relatively late, in 1727 CE (Roy 2006). Sawai Jai Singh, a local king wanted to establish his power by setting up a new capital. Jaipur lies in Rajasthan at the edge of the Thar desert, the largest desert in India and one of the largest deserts in the world (Laity 2008). To the north the city is protected by a mountain ridge which runs approximately in a north south and provides water resources for the city, an important factor for a desert city. For a long time the city was mainly populated by Brahmins and Maharajahs but during the twentieth century the Muslim population began to rise (Roy 2006). Today Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan with the population of Hindus still being the majority but also Jains and Muslims make up a large portion of the population (Census Commission 2011). Jai Singh and other Rajputs tried various times to fight the Mughal troops, the Moslems, but never succeeded. The last such attack against Mughal authorities was in 1707 CE and ended in a disaster for Jai Singh’s family: Amber, the capital of his kingdom, was besieged by the Mughal soldiers. However the succession of the Mughal emperors was very fast in the seventeenth and eighteenth century which led

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to an unstable Mughal (Moslem) empire (Roy 2006). Sawai Jai Singh, who ruled between 1699 and 1743 CE, intended to create his kingdom and for this purpose he needed a new capital. He chose Jaipur, which lies only 11 kms south of the old capital, Amber. Between 1723 and 1743 CE Jai Singh was actively designing and building his new capital and enlarged his kingdom, built five astronomical observatories and revived Hinduism in Rajasthan (Roy 2006). His new capital should serve as a centre of Hinduism in northern India but also as a centre of trade and commerce. Jaipur’s location seemed perfect for this: major thoroughfares were running past the city, one between Amber and Sanganer and the other road between the Mughal cities of Ajmer and Agra (Sachdev and Tillotson 2002). Jai Singh then bifurcated this road at Jaipur and with this he connected the well established trading centres of Malpura, Chittor and Bhilwara. Other branches of the roads led to Ajmer which was an important pilgrims’ centre for Moslems and Hindus and further on to other important centres up to the River Tapi in Surat. He further invited merchants and traders from around the area to settle down in Jaipur by granting them land and tax revenues (Roy 2006). In his time the city grew at a rapid pace and it was soon a well known city for trade and commerce. Jaipur was soon known as one of the centres of the newly revived Hinduism in northern India. However, between 1800 and 1835 CE there was a period of of decline due to robber bands in Rajasthan who plundered the villages around Jaipur (Roy 2006). This plundering hat a devastating effect on the city because trade ended which severely scaled down the city’s wealth. This period came only to an end with the advent of the British who started allying with the king of Jaipur. However, they had to concede to the British Queen Mother to rule officially over the city. In 1876, the facades of the city were painted pink to welcome Edward VII, at that time Prince of Wales. Since then the city centre of Jaipur is referred to as the “Pink City” (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2019).

8.6.1 Planning of the City For his capital Jai Singh chose to build the city according to the Shilpa Shastras. His main planner was Vidyadhar Bhattacharya under whom the city’s major constructions were finished already four years later, in 1729 CE (Roy 2006). The city was planned according to the Shilpa Shastra aiming to achieve the most beautiful city in India. However, the influence of the architecture and design of Mughals and other Moslem emperors had a certain impact on Hindu rulers as well: the influence of these neighbouring regions, particularly the impact that Persian architecture had on the design of Indian buildings, is clearly visible. This aspect is only mentioned briefly here, as the next chapter (Chap. 9) deals with the influence of Islamic rulers on India. The architecture alongside the main thoroughfares was controlled such that all houses appeared in the same height and also having similar architectural features on the façades. Some of the houses were decorated with arches and domes on the roofs and some of these house the important temples of the city. To this day the skyline is

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one of the most beautiful in India and this is particularly visible at the main bazaars, the Sireh Deori bazaar or the Johari bazaar (Roy 2006). The location for the city was chosen for many different reasons. One was that the area was protected by two natural mountain ridges which was important for protection and water supply, another was that the old city of Amer and its fort, the Jaigarh Fort was only some six km to the north; in times of warfare it would be easy to escape to the fort of Amer (Roy 2006). Furthermore, an old and well known trading route passed the city; for trade this was an immense advantage and the route only had to be shifted towards the city and with this all long distance traders had to enter the city. Finally, the area had been a hunting ground equipped with a small lodge and a small artificial lake used by the rulers of Amer. Thus, the location seemed to be ideal for building a prosperous city (Sachdev and Tillotson 2002). The two major axes which were more or less natural made way for the main orientation of the city: north-west and south-east with only a little shift. From the Shilpa Shastras we know that such a configuration is considered ideal for a prosperous city or village. Accordingly, the first axis was established by just extending the already existing axis between the pond and Amer which nearly points south-north. The other axis was the old caravan route that connected Agra and Ajmer running close to a east–west direction (Roy 2006). The latter marked the southern border of the city (Fig. 8.13).

Fig. 8.13 Jaipur city map with the nine squares that were designed according to the Pitha Mandala. Source Google maps and author compilation

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As soon as the axes were established the city was divided into nine blocks and a half, which represents a three by three mandala called pitha2 (Fig. 8.14). Along the east–west axis which was the relocated old caravan route the outer wall of the city was erected and the area set aside for the city was divided into nine squares (Roy 2006). The central square was reserved for the palace, the other squares were reserved for the neighbourhoods of the residents. North of the palace lies a pond which already existed while the area was still used as a hunting ground. All squares were then subdivided into smaller plots with lanes and streets connecting the several house plots. The most eastern quarter is less regularly planned and touches already the foot of the hill, and is not square shaped. However, this quarter was not inhabited in the first place and thus this deviation from the geometry seemed tolerable.

8.6.2 The palace The palace is placed in the centre of the city at an intersection of the two main thoroughfares (Fig. 8.15). The axis which runs north- south ends at the main gate of the palace, the Tripolia Gate (Roy 2006). The east–west axis runs parallel to the outer wall of the palace and is one of the main bazaar streets of the city. East of Fig. 8.14 Diagram of the Pitha Mandala. Source Author compilation

2

The pitha mandala can be subdivided into more units, but it always has a central area. Other mandalas, such as the pechaka mandala consisting of 2 × 2 square, have a crossing main street in the centre (Dagens 2007).

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the Tripola Gate the Jantar Mantar3 is located, an observatory. It was built by Sawai Jai Singh II between 1728 and 1734 CE because the king was a keen astronomer himself. Further to the east lies the Hawa Mahal road, another main bazaar street that establishes the boundary of the palace area (Sachdev and Tillison 2002). At this corner of the palace lies the Hawa Mahal which is a mutli-storeyed pavilion with screening lattice windows made of stone from where the royal women could observe the ongoings in the street without being seen (Fig. 8.16). The lattice windows of the Hawa Mahal were used and design very much like the Mashrabya windows of the Arab world (Chap. 5, Fig. 5.12). Via flights of stairs the several levels of the Hawa Mahal are accessible (Roy 2006). When passing the Hawa Mahal one approaches the main entrance of the inner part of the palace, the Sireh Deorhi. This gateway gives way to the first courtyard and soon after the second gateway is located, which is drum house. From the gallery of this drum house musicians used to announce the arrival or departure of the king. When passing this gate one enters the Jaleb Chowk a large courtyard which was the most public area of the inner palace. Around this courtyard the offices of the palace are grouped and in the centre a building is located, the Mubarak Mahal, the Welcome Palace (Roy 2006) (Fig. 8.17). Via another gateway the next courtyard can be entered which again has a large building in the centre, the Sarvato Bhadra. To the east lies the Ganesh Pol, the next gateway and from here the private areas of the palace start (Roy 2006). The last structure in this section is the Chandra Mahal, a seven storey building (Fig. 8.18). Seven floors were chosen because the Shilpa Shastras stipulate this as the perfect number of floors for Kshatriya kings (Sachdev and Tillison 2002). The Chandra Mahal looks out upon a long garden with a central water feature. In the middle of the water feature stands a temple dedicated to Govind Deo, the god of Sawai Jai Singh who had the shrine built in 1735. Another small Ganesha temple crowns the hill beyond (Michell and Martinelli 2004).

8.7 Conclusions As kings gained power they manifested this power in the design of their capitals. Following the rules of the Shilpa Shastras was of core importance because of the claim to build cities as perfect as Brahmins did in previous times. The more perfectly a city conformed to the model of the mandalas, the more sacred it was. This allowed the kings to derive their legal status to be descendants of the gods, in particular with Lord Rama, the just king living in the celestial city Ayodhya. Consequently, the Hindu kings tried to establish cities and palaces by referring to Ayodhya: particularly the Lord Rama’s palace was of interest because of its size, its splendour but also due to 3

The Jantar Mantar was added to the World Heritage List in 2010 (UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2010)

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its location in the vicinity of the centre of the towns. Thus kings moved their palaces towards the city centre into an area that was so far only for high Brahmin priests. From now on the king’s palace was placed in this location. The new aspect of this development was that kings lived in close proximity to the shrines of the main gods of the city, sometimes even being integrated into the palace, as was seen in the case of Bhaktapur.

Fig. 8.15 The Hawa Mahal, Jaipur Palace, Jaipur. Source Author

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Fig. 8.16 The Hawa Mahal. Source Author

Fig. 8.17 The Mubarak Mahal, the welcome palace, city palace, Jaipur. Source Author

References

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Fig. 8.18 The second courtyard of the city palace, Jaipur. To the right the Diwan i Khas is visible, where tow giant silver urns are stored. In these two urns Ghanges water was carried for an emperor’s visit to London in 1901. Source Author

References Acharya PK (1980) Architecture of Mansara. In: Illustration of architectural and sculptural objects. With a synopsis, vol V. Oxford University Press, London and Oxford Acharya PK (2004) Indian architecture according to the Mansara-Silpasastras. Low Price Publications, Delhi Bakker H (1986) Ayodhy¯a. The history of Ayodhy¯a from the 7th century BC to the middle of the 18th century, its development into a sacred centre with special reference to the Ayodhy¯am¯ah¯atmya and to the worship of R¯ama according to the Agastyasam . hit¯a. Forsten, Groningen Bautés N (2007) Exclusion and election in Udaipur urban space: implications of tourism. In: Henderson CE, Weisgrau MK (eds) Raij rhapsodies: tourism, heritage and the seduction of history. Ashgate Publishing, Aldershot, pp 89–106 Begde PV (1978) Ancient and medieval town-planning in India. Sagar Publications, New Delhi Brockington JL (1998) The Sanskrit epics. Brill, Leiden Census Commission (2011) Cities having population 1 lakh and above, Census 2011. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaipur#cite_n ote-Cities1Lakhandabove-23. Accessed on 4 Feb 2020 Dagens B (2007) Mayamatam. Treatise of housing, architecture and iconography. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers, Delhi Growse FS (2017) The Ramayana of Tulsi Das. Book II. Trieste, Victoria Gutschow N (1982) Stadtraum und Ritual der newarischen Städte im Kathmandu-Tal. Eine architekturanthropologische Untersuchung. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart Korn W (2016) The traditional architecture of the Kathmandu Valley. Ratna Pustak Bhandar, Kathmandu Kulke H (1993) Kings and cults: state formation and legitimation in India and Southeast Asia. Manohar, New Delhi Laity J (2008) Deserts and desert environments. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford Lodha S (2010) Prehistoric era of Ayad. https://udaipurtimes.com/uncategorized/prehistoric-eraof-ayad/c74416-w2859-cid135721-s10812.htm. Accessed on 20 Nov 2020 Menon R (2003) The Ramayana: a modern translation. Harper Collins Publishers, New Delhi

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Michell G (1995) Architecture and art of southern India: Vijayanagara and the successor states. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Michell G, Martinelli A (2004) The royal palaces of India. Thames & Hudson, London Rana NRL (1970) The Anglo-Gorkha war (1814–1816). Rana, Kathmandu Roy AK (2006) History of the Jaipur City. Manohar, New Delhi Sachdev V, Tillotson G (2002) Building Jaipur. The making of an Indian city. Oxford University Press, New Delhi, Shamasastry R (1996) Kautilya’s Arthasastra. Mysore Printing and Publishing House, Mysore Teuscher U (2002) Königtum in Rajasthan. Legitimation im Mewar des 7. bis 15. Jahrhunderts. EB-Verlag, Schenefeld Thapar R (2003) Early India. From the origins to AD 1300. Penguin Books, London Udaipur Government (2021) Udaipur history. https://udaipur.rajasthan.gov.in/content/raj/udaipur/ en/about-udaipur/history.html. Accessed on 16 June 2021 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (1979) Kathmandu Valley. UNESCO World Heritage List, 121bis. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/121, Accessed on 19 Oct 2021 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2010) The Jantar Mantar, Jaipur. https://whc.unesco.org/en/ list/1338. Accessed on 27 May 2022 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2015) UNESCO raises safety concerns on the reopening of Kathmandu Valley World Heritage Site. https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/1296/. Accessed on 27 May 2022 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2016) Nepal’s museums re-opening post-earthquake. https:// whc.unesco.org/en/news/1537/. Accessed on 27 May 2022 UNESCO World Heritage Convention (2019) World Heritage Centre. Jaipur City, Rajasthan, Nomination text. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1605/documents/. Accessed on 22 May 2022 Valmiki (2000) The R¯am¯ayan.a. Abridged and translated by Sattar A. New Delhi, Penguin Wiesner U (1976) Nepal, Königreich im Himalaya. Geschichte, Kunst und Kultur im KathmanduTal. DuMont, Köln Wikipedia 1 (n.d.) Monarchy of Thailand. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy_of_Thailand. Accessed on 27 May 2022

Chapter 9

Episode 7: Muslims and the City

Abstract First Islamic rulers entered India in medieval times where they first founded the Delhi Sultanate. Soon Islamic rulers conquered nearly the whole subcontinent, spreading Islam across India. With Islam new ideas of ruling a country were introduced as well as ideas about town planning, palace design and architectural features generally. Since the Islamic emperors of India had nomadic roots the encampment was a role model for cities and palaces. Another new feature that played an important role in Islam was the design of gardens. Gardens play an important role in Islam as they are seen as a reference to heavens. Therefore such gardens were designed with great care in India and equipped with many amenities such as water features, fragrant flowers and shady pavilions. Particularly Islamic garden design was influenced by Persian pre-Islamic ideas. Persian architecture was as well influential in India because Mughal rulers had strong relations to Persia. Persian architecture is a symbiosis of pre-Islamic and Islamic building traditions and influenced particularly the Indian subcontinent which is the topic here. The chapter starts with in introduction to planning paradigms of Islamic countries and highlights architecture deriving from Persia. Next, the elements, namely gardens and forts are described. Finally, Fatehpur Sikri is described, which is a good example for a planned Muslim city. Keywords Town planning of the Islamic world and Persia · Fatehpur Sikri · Lal Qila/Agra · Taj Mahal/Agra · Chahar Bagh/Lahore

9.1 Introduction Islam was introduced in India in two major waves: one was by Turk people, who later founded the Delhi Sultanate in the twelfth and thirteenth century CE and another one in the fourteenth century when Barbur, a Central Asian emperor with Persian roots founded the Mughal Empire (Thapar 1988). The new emperors brought along their town planning philosophies and incorporated them into the Hindu cities. To understand the difference between the Hindu tradition of urban planning and that from Islam, it is important to have a look at the roots of Islam, and where Islam could develop, the deserts of the Arabian peninsula where the life of the people © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_9

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oscillated between sedentarism and nomadism (Bianca 2000). Over the centuries out of nomadism long distance trade was developed because nomads are anyway constantly on the move over long distances. Therefore settlers handed their products over to the nomads to take the goods along and deliver them elsewhere. This symbiosis of nomadism and sedentariness has survived in some regions until today for example in Ethiopia: the Afar, a nomadic people, have their homelands in the Danakil Depression, bordering the Red Sea. On their long journeys across the desert they take salt along which they receive at the Red Sea and deliver it at places at the fringes of the desert on the Ethiopian side (Rieger-Jandl 2013). Over the course of time trade began to gain importance and more and more goods had to be transported. Nomads could not fulfil this task any longer and caravans developed. Caravans were soon specialised on transport between far away regions and many facilities were created alongside their routes to foster trade (Bornberg 2016). Soon trading centres were necessary as transshipment hubs at intersections of main trading routes, often located in oases (Bianca 2000). With the goods also philosophy, scripture, religion and last but not least, planning ideas were spread across all regions where trading hubs if the Arabs were established, between the Mediterranean Sea and India. Following the fall of Western Rome a vacuum of traders had arisen, and the Arabs quickly closed this gap by establishing their own trading routes between Occident and Orient. From the eighth century onwards the Arab presence in India was increasing who first controlled Sindh and the Indus Plain and moved then further into the area around Delhi (Thapar 1988). The Delhi Sultanate was established in the thirteenth century and was powerful until mid sixteenth century. At the decline of the Delhi Sultans the Islamic Mughals came into power. At their heyday they controlled nearly the whole Indian subcontinent. In the eighteenth century only the most southern part of the peninsula and Sri Lanka evaded their control (Thapar 1988). Subsequently, Islamic emperors founded urban centres according to Islamic town planning.

9.2 Islamic Principles of Town Planning Islamic cities developed on the Arabic peninsula and the there created planning regulations were later spread across the Islamic world. Islamic cities of the Arab world were always inhabited by several tribes or clans (Bianca 2000). Each clan was allocated an area of the city which the clan was allowed to manage and develop more or less autonomously (Bianca 2000). From official side, i.e. the government of an emperor, only a few areas of a city were created: the Friday mosque, the market or bazaar and the fortress. The rest of the city was divided into several section, each handed over to a clan and each clan designed their space according to their needs (Hakim 1986). As a first step a more or less square shaped central space was created which was used as a meeting place for all members of the represented tribes as well as a place of prayer and soon afterwards the Friday Mosque was placed there. Later this square

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Fig. 9.1 Treasure house in the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque, Damascus, Syria. Source Author

was connected to the bazaar streets and to the headquarters of the administration: the city stewards and the generals. Finally the city treasure was placed inside the mosque (Bianca 2000) (Fig. 9.1). In all Arab cities the central square with adjoining structures was and still is the only part which can be described as public in the European sense of the word. All other parts, namely the residential quarters, are semi-private to private (Hakim 1986). Once the main elements of the city were planned the rest of the area was split into several units and each of them being handed over to the clan chiefs. This procedure reveals a Bedouin tradition. Each unit was understood as the campground of the nomadic tribes who would use a parcel of land for the time of their residence. As soon as a clan departs all had to make sure that the place was left properly. The campground would become no man’s land once again and another clan could move in (Wirth 2001). These nomadic traditions were transferred to permanent settlements, i.e. cities: The building regulations within a residential district are largely left to the clans. A few building codes are fixed in the Qur’an, such as respecting the privacy of each family. Over the centuries the quarters became denser and today often give the impression of a labyrinth with narrow lanes (Hakim 1986). For the city as a whole it is once more important to understand that there was never a mix of uses: there was and still is the “official” and very public part of the city with the main mosque, the bazaars, maybe the Medresa, the Qur’an school, the Hamams and the baths. These facilities, that were used by all inhabitants of a city

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Fig. 9.2 Entrance square after passing the town walls of a village. Ksar in Morocco. Source Author

were lined up alongside one main street leading from one end of the city to the other, secured with a city gate on both ends. But there was never a connection between a residential quarter and the market; only via small gates it was possible to enter a residential quarter from the bazaar (Hakim 1986). Adjacent to the city gates were often also transition zones where residents and foreigners could meet. In some Ksour of Morocco, walled villages, this layout is still visible: once a village via the main gate is entered the mosque of the village is placed next to a small entrance plaza (Adam 1981); if a stranger enters the village he will be immediately asked for the purpose of the visit (Fig. 9.2). Sometimes the entrance gate is equipped with a few guest sleeping rooms, and in bigger hubs of caravan routes caravanserais are placed there (Hülagü and Bolat 2014). In a city each clan had its own quarter which was independent from other quarters (Bianca 2000). This means that each quarter not only had the power to decide over matters of the clan the creation and maintenance of roads and thoroughfares had to be done by the clan members as well as maintaining the main wells of the quarter. Besides, each quarter had its own religious buildings meaning that in Christian quarters a church would be built, in a Jewish quarter a synagogue, in Islamic quarters a mosque. Each residential quarter was a self-contained social and architectural entity that was independent, often segregated by walls (Wirth 2001). Because each quarter was inhabited by a certain clan and was run independently, a Jewish quarter can be placed adjacently to a Muslim quarter or to a Christian quarter (Fig. 9.3).

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Fig. 9.3 Residential unit separated from the next by a wall. Kasbah des Qudaia, Rabat, Morocco. Source Author

9.3 Persian Influences The Arab-Islamic region was primarily characterised by nomadic life, where architecture could not develop. When Persia was incorporated into the Caliphate Empire, the Umayyads encountered a highly developed architecture that soon spread throughout the Arab-Islamic sphere of influence. For the considerations made here, however, it is not only important that Persia influenced the entire Arab-Islamic region (McClary 2018); there has always been a cultural exchange between Persia and India for millennia. Therefore Persian history dealing with architecture and urban planning is briefly presented here. First traces of humans living in today’s Iran date back to Palaeolithic times and from the tenth millennium onwards traces of early agriculture were excavated in the area of the Zagros mountains (Zeder 2005). In the fifth millennium BCE first hamlets were built in the area of Susa, and from the fourth millennium onwards settlements were built across the whole Iranian Plateau (Hole et al. 1969). In the seventh century BCE the Medes could withhold attacks from other emperors and were later founding the first large Iranian empire, which was later unified into a Persian—Medes empire by Cyrus the Great (600–530 BCE). Cyrus’s empire was later the Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BCE) which was the largest empire so far: it stretched from Egypt, Syria, the Balkans, East Europe, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan and

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extended into the Indus Valley (Brosius 2021). In the fourth century BCE, Alexander the Great defeated the Iranian troops and set up the Seleucid Empire which was a state on Persian territory (Wolski 1999). After Alexander the Great was killen in 281 BCE most of the Greek soldiers returned to their homelands (Wolski 1999). However, Greek philosophy and language had a lasting influence on Persian philosophy and courtly life. After the fall of the Seleucid Empire many dynasties ruled over Persia, like the Parthians from north-west Iran (248 BCE–224 CE), or the Sasanians 224 CE–651 CE) (Brosius 2006). During this time architecture had developed to a very distinct style. Already in prehistoric times rock architecture had developed, burial mounds and sarcophagi were built, aqueducts were constructed as well as religious buildings of the Jews, Zoraists or Christians (Kleiss 2015). Thus a rich and sophisticated architectural style was already established in Iran when the Muslims conquered Iran in 633 CE and founded the Umayyad Caliphate in the seventh century CE. The Umayyads, who were based in Syria, adopted many Persian customs such as how to administer a kingdom, courtly manners, architectural style, handicraft, even the Persian language was the official language for business until late seventh century CE, when the Arab language replaced the Persian (Brosius 2006). However, Persian culture continued to dominate in art and culture and architecture which was brought to Syria by the Umyyads and from there further into Arabia. Thus, many Persian elements of architecture were spread throughout the Islamic Arab region (McClary 2018). Certainly, Persian art and architecture that entered India was influential for the Indian subcontinent and the cultural exchange between Persia and the north-west of India was ongoing over the millennia (Brosius 2006). In the next paragraphs the defining elements of Islamic planning and house design will be highlighted before describing some of the Islamic urban designs.

9.4 Defining Elements of Muslim Cities 9.4.1 The House The idea of a Muslim residence is best explained by the term “harim” which in the first place describes the females in the family and their realm. Women not only live in the house they are responsible for running the household and for all activities within the house including safeguarding all the belongings and the financial resources of the family. The second meaning of harim describes the spatial component of the house which is absolutely taboo for outsiders and must not be penetrated by any glimpse to the inside (Ahmed 1992). It is the very private area of a family (Wirth 2001). The few building regulations that were introduced to all clan quarters was that from any viewpoint strangers must not get a glimpse at the inside. Visual intrusion had to be excluded. The importance of this privacy is even outlined in the Qur’an (Qur’an 24/27–28), when procedures how to conduct upon entering a private home.

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Categorically respecting the privacy of the family implies that minarets of any nearby mosque had to be oriented to prevent the Muezzin from looking into the private areas of the houses when calling for the prayers (Bianca 1991). The perfect answer to the demand for absolute privacy is the courtyard house which is oriented to the inside with no windows to the outside (Bianca 1991). However, since Islam was spread over a large region with many different landscapes and climate conditions the courtyard house design varies considerably. There are for example houses with large central walled courtyards and a building on one side only like in Iran or Syria (Pütt 2005) (Fig. 9.4), or the famous multi-storey buildings in Yemen, or buildings where the courtyard is roofed, where weather conditions are less favourable for living in the open like in Anatolia or the Balkans (Fig. 9.5). However, the main structures are identical. From the outside the house is sealed and only few openings, small windows closed with shutters or wooden latticework, the Mashrabiya, would appear in the outer facade (Fig. 9.6). The entrance door will always be locked and never left open. And in case it must be opened, because somebody wants to enter, there will always be sluice like a small wall, that prohibits any glimpse inside (Bianca 1991). The entrance sluice is connected to the central courtyard. This area functions as a living room for the family, the main room for invited visitors, often it is also a Fig. 9.4 The courtyard of a house in Haft Rangoo, Keshm Island, Iran. Source Author

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Fig. 9.5 Skeduli House, Girokastra, Albania. Source Author Fig. 9.6 A mashrabiya window, Jerusalem, Israel. Source Author

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garden with a fountain and acts as a splitter. All other rooms are accessible via this central courtyard. Thus a maximum amount of flexibility is given to the family to shift functions around the house (Bianca 1991). The functions of the rooms are adapted on the one hand to the daily routines, on the other hand to the seasons, and thirdly over a generation’s lifetime. The alterations of functions during the day is important because all rooms are used for multiple purposes. When a visitor arrives one of the rooms will be transformed into a reception room, a dining area will be transformed into a sleeping room, and so forth (Bianca 1991). Next, there is a shift over the year. In cooler regions there will be special rooms that are only used in winter and others only in summer (Doubrawa 2016). In the Balkans, in mountain regions of Pakistan, or at the border between Iran and Irak, in the Kermansha region, buildings have a solid ground floor level made of stone or bricks while the upper levels are light timber constructions (Wutt 1981). The ground areas are then used in winter when the warmth must be kept inside whereas during the hot summers families live in the upper floors with the light and airy timber constructions or in some cases completely on the roof terraces (Pütt 2005) (Fig. 9.7). In desert regions summer rooms were developed to deal with the heat. In the south of Iran, for example, some rooms have wind towers, that are used in summer (Fig. 9.8). Via these towers the wind blows in and removes the hot air inside the room. In winter, on the other hand, these rooms are used for storage only (Abdolmalaki and Torbati 2016). Finally, the configuration of the courtyard house can also be transformed over a generation’s lifetime: if a son or a daughter (actually, I have seen girls staying in the house of her family together with her husband) gets married she or he will stay with their parents in law and then a new unit within the courtyard house will be provided

Fig. 9.7 The summer roof terrace from Skeduli House, Girokastra, Albania. Source Author

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Fig. 9.8 Wind catchers, Laft, Qeshm Island, Iran. Source Author

for them. On the other hand, if someone dies or leaves the house an abandoned room will soon be repurposed by the family (Bianca 1991).

9.4.2 The Quarter As mentioned above, quarters are independent clusters of houses connected via lanes. These clusters of houses are normally assigned to a clan or an extended family and thus only relatives live in such an area. Nevertheless, the idea of privacy remains an important concept in such a quarter (Bianca 2000). Openings to the street will be limited as much as possible. Doors and windows will never face each other but always be staggered. Behind every entry door, after a small anteroom, there is always a wall that blocks the view into the interior of the house (Fig. 9.9). In previous decades each quarter was equipped with one or more wells that were maintained by the men of the quarter (Bianca 2000). Since fetching water was a duty for males the wells were hubs for exchanging news as well as a place for gossip and resting; collecting water takes time and therefore it is only natural that people start chatting at the water fountains (Fig. 9.10). However, today all households have running water so water is no longer fetched from the wells, resulting in the neglect of maintenance of the wells. Some quarters have their own prayer rooms, such as small mosques, churches, or synagogues which are often concealed. Larger quarters have also a small bazaar for daily products. In some neighbourhoods even own caravanserais would be provided for traders (Parolin 2009). Each quarter is thus sealed from other quarters and small entrance gates, often guarded, connect the

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Fig. 9.9 Entrances or windows never face each other in a street of a residential quarter in Berat, Albania. Source Author

quarter with the superordinate city. Each group lives to a large extend independently from the others, placing quarters of Jews, Christians and the various Islamic groups right next to each other (Fig. 9.11).

9.4.3 Facilities for Trade Trade was the driving force for city development on the Arab peninsula, from where both, Islam and the Islamic way of living was spread. The Arabic peninsula is a desert region with only few fertile patches of land. Agriculture was not possible and people lived a nomadic life since the old times (Hülagü and Bolat 2014). As trade started to gain importance nomads started playing an important role, because the settled farmers started handing over cargo to nomadic tribes who would deliver the goods to far away regions (Hülagü and Bolat 2014). Arabs were familiar with the desert, which the sedentary settlers on the fringes of the desert were not. Therefore caravans soon became the most important means of transport of goods between the Orient and the Occident. Trade routes criss-crossed soon not only the Arabian peninsula, but also other parts, where Islam was spread: the deserts of Pakistan, Afghanistan,

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Fig. 9.10 A fountain of a neighbourhood. Kasbah des Ouidaia, Rabat, Morocco. Source Author

Iran and Turkey. The caravan routes were equipped with regular stopping points within the distance of a day’s march, the caravan serais (Bornberg 2016). These were fortress like buildings alongside the caravan routes and the travellers could take a rest in the evening, would get fresh water, fodder for the animals and freshly cooked food. They could store their precious cargo inside the walled buildings whilst the men would sleep in tents around the caravan serai. Some of the caravan serais were

Fig. 9.11 Entrance gate. Kasbah des Oudaia, Morocco. Source Author

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Fig. 9.12 Ruins of a caravan serai. In the foreground stone rings for attaching the tents. Kerman province, Iran. Source Author

very spacious and would provide stables for the animals and chambers for sleeping for the men inside the buildings. The caravan serais were run by local people from nearby villages who would clean the building, take care of the travellers, prepare meals and fodder for the pack animals. Often medical services were available as well as cobblers, tailors and so on (Kleiss 2015). From Turkey to India the maintenance of the roads as well as the caravan serais were maintained by the emperors, and the travelling traders could stay for free in the caravan serais and use the roads without paying tolls. This highlights the importance of trade because elsewhere emperors sought to earn high revenues from taxes and were therefore eager to have trade running smoothly in their country (Bornberg 2016) (Fig. 9.12). Where trading routes intersected larger trading hubs or transshipment points for goods developed forming later into cities. These cities were hubs of exchange when the caravans came from far and wide (Bianca 2000). When arriving a caravan group would often split and each individual would do their trade. Since this would take a few weeks, if not months such a city would host many foreigners from many different countries for exchanging goods (Bornberg 2016). For this reason, it was important that the Islamic city was divided into different quarters, with each one assigned to a clan, some equipped with their own caravan serai. This ensured that long distance traders could deal with local traders without disturbing the local community in their daily routines (Fig. 9.13).

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Fig. 9.13 The central meeting place in a caravan serai inside a city. Chan As’ad Pascha, Damascus, Syria. Source Author

9.4.4 The Friday Mosque and Related Buildings The most public area is the Friday Mosque, or masjid, which is the centre of the city. In the central courtyard of a mosque was the treasure house where the most valuable goods, money and gold was stored away (Bianca 2000). During the night the courtyard of the mosque was closed and so the treasure of the city was secured (Fig. 9.1). The main bazaar of the city leads away from the mosque with shops of the most precious goods, like books, perfume, or jewels located adjacent to the main entrance of the mosque and less valuable goods or big and heavy goods being sold closer to the city walls (Bianca 2000) (Fig. 9.14). Another building which is always close to the mosque is the madrasa, the Qu’ran school where students learn to read the Qu’ran and recite the sura to be able to call for the prayers from the minarets (Kleiss 2015) (Fig. 9.15). The buildings look very similar to the caravanserais with a big central courtyard surrounded by small box rooms which are the sleeping areas for the students. Bigger spaces are provided for a refectory and lecture rooms, although most activities are at the big central courtyard. Kitchens, baths, and other facilities for every day life purpose are integrated in the madrasa as well (Wirth 2001).

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Fig. 9.14 Bazaar street in front of the Jama Masjid, Delhi, India. Source Author

9.4.5 The Garden In the Islamic world gardens have a special significance. For a culture that developed in a desert region oases with water, plants and shade are essential for survival for animals and humans (Fig. 9.16). Gardens were very early in history of desert regions seen as the planned oasis. Therefore first gardens developed already in early historic times: The Achaemenids of Persia (sixth to fourth century BCE) (Brosius 2006) used pleasure gardens with extensive water facilities, and also in Mesopotamia gardens were commonly known and used by nobles. The Abbasid Caliphs adopted

Fig. 9.15 A medresa, a Qu’ran school. Kerman, Iran. Source Author

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Fig. 9.16 A typical Persian garden. Mahan Garden, Iran. Source Author

this tradition in the seventh century and spread the use of gardens throughout the entire Islamic region (Wirth 2001). For the extensive use of water for the gardens special water collecting systems were built, like the qanat system that was built from Morocco to Iran which channelled water through tunnels over thousands of kilometres in mountain regions (Rashad 2011). Muslim gardens have also a mythical significance. In the Qu’ran, paradise is described as a garden and the garden on earth is a symbol of this paradise (Muhammad 2010). In many passages of the Qu’ran the appearance of the garden is described precisely: The celestial garden has four rivers, one filled with water, the second with milk, one with honey and the fourth with wine. The paradise garden if full of fruit trees and equipped with richly decorated and comfortable pavilions to make the stay as pleasant as possible (Brookes 1987). The garden is described to be spacious and never overcrowded. All elements are combined and together represent cosmic order. Anyone being in such a garden on earth should become aware of the presence of god (Brookes 1987). In this respect the Islamic paradise garden works very much like the Hindu mandala: the believer understands by contemplating the garden layout the presence of god and the underlying celestial order. However, in Hinduism the Mandala concept goes much further and tells the believer much more about eternal wisdom and celestial order. Islamic gardens were then planned in all regions across the Islamic world, from Spain to India and three types of gardens were distinguished: one assigned to the palace grounds, one lying outside the city walls and the third around a mausoleum (Hantelmann 2001). The palace garden was intended exclusively for the use of the ruler and his court and was comparably small. In the palace gardens pavilions had water fountains and

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artificial wells and exotic flowers and trees were planted. This garden was often used for parties and celebrations of the ruler who invited guests from far and wide. The gardens had tents and the noble guests as well as the ruler and his family would stay in the tents during the parties although the palace was close by (Ruggles 2008). This seems to be a reference to nomadic life: for example in the cities in south of Iran people, although owning apartments, prefer to pitch their tents on the narrow green strip often next to the road and in the park area in order to meet families and friends and to spend the night. There are also reports from the Arab world that Sheikh’s council meetings take place in a black tent in the middle of the desert and not in their urban palaces (Ruggles 2008). The second type, the pleasure garden outside the city walls, was a walled, large area that was only used occasionally by the ruler and his family, for example when he received guests or used it as a resort. They were built outside of the cities in order to establish a reference to oases (Farahani et al. 2016). These walled gardens were only accessible via a gateway and guarded all the time. In most cases, only the ruler and his guests had access to these gardens, only in some cases the gardens could be visited by commoners when the ruler was not around (Wirth 2001). The third type is the garden surrounding a mausoleum. Such gardens were built around the mausoleum during the ruler’s lifetime. This garden was also used as a pleasure garden and it was used very much the same way as the other types (Wirth 2001). In mausoleum gardens guests would be received and the emperor would enjoy staying there (Brookes 1987). All gardens adhere to a geometric layout. Walkways are normally linear, intersected by terraces, flowerbeds with fragrant flowers and water courses and basins (Wirth 2001). One special type of garden layout is the Chahar Bagh, the Persian garden, that was a role model for Indian gardens. The earliest today known garden of this layout is the garden that was attached to the palace of Cyrus the Great in Pasargadae, the capital of the Achaemenid Empire (sixth century BCE) (Brookes 1987). The layout of the Persian garden is a highly sophisticated answer to the climate and landscape conditions, which developed alongside knowledge and technology of water management and landscape architecture. Due to this Outstanding Universal Value the concept of Persian gardens was enlisted in the UNESCO world cultural heritage list (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2011). The Chahar Bagh, the Persian garden, is always divided into four zones, and wherever possible the areas will be divided by water features, flowerbeds and paths, following a strict geometric layout. For Zoroastrian believers the four areas represented the four elements: plants, water, earth and sky, which was later adopted by the Arabs for their concept of the “paradise garden” (Farahani et al. 2016). The centre is thus very prominent, normally equipped with a pavilion from where several viewpoints to the garden were provided. At this pavilion, guests were welcome, court was held, or the garden was simply enjoyed with family members (Brookes 1987). The interior and exterior of the garden are separated by high walls to enhance the impression of paradise. In addition the gaze of strangers is blocked and privacy granted; a very important element in all planned features in the Islamic world. An important aspect of Persian gardens was the availability of large amounts of water (Farahani

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et al. 2016). Once it was intended as a convenience for the visitors of the garden because it cools down the adjacent area but even more important was water for the irrigation of the many plants; after all, the gardens were often in desert areas and channelling water to the gardens was often a complex task (Farahani et al. 2016).

9.4.6 The Palace Fotification Many rulers lived in fear of invasions, assassination, military coups or dynastic conflicts. Therefore the palaces were built as fortresses to protect the royal family (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Although rulers across the whole world lived in fortifications for Arab rulers their nomadic background implied the demarcation of an area, for it was seen as a continued development of their camp ground (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Walls with only few gateways were a main element of the palaces. A sequence of gateways that were positioned alternately to provide maximum privacy. At the main gateway, that was architecturally accentuated, chambers for the guards were included (Michell and Martinelli 2004) (Fig. 9.17). The defence structures also included the watchtowers as well as stables for horses and chambers for armour (Michell and Martinelli 2004). A large part of the palace had to accommodate rooms for governing the state. For public audiences the outermost courtyards were used. In many regions it was

Fig. 9.17 The citadel towers above the entire city. In the citadel was the military apparatus, the stables and storage spaces. In times of warfare all inhabitants would retreat to the citadel. Bam, Kerman province, Iran. Source Author

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customary that the ruler would present himself on a balcony or Diwan at this outermost courtyard and take the parade (Michell and Martinelli 2004). During this time the people below could submit their petitions, sometimes written on a piece of paper which would be tied on a chain and drawn up. Nobles would be met later in the public audience hall which was no longer accessible to everyone. A central element of the palaces was the throne on which the emperor would sit, surrounded by his sons and high officials standing nearby. This was the space to receive reports about finances, demands for new posts, petitions and the clergy men and scholars could get grants of land. Often also a private reception room was used for more private business of the court. All fortresses had also a private mosque which was integrated into the palace area. But an essential part of their religious life was to participate in the prayers of the Jama Masjid, which had often a raised gallery for the sole use of the emperor and his sons (Michell and Martinelli 2004). The next part of a fortress was the private area for the royal family. All female members of the royal family had to live in a separated area which was segregated from the public space of the palace. Women of the palace spent most of their lives in this part, the “harim” or “haram” (Ahmed 1992). The harim is the most secluded area, the most private and inner part of a court and also contains the private apartments for the king with sleeping chambers and other rooms for his use solely. These chambers Fig. 9.18 An Islamic palace garden. Alhambra, Granada, Spain. Source Author

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were—as much as the harim—guarded and nobody but the king had access to these rooms (Michell and Martinelli 2004). The palaces were equipped with pleasure pavilions, especially at spots providing a good view over the landscape beyond the palace. Palace gardens were also included but due to the lack of space they were often very small, however often equipped with water features such as fountains or basins (Fig. 9.18) (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Finally, a palace had facilities such as storerooms, kitchens, dining rooms, as well as offices for administrative use and lodges for all service personnel as well as the palace guards (Michell and Martinelli 2004).

9.5 A Muslim City in India: Fatehpur Sikri Fatehpur Sikri, today being part of the Agra District of Uttar Pradesh, was built as the capital of Akbar, the most powerful Mughal emperor (see Chap. 2). He started with building works in 1569 and moved in with his court in 1571 but in 1585 he transferred his capital to Lahore (Eraly 2000). Soon afterwards Fatehpur Sikri was abandoned, only a few years after the buildings works were finished. Since then the citadel and the adjacent palaces lie in ruins, until the city was recognised in the late twentieth century as an integral part of India’s cultural heritage. Particularly the uniformity of the architectural style of the city with its monuments, the Jama Masjid, palaces and gardens was highly valued which led to the city being inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1986 (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1986). Although the city was operated only for a few years and was hardly inhabited by Akbar Fatehpur Sikri’s spatial design has influenced other Mughal cities. To understand Mughal architecture and planning, it is therefore relevant to take a closer look at Fatehpur Sikri (Fig. 9.19). First settlement traces go back to 1000 CE, and it seems that there were important Jaina temples and a commercial centre in the place that was later transformed into the Mughal capital of Fatehpur Sikri (Rezavi 2013). But the site was abandoned until Akbar chose the area for his capital in the sixteenth century. According to the founding legend, Akbar did not have a son for a long time. Only very late his heir, Jahangir, was born in Sikri, a small village. Akbar chose to move his capital there and developed the village into the city of Fatehpur Sikri (Asher 1992). Just ten years later, in 1585, Akbar abandoned the city for good. The reasons for his decision are not clear; some scholars believe that the water supply for such a large city was insufficient, but maybe he moved on to Lahore from where he could better direct his campaigns against local Hindu kingdoms. After his leave the city fell soon in disrepair. His son Jahangir started once more some reconstruction works but at that time Mughal power had waned and, therefore, Jahangir never finished the works. The British established an administrative centre in 1803 (Roy 2015), and then declared a municipality which was in place until 1904 (Eraly 2000). The city was planned as an ideal city according to the Mughal ideas of establishing a capital by including the demands of ruling an empire. The organisation of the empire was differently organised than the traditional Hindu kingdoms: The land was divided

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Fig. 9.19 Plan of Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author compilation, not to scale. (1) Agra Gate; (2) Naubat Khan; (3) Treasury; (4) Mint; (5) Palace; (6) Caravan Serai; (7) Jama Masjid

into two categories, land for imperial use and land for nobles. From the imperial used land revenues were taken to run the emperor’s household, for administrative personnel, for the military apparatus, for servants and for maintaining the stables for horses, elephants and tigers (Rezavi 2013). The Mughal emperors tried to regulate the whole life of the nobles like arranging marriages for them or their education. All administrative positions were held by the nobles and with the degree of the importance of the position the rank of the noble man was apparent (Rashad 2011). Obligating all nobles to the court was common in many Muslim countries where the king had absolute power. It was therefore an indicator of the power of a king: as soon as the king’s powers started to weaken another ruler would be chosen. In ancient times in Iran it was believed that a powerful king rules as long as he lives. His son might still know about the ruling system of his father and might be able to perform his kingly tasks alike. But a grandson only knows the particular way of ruling a country from hearsay (Rashad 2011). Lineages spanning many generations as we know from European or Hindu kingdoms were not common. Akbar wanted to reign over Muslims and Hindus the like and therefore administrative posts were taken over by Muslims as well as by Hindus. Over time, Hindus and Muslims lived without any demarcations and worked side by side for the king. All his subjects were allowed to follow their preferred religion and Akbar himself celebrated some Hindu festival such as Divali (Bashir 2009). His city should reflect his liberal ideas and so he designed quarters in the city centre that were inhabited by Hindus adjacent to those being inhabited by Muslim families.

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A major impact on the design of Fatehpur Sikri was the nomadic tradition of the Mughal, who used encampments as their headquarters. Consequently, their cities were built like encampments and life in the cities was characterised by nomadic traditions. The public audience hall, for example, had the same name as the audience tent of an encampment: bargah-i-am; the word for the emperor’s sleeping tent is the same that was used for his private chambers: khal-watkada-i-khas (Rezavi 2013). As much as in a camp, the central space of the Mughal cities was reserved for the imperial palace flanked by the houses of the princes and also the offices of the officials. Further away were the locations for high ministers and nobles and with increasing distance from the centre the importance of the family steadily was descending. The hierarchical pattern of houses is also visible in height progression: the palace and the royal complex are located on the top of the mountain ridge with the high nobles’ houses close by (Eraly 2000). Further down in the plains the residential quarters of the commoners were located as well as some gardens. In the vicinity of the lake some gardens and leisure areas were created for the use of the nobles (Rezavi 2013). Water supply was provided by eight water tanks, mainly located next to the lake. Besides, there was a number of “Baoli”, step wells, spread over the city to provide water for all residential quarters. Water was, however, not available at all times such that a special department for water management had to be created (Rezavi 2013).

9.5.1 The City Layout Fatehpur Sikri was developed alongside a mountain ridge that runs from north-east to south-west and is bordered to the north-east by a lake. The whole city was fortified on three sides, only the side bordering a today dried out lake was without fortifying walls (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1986). Access to the city was provided via eight gateways with the Agra Gate being the most important thoroughfare. Between the Agra Gate and the Tehra Gate the main street of the city stretches out which runs parallel to the mountain ridge (Rezavi 2013). At the Agra Gate this street forks and one branch leads up the hill where the large area for the palace complex is located. The palace area is perched on top of the hill and all buildings of the palace are lined up in east-west direction following the natural topography. On the bottom of the hill are the residential quarters of the commoners located, the wells and tanks and the markets.

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9.5.2 Elements of the City 9.5.2.1

The Royal Palace

The royal palace was the most important and most prominent structure of the city. It is also the best preserved and refurbished element of the city and attracting thousands of tourists (Fig. 9.20). When passing the Agra Gate, a road leads up the hill, where the palace entrance is located. Between the Agra Gate and the palace entrance was the main bazaar street, which was also used for jurisdiction and executions. A music hall was situated in the middle of the road, the Naubat Khana, which was used by the court musicians to announce the arrival or departure of the king. Further up the road was the mint, the Taksal, and on the opposite side of it was the treasury house, the Khazana (Verma 1996). Once these two buildings are passed, the actual palace was reached. Via a massive entrance gate one entered into the first, huge courtyard with the Divan-iAm, the public audience hall. From here Akbar held court hearings, received homage of his subjects or watched sports events. From a screened part of the building royal women could also watch the scenery below (Rezavi 2013). In the second courtyard, again of huge dimensions, the Diwan-i-Khas, the private audience hall was located (Diwan-i-Khas translates into “special” and “elite’s hall”). The centre of the Diwan-i-Khas is created by a thick column that widens on the upper floor to form a narrow gallery. From this gallery, narrow bridges lead to the corners

Fig. 9.20 The gardens of the Fatehpur Sikri palace. Fatehpur Sikri, India. Source Author

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Fig. 9.21 Diwan-eh-Khas. Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author

of the building to the upper floor, the area Akbar used to listen to the discussions of scholars, nobles or theologists who would discuss on the level below (Verma 1996) (Fig. 9.21). Adjacent to the Diwan-i-Khas lies the treasury, the seat of an astrologer, a hospital, a school, baths and a building with a few private sleeping rooms of the emperor and the Sultan’s house. This official part of the palace included also the bureaucratic apparatus. There was an office for recording the daily proceedings of the court but there were also rooms for priests and workshops for artisans, kitchens, storerooms and stables. The idea of placing workshops and all bureaucratic infrastructure around the palace stands in line with the traditional encampments of Mughals (Rezavi 2013). From the official part of the palace access is given via a single gate with a staggered entrance to the private realm of the emperor. This third part of the palace, which is called Jodh Bai’s Palace, comprises the quarters of the princes and the apartments of the royal women. Adjacent to these apartments lies the Hawa Mahal, the wind palace, which was used by the royal women to enjoy the view over the lake without being seen. A pleasure garden, the Anoop Talab, with water basins completes the private part of the palace (Rezavi 2013).

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Fig. 9.22 The Buland Darwaza, the main entrance gate to the Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author

West of the palace area, just outside the palace fortification walls, lies a caravan serai and the Hinan Minar, a minarett-like round tower as well as a step well. Further south of the palace lies the Friday Mosque, the Jama Masjid (Verma 1996). The king had his own gateway, the Badshahi Darwaza, located east of the courtyard of the mosque. The main entrance gate for commoners, the Buland Darwaza, lies in the southern outer wall of the mosque and rises 50 metres from the ground level (Verma 1996) (Fig. 9.22). The courtyard of the Jama Masjid is 165 m by 130 metres wide is impressive by the dimensions itself but also hosts the Tomb of Salim Chishti, a Suffi saing, which is completely made of white marble (Rezavi 2013) (Fig. 9.23).

9.5.2.2

Residential Quarters

The population was distributed in the city according to their status. The high nobles were living next to the palace on top of the ridge whilst less privileged families dwelt at the bottom of the hill. The only restriction implied by Akbar was that high nobles

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Fig. 9.23 The Tomb of Salim Chishti, Jama Masjid, Fatehpur Sikri. Source Author

could build their palaces wherever they pleased as long as they were within a range of eight to eleven km from the palace (Rezavi 2013). Unfortunately, until today we do not know how such palaces of the nobles looked like since the excavations are ongoing and none of these palaces have been excavated so far (Verma 1996). Two major roads were located parallel to the mountain ridge. Intersecting at right angles were two more major roads and thus nine zones were created. The central area was the space for the palace and imperial offices. North of it, between the two main roads, was a quarter which was used for the houses of the high nobles but included also the main market. South of the royal centre was another quarter of nobles. Adjacent to the main market were the quarters of the garrisons because from there it was easy to overlook the market and the main gateway and in case of attack the military personnel could quickly intervene (Rezavi 2013). However, little is known about the houses of commoners because as most of the original city lies in ruins and Fethpur Sikri is often referred to as a “ghost town” (for example TravelSicht 2020).

9.5.2.3

Markets

Central elements of Mughal cities in general are the markets with their handicraft stalls and other production sites and caravanserais, “hotels” for merchants. Fetehpur Sikri had in minimum four caravanserais and five bazaars that were distributed across the city: The Bazar-i Buzurg-i Sangin is the large “stone market”, which led from the Agra Darwaza Gate to the palace (Rezavi 2013). This market is currently excavated

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and archaeologists hope to gain information about the layout of shops. The most important bazaar was the Chaharsuq Bazar, the “Quartered market” (Rezavi 2013). It was located where the main street crossed another street in the centre of the town. The streets of the bazaar were paved and between 15.4 metres and 18.6 metres wide which is very wide for a market street. This is even more interesting since some intersecting minor roads that led from the bazaar street, were only 3.65 metres wide. However, no explanation for this extraordinary width of the market street is provided by archaeologists until today (Rezavi 2013). The market streets were lined with shops on both sides. It is assumed that there were 470 shops and they all were of similar size. Each shop was built on a raised platform of 80 cm height and 1.6 metres wide. From there an open vestibule of 1.8 metres width was arranged, from where one could enter the flat roofed shop of 7.9 to 3.5 metres width. Since all shops had the same appearance, it is clear that they were built by the emperor to foster trade and commerce (Verma 1996). At the northern entrance to the city was the Shahi Chowk Bazaar that had two entrance gates and 42 shops. Finally two more markets are identified but their function are not clear today (Rezavi 2013).

9.6 A Muslim Fort in India: Lal Qila, Agra Not all Mughals built whole cities, in many cases only a fort was built to serve as the headquarter of the emperor. Shah Jahan, Akbar’s son and successor, for example created the Red Fort in Delhi in 1638, which today is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 2007). Amber, Meherangarh, or Jodpur are also well known Muslim forts (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Akbar, who later created Fetehpur Sikri had built his first residence a fort in Agra, the Lal Qila. It was constructed on the west bank of the Yammuna River at a point where the river bends to the east. The fort was constructed between 1565 and 1573, although many of the buildings were added later (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1983a). The fort is surrounded by a massive wall made of red sandstone that almost forms a semicircle (Fig. 9.24). To reinforce the protection of the fort a deep ditch and moat run alongside the walls (Fig. 9.25). The gateway at the west side, the Delhi Darwaza—lying opposite of the river—was the main entrance for all who wanted to enter (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1983a). Behind the Delhi Darwaza lies a small enclosed courtyard with the next gateway, the Hathi Pol, at the other end. Behind the Hathi Pol a small bazaar, the Minar Bazaar is located. At the end of the bazaar the Moti Masjid, the Pearl mosque, lies to the north and via a large gateway tower made of red sandstone a large courtyard can be entered where the most important element is the Diwan-i-Amm, the public hall or the hall of audience (Koch 2001). Directly opposite of this gateway is a second gateway which is similar in appearance. Behind this second gateway a long path connects the souther main entrance gate, the Akbari Darwaza. It is today known as the Amar Singh Gate and was used solely by the emperor and his entourage (Koch 2001) (Fig. 9.26). To the east of

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this passage are the private rooms and pavilions of the palace—at least those that have survived over the centuries. Adjacent are the apartments of the king the apartments of the royal women, leisure pavilions, like the Musamman Buri are located. The latter is an octagonal tower with a veranda from where the river and the Taj Mahal could be overlooked. Allegedly, Aurangzeb confined his father, Shah Jahan there for the rest of his life from where he had a perfect view at the tomb of his favourite wife, the Taj Mahal (Michell and Martinelli 2004) (The Taj Mahal is described below).

Fig. 9.24 Map of the Red Fort, the Lal Qila, Agra. Source Author compilation, not to scale. (1) Amar Singh Gate; (2) Akbar Mahal; (3) Jahangir Mahal; (4) Khas Mahal; (5) Diwan-i-Am; (6) Macchli Bhavan; (7) Diwan-i-Khas; (8) Nagina Masjid; (9) Jama Masjid; (10) Bazaar; (11) Delhi Gate

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Fig. 9.25 Fortification walls and moat of the Red Fort, the Lal Qila, Agra. Source Alain Viaro

Fig. 9.26 The main entrance to the Red Fort, Agra. Source Alain Viaro

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The centre of the palace lies north-west of the Musamman Buri. It is the Diwani-Khas, the hall of the elite, which is a large hall with two thrones, one made of black marble, the other one made of white marble. To the west of the throne hall lies a pavilion, the Macchi Bhavan or fish pavilion. From there the Diwan-i-Am can be accessed which opens to the large courtyard described above. In this part of the palace lies the Nagina Masjid, the Bird Mosque, the private mosque of the emperor (Michell and Martinelli 2004). Palace gardens were located between the riverfront and the outer walls of the fortress, but none of these gardens have survived, so we know next to nothing about their design. However, it is believed that the gardens followed the Chahar Bagh principle, like the other gardens of the Mughals do. A small Chahar Bagh is incorporated in the fortress, the Anguri Bagh which lies west of the Khass Mahal (Koch 2001).

9.7 A Persian Garden in India: Shalimar Bagh The Shalimar Gardens are a fine example of the Chahar Bagh concept, the Persian garden on Indian territory. Although the gardens are located in Lahore, which is today part of Pakistan, at the time of their establishment the territory was part of Shah Jahan’s empire. The gardens were built between 1641 and 1642 CE by Shah Jahan, but after the decline of the Mughals the gardens soon fell in disrepair and later the Sikh rulers took some of the marble to their capital Amritsar where the stones were used to build the Golden Temple and the royal palace (Turner 2005). The Maharajas of the region refurbished the gardens in 1806, but they were not well maintained and were soon after abandoned once again. However, in 1981 the garden was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1981) and since then the gardens are a tourism magnet. Climate, landscape and vegetation of Lahore reminded the Mughals of their homelands, the fertile Fergana plains in Uzbekistan where they had been driven out generations ago. The gardens were therefore seen in reminiscence of their old homelands. Their nomadic traditions were yet another reason for the establishment of gardens (Shephard Parpagliolo 1972). Traditionally, the court of rulers in Uzbekistan moved around within their territory and in the hot summer months the whole court used to stay in the cool area of Kashmir. The garden of the later Mughals was therefore a reminiscence to the nomadic campsites (Turner 2005). The Mughal gardens were not only a recreation area but also equipped with facilities to hold court and to camp there for a longer time. The gardens had public areas, semi- public spaces for the ruler and his advisors and private retreats for the royal family. In all parts tents could easily be pitched (Shephard Parpagliolo 1972) again a reference to the nomadic traditions. The Shalimar gardens lie in a fertile plain with 1500 metres above sea level and are surrounded by mountains. These features provide the area a much cooler climate than the Delhi area. Before the arrival of the Mughals there was a holy Hindu city at today’s Lahore but the region was Islamised and Shalimar was declared a

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Muslim sanctuary. Akbar, the first Mughal, created a first small garden which was then enlarged by his descendants (Petruccioli 1995). The Shalimar Garden is of rectangular shape with 658 m in the north-south direction, and 258 m east-west (Fig. 9.27) (Mazzoni 2005). This large area is divided into three sections, each divided by water channels. Each section is 5 m higher than the adjacent one, creating a cascade of levels. Like all Mughal gardens, the Shalimar Bagh is surrounded by walls, and only the entrance gate at the lowest level stands out visually to guide visitors into the right direction (Petruccioli 1995). When entering the garden through the main entrance the lowest part of the gardens is reached. This part was the most public area and the ruler received his guests and officials. There were many garden pavilions that were used by the emperor and his ministers (Mazzoni 2005). When the emperor was there red curtains would hang from these pavilions as used to be in the case with the tents in traditional camp grounds (Petruccioli 1995). From this lowest level visitors could not get a glimpse of the more private areas of the garden, that lay on higher levels (Hantelmann 2001). In the middle zone, the Bagh-e-Faiz Baksh, there is a large marble water basin (Fig. 9.28). In the middle of this basin there is a platform that can only be reached by two narrow stairs (Hantelmann 2001). When the ruler held court a throne was placed on the platform protected by a canopy. From this platform the ruler had a good overview of the activities of the subjects in the lower area. Hundreds of small Fig. 9.27 Map of the Shalima Bagh, Lahore, Pakistan. Source Author compilation

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Fig. 9.28 Water basin in the central area of the Shalima Bagh, Lahore, Pakistan. Source Farrah Zakir. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shalimar_Gardens_water_reflection.JPG, 2016

fountains provided profane amenities spraying water and cooling the adjacent lanes down. However, the place had a mythological-religious relevance: In the Mughals narrative the king of the world sits in the symbolic cosmic centre on top of the symbolic ocean (i.e. the water basins) and is therefore close to heaven (Brookes 1987). The top terrace of the garden, the Bagh-e-Farah Baksh (the joyful garden) was the private area of the ruler which was not observable from any other part of the garden. It was used as the private retreat by the ruler and his family (Petruccioli 1995). Each of the terraces is divided into four sections of the same size, and this division is made via water channels flanked by paths. With the targeted use of plantings and fountains, various visual axes into the garden as well as to the mountains beyond are created. In the centre of the highest platform springs a water channel, which is routed over to the next lower level and finally flows down via cascades to the ground basin. Together with the 410 fountains that sprinkle water into the pools lined with marble it makes the most elaborate water architecture of all Mughal gardens (Mazzoni 2005).

9.8 A Muslim Tomb Garden in India: Taj Mahal The third type of Mughal gardens is the tomb garden. This type was developed later in the history of Mughal gardens in India after the gardens outside the city walls, like the example from above, were already heavily used. It seems that emperors in later epochs wanted to have a garden in the proximity of their court as well and thus started to

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construct small gardens inside the court and more spacious gardens outside the palace area, the tomb gardens. Most important tomb gardens were situated in plains and no longer in the mountain areas of Kashmir where water was abundant. The gardens in the plains were therefore technically more complex: in the Kashmir region, water had only to be diverted and channelled into the garden (Koch 1997). As soon as water was entering the garden no further ado was needed. In the plains more techniques were required in order to direct water from a nearby reservoir into the gardens. From a river water had to be diverted into sub channels with sluice systems such that effects similar to those built in the mountains could be created. One of the most prominent tomb gardens is the Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh. It was created by Shah Jahan who built it after his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal had died while giving birth to her fourteenth child (Koch 2006). Construction works began in 1632 and were completed in 1654. Since 1983 the Taj Mahal is listed as a world heritage site (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1983b) (Fig. 9.29). The area has 17 hectares and is enclosed by high walls on three sides whilst the fourth side borders the Yamuna River (Fig. 9.30). Originally, the garden had three zones, each enclosed by high walls (Koch 2006). The outermost zone was used as a Fig. 9.29 Map of the Taj Mahal Tomb Garden, Agra. Source Author compilation. (1) Tomb; (2) Tomb garden; (3) Great Gate; (4) Forecourt; (5) Gate; (6) Bazaar and caravan serais (today this part no longer exists)

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Fig. 9.30 The Taj Mahal seen from the Yamuna River. Source Alain Viaro

bazaar and had caravan serais, the second part was used as a forecourt to the actual tomb garden, the third part is the tomb garden. All areas of the garden are connected in succession along a north-south axis and are bordered in the North by the Yamuna River. The outermost zone, the bazaar area, has vanished as it got integrated into the urban fabric of Agra. However, in previous times one had to enter via this courtyard which was divided into two paths intersecting at right angles in the centre. None of the caravans serais exists any longer. Similarly, the structures of the bazaar are not recognisable any more. However, the existence of a lively bazaar with caravan serais indicates that a tomb garden was not primarly used for mourning, but was also as a vibrant place where lots of time was spent (Koch 2001). Today one enters the Taj Mahal via the central gateway that lies opposite to the river. This gateway was originally part of the dividing wall between the bazaar area and the forecourt zone of the garden. The forecourt is a rectangular area which is divided into four sections by paths that cross at right angles in the centre. The paths end at the gateway buildings, two subsidiary gates in the smaller sides, lying east and west, and opposite of the main gateway lies the Great Gateway (Fig. 9.31) which finally leads into the main tomb garden. At the time of its construction the garden was richly planted with fruit trees, flower beds and lawns (Koch 1997). Today most of the rich vegetation has vanished and only a few trees and lawns are grown in the flower beds. Via the Great Gateway the actual tomb garden is entered (Fig. 9.32). The tomb garden is square shaped and subdivided into four sections that are partitioned by water channels. Each of the water channels is equipped with several fountains and lined on either side with a path. A square shaped basin is located at the intersection

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Fig. 9.31 The main entrance gate to the Tomb Garden of the Taj Mahal, Agra. Source Alain Viaro

of the north-south and east-west water channel. In its centre is an elevated platform with yet another small water basin in its centre. The platform and all water channels are lined with marble and enhance the effect of the tomb at the end of the axis. The north-south water channel accentuates the mausoleum at the far end of the garden. The tomb rests on a five metre high base which is fringed by towers on all four corners. The mausoleum itself is an octagonal building topped with a large

Fig. 9.32 The Tomb Garden of the Taj Mahal with its water features, Agra. Source Alain Viaro

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dome. In the centre of the building are the sarcophagus of Sha Jahan and his wife, Mumtaz Mahan (Koch 2006). The mausoleum, the sarcophagus and the platform are all lined with white marble and therefore stand out from the other buildings and walls of the garden, which are all made of red sandstone (UNESCO World Heritage Convention 1983b). The platform of the mausoleum is flanked on each side with a building, on one side the Kau Ban Mosque, and on the other side the Mehmaan Khana. The original function of the Mehmaan Khana is not clear; “Khana” is literally translated into “home”, and Mehmaan is the “guest”. Thus, the Mehmaan Khana must have been a drawing room or reception room where guests are entertained a space to serve guests in a way that they feel at home. However, the design does not follow the typical drawing rooms of Indian palaces (Koch 2001). Thus it is more likely that the building was designed to mirror the Kau Ban Mosque on the other side (Koch 2001).

9.9 Conclusions Islamic rulers brought new ideas for towns, residential quarters, palaces and gardens to India. The first here discussed Islamic intervention in Indian territory was the city layout that was introduced mainly by the Mughal emperors. The Mughal city layout followed the ideas of the encampments that were used by the forefathers of the Mughals. The layout of cities followed therefore the hierarchical structure of the encampments where each clan had a designated place. Finally, nomadic encampment were temporary and were abandoned as soon as the emperor moved on. Cities, such as Fetehpur Sikri were therefore not necessarily planned as settlements that would be inhabited for longer periods of time. In this respect it is not unexpected that Akbar soon left Fatehpur Sikri and the city lay in ruins only a few decades later. Muslim cities were not only planned as encampments made of stone, but incorporated planning strategies from the Islamic world, like Old Delhi once was structured. Each clan received a certain parcel of land in the city without the need to adhere to the strict hierarchical system of the Hindu counterparts. However, since there were only few Muslims in the country at the time of the Mughals the neighbourhoods were more Hindu and not so much in the tradition of neighbourhoods of the Islamic world. Therefore the only elements that were built according to Islamic ideas were those that the Muslim rulers had built: these were the palaces, gardens, bazaars, and mosques. An entirely new element on the Indian subcontinent was the introduction of the gardens. Gardens were built in all Mughal palaces, cities, as well as in the mountain areas. Gardens were artificial oases where the emperor could rest and enjoy the cooler place with lots of vegetation and hold court. Tomb gardens, as outlined above by drawing on the example of the Taj Mahal, were meant for recreation and enjoyment in first place and only secondarily tombs and burial grounds. As outlined above, one of the three sections of the Taj Mahal was reserved for a bazaar with caravan serais

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indicating that many merchants from far away regions came here to stay for longer periods of time and this stay was certainly not meant for mourning.

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Chapter 10

Episode 8: The British and the City

Abstract As British officers gained power over India, architectural and urban planning ideas from the British homelands were introduced to India. The British occupants considered themselves superior and thus separated their neighbourhoods from the existing Indian cities. British occupants brought along British planning ideas as well as their architecture. The new English towns, the cantonments, were built outside the Indian core towns in order to keep a distance from the Indians. However, the climatic conditions were demanding for the British, particularly in summer times. Therefore, the wealthier British occupants moved to the mountains during the summers, where they created new towns, the Hill Stations. When the British crown was officially declared to rule over India, it was decided to make this claim visible in the urban fabric. The chosen planning paradigms derived from the European ideas of Enlightenment, which was seen to be the ideal concept to transport grandeur of the powerful British crown. Keywords British planning in India · British stations · Shimla · New Delhi

10.1 Introduction After the decline of the Mughal Empire in 1708 a few local kings tried to fill the power vacuum left behind, mainly the Maharajahs of north-west India. At the same time the British East India Company gained power (Niaz 2019). The Company had already established a trading network in the early seventeenth century and from this foothold they could expand their power steadily (Ludden 2006). First, the Company pushed back Portuguese and French trade in India before taking advantage of the long lasting warfare between between the Indian rulers. Through clever tactics the Company was able to play the small kingdoms off against each other by supporting some in their battles and in return receiving privileges. More and more smaller kingdoms were annexed and property of the Indians was expropriated, sometimes under dubious claims (Pieper 1974). Gradually the Company gained power over India’s governments and during the eighteenth century, not least because in the meantime the Company had become a colonial power. There were not only British traders in India but also soldiers and © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_10

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administrators of the British Crown (Cohn 2017). With this transformation to a colonial power the British in India were able to expand their control over the whole Indian subcontinent. However, British officers and officials stationed in India were not familiar with the culture and therefore left many administrative structures unchanged initially. Only during the nineteenth century the British colonial masters began to transform India’s government by structures that were used in the British homeland (Niaz 2019). This was expressed by imposing Christian values to law and economy. Secondly, a system of two societies was generated by distinguishing between the small ruling superior British people and the indigenous Indian population. In the eyes of the British the Indians had lost their right to rule themselves over their country because they were weak. Only a foreign, superior ruling class, namely the British, were able to rule this subcontinent of an inferior peasant society (Cohn 2017). Naturally, this situation caused resentment and discontent among the Indians, leading to frequent riots like one of the major uprisings in 1857 (Ludden 2006). To push back the riots the East India company recruited a large army from Indian lower caste people. In order to be able to pay the soldiers a new tax system was introduced as the British homeland did not provide any financial resources. A new law issued by the British homeland allowed the East India Company to demand between 50 and 60% of the farmers’ harvest (Niaz 2019). By the end of the eighteenth century the army of the East India Company had 67.000 troops (Charter Act 1793). With this process the East India Company was increasingly transformed from a trading company into an administrative apparatus that implemented the policies of the British heartland in India. In the first place they were traders, now they saw themselves as rulers. From 1809 onwards British were educated at the Haileybury and Imperial Service College, England, where they were raised as “empire builders” with imperialist ideals and a white racial consciousness (Niaz 2019). The graduates were seen as the elite and this created a classification of its own British population in India. The graduates of the Imperial Service College, high officers, scientists, doctors and missionaries were seen as the superior societal class. (Cohn 2017) The second social class was the “cranny society”, civil servants, European traders and shopkeepers. Not counted at all were the European soldiers as they were also classified as “lower class” in Europe (Steinmetz 2013). The British higher officials could not treat them the same because these common soldiers had rude manners and often lumbered drunkenly in the streets. This did not reflect the desired representation of a superior human race (Pieper 1974). Below the common British soldiers was the Indian society which was seen as still inferior and only fit to be ruled by the British (Steinmetz 2013).

10.2 European and British Planning Ideas British architecture and urban design ideas were led by empiricism which was based on the theories of Sir Francis Bacon, John Locke or David Hume, who formulated their theories in the seventeenth century (Broadbent 1990). An essential idea of empiricism is that all we know about the world is what we gained by experience

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and by receiving impressions about the world by our senses. Locke, for example argued that knowledge can only be built from experience over many years. A child for example will in the first years of his life, only be able to feel hunger or cold but will not be able to identify different colours and even more reasoning and arguing, thinking, expressing or understanding (Broadbent 1990. All empiricists agree, that we learn from experience and record them in our memories. People, who live in Central Europe and England learn that the sun rises every day and during the night it will be dark, as much as we learn from experience about our environment and all we can know (Broadbent 1990). Empiricism was particularly widely acknowledged in Britain, much more so than on the European continent, and influenced urban design and architecture (Broadbent 1990). The foundation of empiricist town planning lay in the philosophies of that time in Britain. Joseph Addison, for example, proposed there be two kinds of pleasures: those that are directly experienced by looking at an object, and those that we perceive when the object is no longer visible, but we remember it and still enjoy it. From this he concludes that the second form of pleasures can only be understood by noble men, since simple peasants and workers do not have any opportunity to contemplate the very object. Especially the great, the unpredictable and the beautiful can only be understood through time and experience. The soul of the connoisseur is much more delighted by the unexpected than by the ordinary, for the ordinary soon bores the connoisseur. And, above all, beauty is something that must be contemplated for a long time. Beauty, however, can not have universal standards, because each individual has to discover beauty for themselves (Broadbent 1990). These ideas lead consequently to the assumption that studying by travelling is the only way to experience and, eventually, understand beauty. Only those who have seen and looked at many objects can evaluate and assess beauty (Broadbent 1990). Therefore, it is important to travel extensively to find objects of real beauty. These beautiful objects—be it a small object, a cityscape or a landscape, must have extraordinary character and should include unexpected views. It is the picturesque, which is revealing real beauty, as William Gilpin called it (Broadbent 1990). But picturesque scenes or objects do not reveal its beauty to the commoner, who is experienced in finding and enjoying beauty. To find beauty and evaluate it one must undergo a long training. Payne Knight compares this training to the novice who drinks wine for the first time: the first time one might only be able to tell the colour or the temperature. Only through extensive training and systematic tasting one will be able to taste the bouquet of wine (Broadbent 1990). The same holds for architecture, urban design, art, and also landscapes. There are no formal rules, but only the aesthetic experience of a trained person, who can judge beauty, and this applies to all: objects, landscapes, architecture and urban settings (Broadbent 1990). Such landscapes and picturesque scenes were found in India in plenty, on the one hand by natural settings and on the other hand by looking at the indigenous towns and villages that were colourful and exotic. However, these scenes should be kept at a distance to the own realm, serve as a background only and never become part of one’s own settlement.

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Fig. 10.1 Scheme of a station. (1) main officer’s building (2) officer’s mass (3) theatre (4) ball room (5) church (6) water tank (7) library, (8,9) high officer’s residences, (10) barracks of soldiers (11) park of hospital (12) gardens (13, 14) hospital (15) residences of higher soldiers (16) military administration (17) gardens Source Author compilation after J. Pieper (1974)

10.3 The British Station All Indian cities that were important trade nodes for the British had a station, a newly generated type of settlement in colonised British countries and thus also in India. Such stations were constructed for the sole use of the British population living in India and comprised residential areas, facilities for leisure, administration and facilities for the military apparatus. It was seen as “Little Britain” in the tropics and it was aimed to establish British flair as much as possible (Pieper 1974). The station was always split in two main parts, the “civil lines” with the residences of the high officials and officers and the “cantonment”, the military base (Ali 2001). Between these two were all public buildings, such as churches, theatres, clubs, administrative buildings and parade grounds. The station as a whole was always very remote from the Indian native cities. First, because there was enough space to build these “white towns”, but secondly, because of the idea that as a white, superior person one cannot live close to the Indian natives (Pieper 1974) (Fig. 10.1). Indian architecture and planning was always perceived as inappropriate and not properly developed.

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10.3.1 Civil Lines One part of the station was the so-called “civil lines” that were designated as the residential area of high military and high officials of the British crown (Desai et al. 2012). Their notion of being the elitist people that stood above lower British citizens who worked in India as well as above all Indians was expressed in behaviour as well as in town planning architecture: the British wore wigs and starched suits and dressed generally the same way gentlemen would do in England. They preferred food that they knew from England and some food had to be shipped from Europe (Pradhan 2017; Vashisht 2010). Certainly, also the neighbourhoods had to reflect the notion of British superiority over Indians (Cohn 2017). Thus the civil lines were set up as garden cities because the spacious wide lanes, the large lawns, the lofty properties of the civil lines were the counter concept to Indian cities: as discussed in the previous chapters Indian cities had narrow lanes, their houses built next to each other, often back to back, which was, in the British notion, a sign for inferiority (Cohn 2017). British officials in India did not realise that the courtyard house and the narrow lanes were the most appropriate response to the hot and humid climate in India. The first type of house the British built on the Indian subcontinent was the detached English style house with thick burnt brick walls, small windows and no possibility of a cross ventilation (Pieper 1974). The houses were furnished in the same way as they were in England with thick tapestries, carpets on the floors and massive furniture. But these houses were suitable for the British climate, with temperatures hardly rising above 20° C and rain nearly every day (Pieper 1974). Apparently, they were less suitable for the Indian climate: In India these houses tended to overheat which made it even more unbearable for the British who were not used to the Indian climate, anyway. But for nearly 200 years the British stuck to their house type because their notion of propagating a superior culture prevented them from adopting Indian houses. Only gradually they started to generate a new type of residential building: the bungalow (Desai et al. 2012). The bungalow was a building with mostly one floor, sometimes with a second floor that could be integrated into the sloping roof. Often verandahs were attached and lofty doors and windows opened to the garden. A bungalow could be cross ventilated and was therefore more suitable to the Indian climate than the detached British house (Desai et al. 2012). Soon, the bungalow caused a sensation and became a symbol of the colonial lifestyle of the ruling class (Pieper 1974). Each officer claimed a bungalow for himself to demonstrate his superiority over the indigenous population. The first bungalows were built far outside the towns because a bungalow is open to all sides and thus needs a spacious garden around (Desai et al. 2012). As a side effect the distance to the Indian towns reinforced the above mentioned attitude to deliberately stay away from Indian towns. The exotic scenery for a picturesque background was desired. Picturesque, after all, was for the British everything that was imperfect such as ruins, partially dilapidated buildings or the colourful and in their notion run-down cities of the Indians (Broadbent 1990).

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The civil lines were then soon built on with bungalows that were loosely spaced apart. The civil lines were, wherever possible, carefully placed on a hill and at some distance from the Indian old towns which were pleasing as picturesque scenery but far enough not to be bothered by the noise, the stench, the crowdedness of the Indian old towns (Pieper 1974). Each high officer or military personnel had a large garden on which the bungalow was placed along side the street. In the back the bungalow was surrounded by an extensive parkland covered with trees and bushes. Hidden by the greenery and far away from the bungalow were the huts of the many servants an officer had in keeping with his rank like gardeners, cooks, stable boys, cleaners, teachers and nurses. On site there were also separate cook houses to keep the smells and the heat off the main building as well as stables (Pieper 1974). Bungalows were white-painted surrounded by neatly trimmed lawns and hedges that stood loosely alongside the paved avenues. They were widely scattered in the landscape and often enclosed by low walls with a decorated entrance gate to the property (Desai et al. 2012). The paved paths were lined with large, shady trees and between the properties spacious lawns were interspersed to provide areas for leisure such as playing cricket (Pieper 1974). In the nineteenth century the bungalows were cheap to build with local materials such as sun-dried bricks that was whitewashed (Desai et al. 2012). The ground plans were simple because no architects were around and the British officers came from lower social classes in England and had no experience in building larger mansions. Consequently, bungalows were often enormous and could be as large as 600 m2 (Desai et al. 2012). The inner layout, however remained very basic as well as the construction. The roofs of the bungalows where either constructed as flat roofs or as hipped roofs, often with a thick layer of roof tiles to deal with the enormous heat. In the late nineteenth century the bungalows were gradually built with solid bricks, still plastered white (Desai et al. 2012). Verandas and porticoes were attached and tall colonnades on plinths were getting en-vogue. The street façades became the calling card of the residents and were supposed to convey wealth and prestige to the outside world, however they often were of poor taste. Eyewitnesses tell about poorly educated people of lower social ranks who had come to India to make a fortune (Desai et al. 2012).

10.3.2 The Cantonment The cantonment was the other part of the British station and was the military camp of the British army in India. Originally cantonments were planned to be semipermanent, but by the turn of the nineteenth to the twentieth century they started to be permanent. After independence the Pakistanis and Indians continued to use them as military bases (Ali 2001).

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Cantonments lay always in a certain distance to the civil lines. They were either a unit on their own or they were separated by large parks or parade grounds. Cantonments were split into two parts, one part hosting the barracks of the British soldiers, the other part being the ground for the tents of the Indian soldiers who were fighting for the British crown (Ali 2001). The senior officers were close to the centre of the cantonment and subordinate soldiers were placed further away, sorted by ranks. The barracks were placed in parallel lines and varied only in comfort: the more senior the soldiers were the more comfort had their barracks (Ali 2001). Apart from the barracks for the soldiers there were other facilities that were necessary for everyday military life. These were open fields for training of the cavalry, cricket and polo grounds, stables, parade grounds, rifle ranges, slaughter houses, central kitchens and often hospitals (Pieper 1974).

10.3.3 Official Buildings Between the civil lines and the cantonment were facilities for entertainment of the British as well as buildings of representation. These included the officers’ mess, as well as clubs, casinos, and the church (Ali 2001). The mess had to be an impressive building and was normally the largest of all official buildings. It served as the platform of social representation, balls and other social events. In large stations there was a theatre which also had to be impressive (Pieper 1974). The quality of the plays that were performed was moderate at best because no professional British actors lived in India and all plays were performed by soldiers who also performed the female parts (Vashisht 2010). Since it was a social event for everyone to attend, all would go and enjoy the performances. After the play all would convene at to the assembly hall for dinner or a ball (Pieper 1974). Another amusement were the “evening drives” (Vashisht 2010), carriage rides, where British officials drove along avenues that were especially constructed for these events. In the evenings the British rode on their carriages on these avenues to show themselves off in society (Pradhan 2017). On their way they greeted each other and showed off the latest fashions from England. Every week soldiers in parade uniforms paraded in front of large stands built for that purpose to the sound of military bands (Vashisht 2010). Furthermore, all camps comprised churches built in a neo-Gothic style. This style was never adapted to Indian conditions and was thus considered a piece of “True Old England”. It was the place of the true faith and visitors felt closer to England here than anywhere else in the station (Pradhan 2017).

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Fig. 10.2 Victoria Terminus or Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Mumbai. Source Vyacheslav Argenberg, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mumbai,_India,_Chhatrapati_ Shivaji_Maharaj_Terminus_, accessed 26 October 2021

For the needs of the British local bazaars were attached to the stations but in some distance to the civil lines (Pieper 1974). These were run by local Indian people and often old bazaar roads were extended to the new station or they were relocated. In these bazaars the British could buy all they needed: in the garrisons mostly food was needed but the high officials also purchased products for their parties, their homes and other consumables (Vashisht 2010). Railways were built in India from the nineteenth century on. In a first phase these were only industrial railways but as early as mid nineteenth century they were also used for passengers. The railway stations were then located between the station and the Indian city because in nearly all cities these areas were uninhabited land (Volwahsen 2002a, b). The architecture of the railway stations was deliberately designed as a gateway to the Anglo-Indian world and were designed according to the taste of the late nineteenth century with bombastic details. Styles of all major epochs were used and byzantine elements were combined with Gothic and Baroque elements (Pieper 1974) (Fig. 10.2).

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10.4 The Hill Station Since the weather conditions of the Indian subcontinent were hardly bearable for the British. The British living in India soon ventured for cooler places. To survey the country explorers were sent out to the hinterland. Soon the regions in the Himalayas were discovered which, somewhat unexpectedly, had an alpine character: clear, cool streams, coniferous forests, meadows and a climate that was pleasant for Europeans (Kennedy 1996). A similarly pleasant climate was found on the Deccan Plateau which also provided the scenic views desired by the British. It was not long before the British higher officials established holiday resorts in these two regions, called hill stations (Kennedy 1996). By 1830 hill stations were already very popular and it was considered good manners for the wealthy British to have a house in one of the hill stations and stay over the summers in the cool mountain regions (Kennedy 1996) However, common soldiers stayed in their garrisons in the plains to prevent riots whilst their commanders were far away. The wealthy British moved every summer with their entourage to the mountains and the duration of their stays increased over time: by mid nineteenth century an average of 16% of British officers were in the plains and large administrative centres such as Delhi or Mumbai, the rest stayed nearly the whole year in the hill stations (Pradhan 2017). These absences severely impeded the administration of the Empire. However, none of the high officials could put a stop to this annual migration to the mountains because it was often argued by high officers that the climate was unbearable for Europeans and would be fatal (Pradhan 2017). Such arguments seemed to produce results because the hill station stays could remain extended ignoring the fact that common British soldiers managed to survive in the heat of the garrison in the plains.

10.4.1 Simla As outlined above hill stations were solely holiday resorts of the wealthy British in India, and thus featured facilities for leisure, recreation and social events. Thus, hill stations had never a garrison or an apparatus for administrative purpose. One of the famous hill stations was Simla that lies in the south-western parts of the Himalayas, 350 km away from Delhi and is today the capital of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864 the city was one of the best known and most frequented hill station also because the British viceroy had chosen Simla as his summer residence (Vashisht 2010). The city lies 2000 metres above sea level on an east–west mountain ridge stretching out for more than nine km along this ridge (Vashisht 2010). Simla’s vegetation is comparable to Alpine regions with many oak and pine trees but also rhododendrons are frequent. The temperatures range in winter between freezing point and 10 °C, and in summer between 19 to 28 °C, which was perceived as very pleasant by the British society living in India (Vashisht 2010).

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A railway line was built in 1856 connecting Simla with Kalka, the city that lies in the plains below Simla. In 1903 a road was finished that also connected the city and from then onwards on the British could travel comfortably with their entourage which was rather large due to their long stays in the mountains. With this infrastructure more and more British came to Simla, some staying in hotels and the more wealthy families staying in their own houses. The rapid increase of residents is evidenced by the number of houses: in 1830 there were 30 houses, in 1900 there were already 2000 summer residences (Pieper 1974). Because more and more summer holidaymakers were coming to the mountains and staying longer and longer the town had to be managed all year round. Consequently, a permanent administration had to be introduced under the control of the Delhi commissioner. The headquarters of the Alliance Bank was moved to Simla in 1874 because this move consolidated the prestige of the bank, although financial transactions were only possible to a very limited extend in the mountains and the bank soon resembled a real estate agent (Pradhan 2017). Commerce intensified, because the British needed many luxury goods for their social events. The longer the English stayed in Simla the more their demand for luxury goods increased. Luxury items were partly brought to Simla by English traders but many products were produced by the Indian population of the region exclusively for sale to the English like porcelain, clothing, perfumes or milliner (Vashisht 2010). Photographers and tailors had shops in the hill stations for the sole use of the British society. Furniture, curtains, wallpaper and flowers for the gardens were on offer and especially produced for the British (Vashisht 2010). These goods were then offered in exclusive shops on The Mall, the main street of Simla (Fig. 10.3) Shops for daily needs were located in the so called Lower Bazaar, which is located below the Mall. It was the local market with small wooden shops to both sides of a narrow lane. The daily products could be purchased here such as food, but also books, quilts or mattresses. The Lakka Bazaar, another local market, was famous for the wood craft that was produced nearby (Pradhan 2017). This street is located on the north-eastern side of the Ridge. For social events clubs and theatres were built in Simla and particularly the club became an essential stage for social life in the mountains (Fig. 10.4) Since clubs could only be accessed by members of the upper classes they however reinforced social segregation (Pradhan 2017). Most importantly clubs also served as a place where business is concluded and political decisions are discussed, as was also the case in Simla. The Simla Club was very spacious and offered many amenities such as a dance floor, billiard rooms, a reading room, a dining room, a bar, a covered tennis court and many more (Vashisht 2010). It was the space where men would spend much time of the day. In Simla this club was so important that even a private electricity plant was built for the club in 1906 (Pradhan 2017).

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Fig. 10.3 The Mall road of Shimla. To the right is the municipal corporation building. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mall_Road_-_Shimla_2014-05-07_ 1107.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021

Fig. 10.4 The Gaiety Heritage Cultural complex. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https://commons.wik imedia.org/wiki/File:Gaiety_Theater_-_Mall_Road_-_Shimla_2014-05-07_1291.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021

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However, societal life did not only unfold in the clubs. There was nearly every evening a ball, a banquet, often even two events in one day. There were evening tours and organised pic-nicks, or trips, particularly made for the British and their interest in searching for picturesque scenes (Vashisht 2010). Theatre performances were also a constant part of life in Simla. For these performances the Prince of Wales Theatre was built which was located close to one of the bazaars, the Lakka Bazaar (today the building is used as a cinema) (Vashisht 2010). All plays were performed by amateurs because there were no professional actors available. To train for the performances special drama clubs were set up. The drama club of Simla was founded in 1888 and was the first of this kind on the Indian subcontinent (Pradhan 2017). Another social event was the regular performance of the imperial band that played regularly. For their performance a band stand was created at the Mall, the central meeting place in Simla (Fig. 10.5). The band stand was used for the daily evening outings where the British were carried around on seats and met here (Vashisht 2010). The higher one’s rank the more he was obliged to participate in these events and had to show in public (Vashisht 2010). The Mall was busy during daytime by passersbuy on their errands and on Sundays after the service at church. And it was used to celebrate the arrival of the viceroy who would pass the Mall on his way from the railway station to his palace, the Viceregal Lodge (Fig. 10.6). With the arrival of the viceroy the summer season in Simla was officially opened and this was celebrated with a dinner and a ball in his palace (Pradhan 2017). After that event many other balls and banquets where held, in some years nearly every day. Another very important social event to participate were the services at church. Churches were the most visible symbol of the British in India and thus there were many different churches such as the Church of England, the Roman Catholic, the Anglican, the Methodist Church and many others. Simla’s most important church was the Christ Church, which is located at the intersection of “the Mall” and “the Ridge”, where a large open square in front of the church allows the British to convene after service (Vashisht 2010) (Fig. 10.7). The British self- perception as being superior was also expressed in the private homes. Here, up in the mountains they could choose to build exactly the same houses as in England (Kennedy 1996). They chose Victorian or Edwardian style and combined these with Alpine elements. The houses had often timber frame constructions attached or they were completely timber frame constructions often mimicking chalets of the Swiss Alps (Kennedy 1996). Other homes were solid brick houses with small windows. It was here in the mountains where they could realise their dreams of an English home. The hill stations materialised their memories and desire for brick and mortar. (Kennedy 1996). Most of the building materials were brought up to the mountains because these were not available locally. An essential element of a British house in Simla was its flower gardens and lawns surrounding the house (Pradhan 2017) The flower beds were richly overgrown with brightly coloured flowers from local gardeners and often garden pavilions were placed in between the flower beds or at places with particular scenic views into the mountains (Kennedy 1996). Architecture, town planning and all social events taking place in Hill stations had to be of “imperial dimension” (Pradhan 2017) in order to demonstrate the superiority

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Fig. 10.5 The Mall Road with the bandstand to the left. Source Biswarup Ganguly, https:// commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mall_Road_-_Shimla_2014-05-07_1245.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021

of the British over the subordinate Indian population. This lifestyle brought some of the British officials close to financial ruin (Vashisht 2010). But the pretence had to be kept up and everyone had to take part in expensive activities, also to represent the crown abroad in a worthy manner. Demonstrating the powerful British Empire in India was as well an issue in big cities in the main lands of India like Delhi, Kolkata, or Mumbai, which is described in the next paragraphs.

10.5 Spatial Representation Until 1911 the capital of the British was Kolkata. However, the many uprisings, nationalist or anti-colonial movements forced the Company to look for a new capital. Delhi was an important place throughout Indian history. Situated at the intersection between the Persian desert zones and the Himalayas all trade between Europe and China had to pass through the plains around Delhi. Consequently, Delhi was chosen as the new capital of British India. The Land Acquisition Act was declared allowing the British to build the new capital outside the old core, where formerly the civic lines were situated (Land Acquisition Act 1894). In November 1858 the Queen of England was proclaimed to rule over India and from that time on all Indian princes became feudatories of the British crown (Stang 2002). This was a turning point in the notion of business in India: until then the

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Fig. 10.6 Viceregal Lodge, Shimla. Source Praveenguptabotanist, https://commons.wikimedia. org/wiki/File:Viceregal_Lodge,_Shimla.jpg, accessed 26 Oct 2021

Fig. 10.7 The church at the Shimla Ridge. Source Betelbeuse. https://commons.wikimedia.org/ wiki/File:Shimla_India_Ridge.JPG, accessed 26 Oct 2021

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British East India Company had been interested in trade, buying products and raw materials at cheap prices but the Company was not interested in political power. With the proclamation of the British Queen as the legal ruler over India this notion changed. India became part of the British Kingdom with its laws and social and cultural implications (Steinmetz 2013). This turning point not only had to be announced, it was felt the necessity to celebrate an inauguration ceremony to which all princes and nobles of India had to participate. Although Queen Victoria never set foot on the Indian subcontinent an assemblage was held in 1877 in Delhi, the British Durbar. This assemblage was designed after the traditional Durbars in the notion of the Mughals (Cohn 2017). For the British Durbar works started already in September 1876 because more than 84.000 people were expected (of whom only some 1000 people were British). A semicircle of more than eight km was cleared for the camps by removing hundreds of villages. The semi circle started at the Delhi Railway Station and was divided into several camps for the representatives of the Indian regions as well as for the few British. Roads were built, bazaars set up and sanitary facilities established for the large number of visitors (Cohn 2017). The centre was marked by the Imperial camp which stretched out for two km at the north-eastern side of the Delhi Ridge where the military cantonment was placed before. The tents for the Europeans were of enormous sizes and contemporary witnesses described them as being palatial. At the centre of the imperial camp was the Durbar tent which had a raised platform in its centre with the throne of the British viceroy (Cohn 2017). The layout of the camp was organised like Roman antique camps with straight intersecting lanes and tents on one side and grass with flowers on the opposite side. This way British officials aimed to demonstrate their rule in India (Cohn 2017). At some distance were the areas of the Indian encampments but they were further organised by the clans according to their own ideas. British officials considered these camps as unorganised and overcrowded which reinforced their perception of superiority over the Indian peasants (Cohn 2017). However, some European visitors described the Indian encampments as very lively, colourful and vibrant and stated that they were much more beautiful than the British camp. After the Durbar the transformation of Delhi into the new capital was pushed ahead (Volwahsen 2002a). The Durbar was already the first step into a new planning paradigm of the British who had so far planned their residential quarters more according to the ideas of empiricism (Volwahsen 2002a). But at the beginning of the twentieth century new planning ideas were en vogue that were derived from the planning ideas of the rationalists that had emerged in Central Europe during Renaissance. Rationalists argued that there exists an everlasting beauty, perceived as such at all times (Broadbent 1990). Therefore, rationalist theorists develop an architectural language that would meet this demand for everlasting beauty. Theorists such as Laugier, Boullée or Ledoux argued that the use of geometric Platonic elements such as spheres, cuboids, or pyramids are the most basic shapes that are not manmade but exist all times and thus do not depend on the aesthetic tastes of a time. (Broadbent 1990). These Platonic shapes should therefore be used in architecture.

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The only other elements that were allowed to be used were columns but only in the Doric order because the Doric order was also seen as archetypal (Broadbent 1990). Andrea Palladio is among the architects who translated these ideas in his time into architecture, be it private palazzi, like the Villa Rotonda (Vicenza, Italy), or public buildings like the Palazzo della Ragione (Vicenca, Italy) (Bürklin 2019). Renaissance ideas were also translated into the urban context. Leon Battista Alberti for example argued that the power and beauty of a city is expressed by the design of its streets: straight and wide streets transport grandeur and majesty (Broadbent 1990). The ends of the streets should be accentuated with buildings or should end in plazas of geometric shapes: square, circular, or oval-shaped. Important buildings like theatres, churches, or palaces should be accentuated with urban design, by adding plazas in front of them or by creating flights of steps leading to the main entrance (Benevolo 2007). These rationalist planning paradigms did not end with Renaissance but had a lasting influence on urban design in Europe in the nineteenth century. Particularly Baron Haussmann was carrying the rationalist planning further when he started to transform Paris after he was commissioned with the works by Louis Napoleon. Louis Napoleon, a nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte, was empowered after the June revolts of 1837 (Vidler 1978). The decades before, his election as president of France, between 1789 and 1837, were characterised by riots and uncertainty. Particularly the distrust in the political leaders was expressed in these riots. In these revolts all urban inhabitants, bourgeoisie, workers, artisans, salesmen and many others fought against the national army (Vidler 1978). The inhabitants of Paris lacked the military equipment of the military but they set up barricades in the narrow streets of the old town of Paris. These narrow lanes turned out to be perfect settings to prevent the official troops from pulling down the barricades, as they were simultaneously attacked from within the houses. The situation was aggravated by the fact that the barricades were placed in close succession such that after tearing down one barricade, the troops faced the next one. Thus, the military could hardly penetrate the medieval urban core of Paris (Carmona 2002). After the riots were put down, a debate about the appearance of Paris started, which was also a concern of Louis Napoleon. The official arguments of the nineteenth century were that the medieval core of Paris was dirty, overcrowded, foul smelling, and anyway unhealthy to live in. Rationalist ideas were circulated by stating that the only way to cure the city and its inhabitants was to straighten and widen the streets and make them look uniform and ordered (Vidler 1978). With such design also the urban poor, who mainly inhabited these parts, would live healthier and better lives (Vidler 1978). But to these arguments, new ones were added: Louis Napoleon, who had spent years in exile clearly felt that the riots with the barricades that had brought him to power would remove him from power again (Vidler 1978). Therefore, the transformation of Paris into a noble and powerful city with wide and straight streets had highest priority, also because he wanted to impede barricades. The rationalist planning ideas of Enlightenment were perfectly matching this intentions. He commissioned Baron Haussmann who was in charge to design the new streets for Paris. Haussmann created

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boulevards, wide streets with tree-lined avenues that were cut through the medieval districts of Paris. The boulevards were equipped with benches and gas lanterns, to prevent the lingering of the urban poor (Vidler 1978). Alongside the boulevards the representative buildings of the bourgeoisie were built, for whom a new way of residence was built: for them the vista of the boulevards was of core importance, as well as having an appropriate representative environment of their homes. With this a new paradigm of urban design was introduced, which was influential for all cities around the world: the structure of the urban fabric was dominated by the representation of both, upper class families as well as governments (Vidler 1978). Baron Haussmann’s monumental plan of today’s Place Charles de Gaulle with the star-shaped arrangement of the boulevards was seen as the perfect architectural representation of power and superiority. Monumental urban designs with streets of enormous widths, monumental architecture and geometric layouts were then used around the world to demonstrate power. This “Haussmannisation”, as Friedrich Engels labelled it, was soon to be applied in Washington D.C. for the Capitol Hill, in Brasilia, or Caracas (Bornberg and Jaimes 2007), among others and certainly served as inspiration for the planning of New Delhi. Axiality, monumentality, size and symmetry were seen to perfectly communicate the British rule over India.

10.5.1 Imperial Delhi Delhi had to be designed as the new capital of India under the British rule. Above discussed rationalist design principles were seen as the adequate solution, although these planning ideas contradicted their own notions of house and urban design: so far the picturesque scene was the main planning paradigm for British towns and villages, but for the imperial representation the rationalist ideas of geometry and order were chosen, following the argumentation that this is the perfect solution to communicate the grandeur of a country that rightly ruled over the Indians. The general plan for New Delhi was based on a rectangular grid that was superimposed with a hexagonal system. The intersections of these two systems form the central boulevard, the King’s way (Volwahsen 2002a) (Fig. 10.8). This imperial axis is terminated by a semicircular street that further on is adjacent to a garden. The semicircle is formed by the South Avenue and the North Avenue, and as a central element of the semicircle the Viceregal Palace is located, next to the Viceregal Court and the Secretariat. This is preceded by the Great Place, an open space which extends then further east into the King’s Way, today called Rajpath. The Rajpath is a majestic boulevard of more than 300 metres width and measures 2.3 km from the secretariat to the other end. In the middle is a paved road for traffic, and to either side are spacious lawn beds and water features (Fig. 10.9). The Rajpath is bordered by public buildings such as museums, administrative buildings and memorials (Fig. 10.10). At the end of

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the boulevard lies a hexagonal space, the Prince’s park with roads leading from the centre to the adjacent city. The centre of the Princes Park is marked by the “Canopy” (Volwahsen 2002b) a 22 metres wide cupola in Indian style where the statue of King George V was placed (and removed in 1958) (Volwahsen 2002a). However, the Canopy was constructed in 1936, long after Imperial Delhi was inaugurated. To the west the India Gate is placed, a triumphal arch and the All India War Memorial (Fig. 10.11). At the centre of the Rajpath intersects an orthogonal street which leads to the “Connaught Place” in the north, the commercial centre of the British Imperial city and to the Cathedral in the south. All other main streets run star-shaped into all directions and intersect at roundabouts. The plots of land divided by the streets were intended for the residential quarters of the British living in India. These were divided into generous plots of lands where detached buildings were placed surrounded by gardens. The planning paradigm behind the residential quarters was the Garden City of Ebenezer Howard (Howard 1968), which was en vogue at that time in England (Broadbent 1990). The main concept of the Garden City was that different uses were separated and each function was then arranged concentrically and separated from each other by green areas (Howard 1968). In the centre public buildings were arranged on a Fig. 10.8 The plan for Imperial Delhi. (1) Old Delhi (2) Lal Qila (3) Jama Masjid (4) Railway line (5) Connaught Place (6) India Gate (7) Viceroy’s House, today Rashtrapati Bhavan Source Author compilation after Sir Edwin Lutyens’project for New Delhi

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Fig. 10.9 Water course at the Rajpat, New Delhi. In the background the administrative buildings of the British Crown. Source Author

spacious garden. This area was enclosed by a park ring of nearly 60 hectares around which it was planned to erect a ring of residential neighbourhoods and still further out there should be farm houses. The residential ring should be bisected by the Grand Avenue which was again a green belt with schools, playgrounds, public libraries, or churches (Howard 1968). The last and outermost ring should be the industrial and commercial district of the city (Howard 1968). The concentric rings were cut through by six large boulevards. According to the Garden City, the layout of New Delhi was designed. The tertiary sector with banks and European shops was established at the intersection between the Imperial town and the old town of Delhi, in the proximity of the railway station (Volwahsen 2002a). This space, the Connaught Place, is a large circular space with circular buildings all around (Fig. 10.12). The role model for this new trading centre was the Royal Crescent in Bath which was built in the late eighteenth century (Volwahsen 2002a). The centre of Connaught Place is a large central park enclosed by two concentric circles of buildings. Seven roads cut through the circle and connect the radial roads. To the south-west the circle is opened up because it was believed that this would provide the design more grandeur.

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Fig. 10.10 The Rajpat. Source Author

After seventeen years of construction works were sufficiently advanced such that the new capital could be inaugurated in February 1931 (Volwahsen 2002a). A series of festivities, receptions, garden parties, dinners, balls and speeches were held over two weeks. This was the peak of Imperial British power in India since only sixteen years later the British government announced the intention to pull out from India. In June 1948 Lord Mountbatten initiated the transfer of power to the Indian society (Volwahsen 2002a).

10.6 The British Built Legacy in India Planning ideas which had been introduced by the British to India were hardly suitable for India for many reasons. One the one hand British detached houses were not suitable for the hot and humid Indian climate. As described above it took several decades for the British colonial masters to invent another house form which was more suitable for the Indian climate: the bungalow. The Bungalow style houses

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replaced the classical detached Victorian style house which had been designed for cold and rainy conditions. However these bungalows were hardly better suited as they, too, lacked the climate advantages of a central courtyard house. Bungalows still face outwards rather than inwards like Indian courtyard houses. This means that the rooms inside still heat up a great deal as there is no cross-ventilation. Today, English houses, whether bungalows or cottages, are only habitable with the use of electric air-conditioning.

Fig. 10.11 The India Gate with the Canopy in the background, New Delhi. Source Author

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New planning ideas were also introduced in urban development, namely wide boulevards with lawns and bushes. Since such boulevards were also intended as visual axes trees could not be planted; they would have obscured the view of the buildings that were to be emphasised. Boulevards, however, heat up strongly in the Indian sun and the lack of trees means that no shade is created making these streets almost unusable during the day in high summer. Today mainly air-conditioned cars drive along these roads further heating up the microclimate. Cyclists and pedestrians can hardly use these streets during the day. When the English left India the division between Indian and British cities was obsolete. Slowly the two parts grew together, resulting in a shift of the traditional city centre. This was because the new centre of the city was in many cases just between the two original parts of the settlement. But this created another problem: the untouchables, the Dalit, had settled between the two settlement areas and suddenly found themselves living in the middle of the city after the British left. This will be discussed in the next chapter.

Fig. 10.12 Connaught Place, New Delhi. Source Author

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10.7 Conclusions The British colonial masters brought their own ideas of urban planning and architecture with them to India. In the beginning English houses were built, even though they were not very suitable for the climate. The cities were also built according to British ideas. Planned settlements were built for British officers as well as ordinary soldiers, with all the infrastructure necessary for everyday military life: officers’ mess, theatre, club, church, parade fields and so on. In addition there were areas for administrative officials who built their bungalows on extensive lawns. Some of these “stations”, as the British settlements were called, were soon built in the cooler mountain regions of the Himalayas and the Deccan where the more wealthy British administrative officials spent the summer time. When Queen Victoria was officially proclaimed as sovereign over India it was decided that there had to be a spatial representation of this claim to rule. New Delhi was therefore planned with long axes, representative buildings of enormous proportions, according to the planning paradigms of the time. However, architecture and town planning do not adjust to the Indian climate: wide boulevards heat up the micro-climate, the absence of shady trees makes the streets almost unusable for pedestrians.

References Ali A N (2001) Lahore Cantonment. http://www.geocities.com/momers_termpapers/ss153LahoreC antonment.htm. Accessed 25 Jan 2020 Benevolo L (2007) Die Geschichte der Stadt. Camppus Verlag, Frankfurt, New York Bornberg R, Jaimes M (2007) Haussmannisation at its best: lessons from the plan Rotival in Caracas. Trialog 93, 2 / 2007, pp 12–18 Broadbent G (1990) Emerging concepts in urban space design. Van Nostrand Reinhold, London, New York Bürklin Th (2019) Palladio, der Bildermacher. Birkhäuser, Basel Carmona M (2002) Haussmann. His life and times and the making of modern Paris. Ivan R. Dee Inc., Chicago Charter Act (1793) The East India Company Act 1793. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charter_Act_ of_1793. Accessed 25 Jan 2021 Cohn BS (2017) Representing authority in Victorian India. In: Hobswam E, Ranger T (eds) The inversion of tradition. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 165–210 Desai M, Desai M, Lang J (2012) The Bungalow in twentieth-century India. The cultural expression of changing ways of life and aspirations in the domestic architecture of colonial and post-colonial society. Ashgate, Farnham, U.K. Howard E (1968) Gartenstädte von morgen: das Buch und seine Geschichte. Ullstein, Berlin, Frankfurt/Main Kennedy D (1996) The magic mountains. Hill stations and the British Raj University of California Press, Berkley, Los Angeles, London Land Acquisition Act (1894) The land acquisition act. Directorate of Printing & Stationery Meghalaya, Shillong. Ludden D (2006) Geschichte Indiens. Magnus-Verl., Essen

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Niaz I (2019) The state during the British Raj: imperial government in South Asia, 1700–1947. Oxford University Press, Karachi Pieper J (1974) Die anglo-indische station. TH Aachen Dissertation, Aachen Pradhan Q (2017) Empires in the hills. Simla, Darjeeling, Ootacamund, and Mount Abu, 1820–1920. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Stang F (2002) Indine. Geografie, Geschichte, Wirtschaft, Politik. Wiss. Buchgesellschaft , Darmstadt Steinmetz G (2013) Sociology and empire. The imperial entanglements of a discipline. Duke University Press, Durham, London Vashisht SR (2010) Shimla. Publishing, Delhi, A British Himalayan town. B.R Vidler A (1978) The scenes of the street. In: Stanford A (ed) On streets. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass, London, pp 29–111 Volwahsen A (2002a) Imperial Delhi. Prestel Verlag, Munich, Berlin, London, New York, The British Capital of the Indian Empire Volwahsen A (2002b) Imperial Delhi: the British capital of the Indian empire. Prestel, Munich, Berlin

Chapter 11

Episode 9: Outsiders and the City

Abstract The last episode deals with the people of India who have always been excluded from society: the Dalits, the untouchables who live in slums today. Dalits have always been an important labour force for the “legal” population, as Dalits performed the jobs that higher castes were not allowed to do. Dalits were and still are active in households and on the streets of the “legal” city during the day, and then return to the slums during the evening hours. Short distances are of great importance to slum dwellers, which is why slums developed along the old city boundaries, often now located in city centres as cities have grown. The example of Dharavi, Mumbai, is used to show how on the one hand slum dwellers provide an important economic service to Mumbai, but on the other hand are being pushed out of their areas, especially by the new middle class who claims the slum areas for itself and neoliberal urban planning ideas. Keywords Dalit · Untouchability · Slums · Slum clearance · Dharavi · Right to the city

11.1 Introduction As outlined earlier in this book (particularly in Chap. 2) four castes, the Brahmins, the Kshyatriyas, the Vaishyas, and the Shudras, are known in Hinduism. Not included into the caste system are the Dalit or untouchables. For each caste there are certain building regulations, such as materials to be used or the construction methods. As outlined in Chap. 5, Brahmins, the priest caste, should have the highest and most spacious buildings, Vaishya, the merchant caste, should have houses with shops attached. Shudra, the workers, should dwell in small houses. In fact, there are no planning regulations for Dalits, at least not in the planning treatises. Yet it is common that they are only permitted to use the materials for their houses that are remaining, like cow dung, twigs, grass mats or other perishable materials. In addition, there are rules about where each caste should dwell (Chaps. 3 and 6). For Brahmins, the city centre is considered an ideal place for their residences, where they should settle right next to the temples to perform the daily temple poojas, the prayers. The workers, the Shudra, on the other hand, should live on the outskirts of © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_11

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the city where they have their workshops adjacent to their homes or have the fields they work in close by. Depending on the gradation of the castes the plots of the other castes are arranged within the city. The Dalit, however are not provided with a place for their houses within a town or village. Dalit had to stay outside the cities and villages and only enter the Hindu realm to work in certain professions for the higher caste members (Bellwinkel 1980).

11.2 Untouchability Untouchability was mentioned already in the Dharmashastras, Vedic texts that were most probably written in the 2nd millennium BCE (Olivelle 2009). The Indian term for the untouchables is Dalit, which is a term that derives from the Sanskrit word “dalita”, meaning split, broken or divided. In the first phase when the first Hindu kingdoms emerged untouchability was applied to all local tribes and groups who lived already in the area (Bellwinkel 1980). It must therefore be assumed that during this first period of Hinduism a distinction was simply made between the Hindus and the non-Hindus, i.e. other tribes probably without discrimination. Historically this is quite understandable because when the Aryans settled in India they built cities for themselves and certainly no other ethnic groups were represented in their cities. But the Aryan population and their religion, Hinduism, successively took over the entire subcontinent which led to economic dependence of the Dalit who over the centuries had to accept their situation. Over the centuries they became the outcasts, the untouchables, the impure. Untouchability, however, was by some Hindu people considered unjust, and since the fifth century at the latest even Hindu priests worked against the inequality, like in the Bhakti movement (Pechilis 1999). But these attempts had no lasting effect and for the majority of Hindus untouchables were and still are outcasts who were (and are) oppressed and had nearly any rights in Hindu society (Bellwinkel 1980). Untouchables are considered to pollute their environment, and are excluded from many activities and public areas (Rao 1974). High caste members are not allowed to eat with people from lower castes, certainly not with Dalit. If higher caste members would do so, they would pollute themselves; the only way to overcome this impurity would be that the higher caste person performs a series of rituals. Having food or a drink with an impure caste such as Dalit, applies to dining in the same room, from the same dishes or the same cups. Dalit are until today not allowed to draw water from public wells, tanks or ponds, if they are also used by the other castes. If a Dalit drinks from a well, the well is polluted and high caste members cannot draw water from this well thereafter (Bellwinkel 1980). In restaurants there must be separate areas for Brahmins, as well as plates and utensils. Restaurants frequented by Dalit must be avoided by high caste members generally (Bellwinkel 1980). The segregation between Dalit and high caste members applies to public facilities in cities or villages. There are certain paths and public spaces that are not to be used by Dalit—until today, like temples and adjacent areas. Dalit were (and are in many

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places still are) not allowed to wear certain clothes, such as sandals, or holding an umbrella in front of members of high castes. At festivals—if they are permitted to attend—there must be special arrangements for food for the Dalit, such that they cannot pollute the meals of the others (Brogner 2000). Although Dalit are not allowed to dwell in cities or Hindu villages they are responsible for certain tasks, particularly those that high caste members are not allowed to carry out themselves. Such works include everything that deals with body fluids (blood or excrements) or hair. Therefore they were (and are until today in many regions) engaged in leather works, slaughtering animals, disposing dead animals, sanitation works, cremation workers, laundry works and all sorts of cleaning works (Siebert 2011). From official Hindu side Dalit are considered unclean and uneducated and thus not suitable for other jobs, even if they would wish to do so. Dalit, on the other hand not always submitted to these rules but regular boycotts by caste members against Dalit refusing to engage in their assigned jobs were frequent (Dumont 1976). After declaration of the Republic of India in 1950 the segregation of Indian society remained. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who was the spiritual and political leader of the Independence Movement, tried to argue in many of his letters and speeches against the oppressive character in interaction with the Dalit. Gandhi always believed in Hinduism and in the varna system which was for him a natural institution. But he saw the varnas not hierarchically ordered: for him each individual has his or her occupation in the society but the duties are equal. Gandhi argued that “Varna has nothing to do with caste. Caste is an excrescence, just like untouchability, upon Hinduism” (Kolge 2017, p. 140), or “Whilst Varna gtives life, caste kills it” (Kolge 2017, p. 141) meaning that the general idea was good, only the unjust practice was not. Ghandi had to work against caste at several levels: In his time it was commonly agreed that a higher caste member must avoid touching a Dalit or even to look at one. Dining with a Dalit, accepting food of a Dalit that he or she had touched was not possible (Kolge 2017). If a Dalit used a plate, vessel or drinking cup, no high caste member should touch it because the impureness of the Dalit would permeate the higher cast member with impurity (Rao 1974). For Gandhi this argumentation was unacceptable. He argued that everybody must have economic freedom which means freedom from poverty: Poverty produces an unjust social order. Thus he insisted that Dalit should have access to all public facilities such as open spaces, water wells and also temples. Dalit children should go to the same schools than children of the twice born castes, i.e. the higher caste members (Kolge 2017). Under his patronage a few Dalit groups were made part of the congress which was a great challenge for the congress members who still believed in the dominant role of high caste Hindus, i.e. twice born men. His reforms also met with resistance from the lower social groups: Ghandi for example invited some members of two different Dalit groups to dine together but both parties refused to eat with the others (Kolge 2017). This example highlights that the segregation of Indian society has profound roots. However Gandhi’s movement for equality of all Indians was much more suspect in the eyes of orthodox Hindus. Making way for the access to wells, to public spaces and

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particularly to the temples was in their eyes not suitable. People should intermarry in the same caste and their children should go to schools of their own caste and Dalit should still be the group responsible for their duties: collecting and recycling garbage, dealing with body fluids, slaughtering, cleaning, and dealing with cremation (Kolge 2017). In India’s constitution from the 1950s the status of being untouchable was abolished and in principle Dalit have access to all public facilities, services and education. But the stratification of the society still exists. Today the new term for untouchables is “scheduled castes” which was introduced to get rid of the traditional status of the untouchables. But things change slowly and the term Dalit is still used even by some state governments. Repressions continue almost unhindered and not much has changed for the Dalit (Brogner 2000).

11.3 Dalit and the City As briefly outlined above, certain planning regulations apply to Dalit (see Chaps. 2, 5, 6). They are only allowed to use those building materials that are not considered appropriate for the other castes. For walls they have to use twigs or reed, lined with cow dung and straw, straw mats, and nowadays plastic tarpaulins or corrugated plats are often found in use (Fig. 11.1). Building regulations also apply to the locations of settlements: Dalit can only settle on land that is not suitable for higher caste members like next to river beds, in the proximity of cremation grounds, on contaminated ground or on or adjacent to garbage dumps (see Chaps. 2, 5, 6) (Fig. 11.2) which are areas that normally lie outside city boundaries. In previous centuries, when cities were still walled, Dalit had to leave the city at dawn before the city gates were closed. As long as the processions of a major deity, like the wedding ceremonies for Meenakshi and Shiva in Madurai (see Chap. 7), continue, the city gates are closed and Dalits are not allowed to enter the city for the entire period of the celebrations. However, their labour is required in the Hindu city as outlined above (see Chaps. 2, 5, 6). For Dalit it is therefore important to live as close to the city as much as possible to have quick access to their work placements. Preferred are therefore those areas that lie adjacent to the city gates or along the main roads often as a homeless person on the street. The situation for Dalits remained unchanged during the period of British colonialism because British officers and high officials employed Dalit in their homes too, where Dalit worked as servants, cooks, cleaners, or gardeners (Kennedy 1996). As discussed in the previous chapter (Chap. 10), the British settled in a distance to the old Hindu cities with a wide strip of land between the two realms (Pieper 1974). In the turn the gap between the two realms was the perfect space for the hutments of the Dalit because from there they could reach both workplaces those of the Hindu families as well as the British colonial masters. The space between the Indian and the European settlement was a not valued area for both the British colonial masters as well as the Indian citizens. When railway

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Fig. 11.1 Slum dwelling, outskirts of Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

lines and stations were built in the nineteenth century it was decided to use this void between the British and Indian settlements but it was the residential area of many Dalit. In the process of building railway stations and tracks many of the Dalit settlements were destroyed. However, soon after the construction works Dalit came back and dwelled in the area once again because some small jobs were available at railway stations, too. So far, the lands between the Indian and European settlements were never valued by the high caste Hindus or the British. The situation changed, however after India’s independence. With the British leaving the country their residential areas were settled by Indians and became more densely populated. The space between the Indian old town and the British station was slowly eliminated and the two parts of the city grew together creating new centres in between the formerly two realms. The new middle class (Jodhka and Prakash 2016) in particular pushed into this space which was until then inhabited by the Dalit, the untouchables. The middle class, mainly members of lower castes, emerged in the early nineteenth century in British colonial centres like Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata. Due to British politics that encouraged foreign investments and by the enhancement of private capital the middle class spread all over the Indian subcontinent and grew rapidly in number (Jodhka and Prakash 2016) and claimed the right to new residential quarters. Thus, a search for new land for the middle class began, particularly in the city centres. Since the old quarters of the twice born castes could not be touched, other quarters were sought. Soon, the old Dalit

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Fig. 11.2 Waste dump next to a dwelling. Wasteground near Konrak, Tamil Nadu. Source Author

quarters were identified as an adequate settlement area. By mid twentieth century, the hutments of the Dalit that were in place for decades, were by then seen as illegal settlements, as slums, that were taken from the legal land of the city. Thus, clearing the slums from the poor was a major issue of neoliberal town planning across India (Singh 2008).

11.4 Haussmann in India Since the nineteenth century neoliberal planning paradigms are the driving force for urban design in all cities that aim to participate in the global market. London, Washington, Buenos Aires, Shanghai, Singapore, or Dubai, to name only a few, see beautification as an adequate vehicle to demonstrate their economic powers. Interestingly, “beauty” of cities is defined in the very same way for all cities: Straight and wide boulevards, iconic buildings at certain points to create vistas or standardised street furniture are seen as the appropriate means for a beautiful city. This is a further development of Baron Haussmann’s transformation of Paris in the nineteenth century, and later on influencing urban design around the world as the “city beautiful movement” (Broadbent 1990).

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Haussmann who was chosen by Louis Napoleon to renew Paris developed boulevards that were later spread all over the world. Louis Napoleon’s intention to renew Paris, however, was not the beautification of the city but his own preservation of power: Louis Napoleon, a nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte was empowered in June 1937, shortly after he had returned to Paris after having lived in exile. The years before he came to power were marked by unrest and uprisings, culminating in the riots of July 1830 and June 1837 (Vidler 1978). Workers and the newly emerged middle class set up barricades in the Medieval crooked and narrow streets of Paris which turned out to be an efficient counterforce against the official troops: as soon as the soldiers had taken one barricade they were shortly afterwards in front of the next one. In addition the soldiers were attacked from the upper floors of the buildings which made the situation dramatically more difficult for the soldiers and finally the official troops had to give in (Carmona 2002). Already before these street fights a debate had begun about urban design in Paris, starting in the 1750-ies that were inspired by the ideas of Enlightenment (see also Chap. 9). From official side it was circulated that the narrow winding streets of Paris were filthy, dirty and unhealthy. It has been alleged that the main problem of the urban poor was the disorder and chaos of the urban fabrics (Vidler 1978). Had the urban fabric of Paris order, light and fresh air, the majority of its inhabitants would have remained strong and even the fall of the Ancien Regime would have been prevented. The urban fabric of Paris was equated with a body that had to be cured and the best curing agent would be in straight and wide streets, in geometry and uniformity because it was believed that the shortest route to the soul of an individual was through his eyes (Vidler 1978). These arguments were widely discussed when Louis Napoleon came to power and strongly felt that the barricades that had helped him into power could also mean his political end (Carmona 2002). He too, was of the opinion that the Medieval urban fabric of Paris was not suitable to represent the centre of a powerful nation which made way to the town planning ideas of Enlightenment (Bornberg and Jaimes 2007). Yet another factor played a significant role in the success of the new urban planning paradigm: Until the empowerment of Louis Napoleon workers and the bourgeoisie, the middle class had the same demands for governing the city. But in mid nineteenth century commerce and industry gained importance which was the main source of income for the middle class (Sutcliffe 1993). In the turn the bourgeoisie became powerful and soon were striving for a representation of their new power. The planning paradigms of Enlightenment were considered ideal for their claim. Both, the ideas of Louis Napoleon and the planning paradigms of Enlightenment went hand in hand with the “triumphant march of commerce, industry, and science in the powerful hands of a truly hegemonic bourgeoisie” (Vidler 1978, p. 87) that were converted by Baron Haussmann, the chief town planner of Louis Napoleon. Haussmann carried the techniques of rationalist analysis and the formal instruments of previous monarchies to their logical extreme. With the invention of the boulevards which should cut through the filthy, unhealthy, criminal urban fabric of Paris the “ill body” of Paris could be cured with an appropriate appearance of the urban fabric. Thus, Paris could be presented to the world’s audience as a main centre of a global market by driving

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the urban poor out of the city centre and at the same time prevent future barricades: in Louis Napoleon’s times the army was stationed outside the city and the troops were swiftly able to advance into the city centre. Besides barricades could no longer be erected along the wide and straight boulevards, another advantage to prohibit riots (Vidler 1978). The newly emerging middle class, the bourgeoisie felt safe in the new environment (Vidler 1978). Haussmann had created streets that were spacious and were equipped with alleys, paved multi-lane roads, and had gas lanterns. For the façades of the buildings a design canon of representative elements was chosen which was used along the boulevards and thus supported the uniform character of the streets. Such an environment met the expectations of the middle class: in the nineteenth century social life was confined to visits friends or family members, go to theatres or operas. Streets were seen as places for traffic and as a welcome view from the window of one’s own apartment (Carmona 2002). The boulevards, were to be uniform and flanked by monumental buildings or visual reference points were to be created by monumental buildings (Fig. 11.3). Due to the vastness and the enormous distances, however it was not possible to experience the perspective effect at any point in the city: the individual elements lost their character, the façades of the buildings became an undifferentiated background, while the street furniture was drew the main attention to itself: Lanterns, kiosks, trees

Fig. 11.3 Avenue des Champs-Élysées with the Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile at its end, Paris. Source Author

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were in the foreground. This created a cityscape of anonymity in which millions lived side by side, unnoticed (Benevolo 2007). The design of wide boulevards intersecting at right angles or arranged star-shaped was soon en-vogue in Europe and North America, where this particular design was introduced as “The city Beautiful” (Broadbent 1990). The city beautiful became the planning norm in Europe and America and in colonised countries. The neo-baroque or classicise style in use was sponsored by business people who wanted to buy cultural respectability. The neoliberal style was perpetuated by the design of ever larger and wider streets or by ever taller buildings ending in a conquest of the city with the largest towers, or the widest boulevards. The widest boulevards today are the Avenida 9 de Julio in Buenos Aires, which has 14 lanes and is 140 m wide, or the Eixo Monumental in Brasilia, being 8 km long and 250 m wide (Broadbent 1990). What is less publicised is that the design approach of the city beautiful is always accompanied by the demolition of buildings belonging to the poorest. This already began during the reconstruction of Paris as the newly laid boulevards were cut through densely populated, medieval residential areas. The construction of the boulevards was a “blow in the face” of the urban poor: their quarters were destroyed, making the urban poor move to the outskirts far away from international attention (Vidler 1978). Besides the new design did not respect the interests of the poorer inhabitants who spent a lot of their time not inside their homes but in the streets because the homes were small and overcrowded. The public open therefore was used as an extension of their workspaces as well as their homes. On boulevards this was no longer possible (Carmona 2002). The dimensions of the boulevards are far too wide and distances are too long for walking. Boulevards have often six to eight lanes with too long distances to be walkable; there are flyovers, middle elevated strips for motorised traffic and cannot be crossed by pedestrians. The only way to use such boulevards is by a car which again keeps the poorer people out of the place (Bornberg and Jaimes 2007). However, above outlined planning paradigms were further developed and led to a neoliberal approach to planning that has since spread throughout the world.

11.5 Neoliberal Architecture and Urban Design Haussmann’s planning ideas are still important since they shape cities around the world until today. His ideas were eagerly taken up in the wake of neoliberalism and led to a new wave from the 1970s onwards. Neoliberal architecture and urban design leans on the ideas of neoliberalism, a form of free market economic approach. The ideas of neoliberalism were outlined mainly by Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman whose ideas were favoured by leaders such as Margaret Thatcher or Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. For Margaret Thatcher economy was a method to change the soul (Hatherley 2017). Architecture was soon seen as a vehicle to transport neoliberal paradigms: the only way to prevent totalitarian cities is through a radical free market architecture and urban ism

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(Spencer 2016). The argument of neoliberal economists is that the market will regulate all, controls must be removed such that the market can flow to allow a maximised overall value (Spencer 2016). Such a belief led architects and urban designers to develop futuristic approaches for examples with buildings of immense dimensions (for example: “Dorobanti Tower”: Zaha Hadid Architects 2008), vertical gardens on skyscrapers (for example: “Valley”, MVRDV 2015) or the remodelling of urban and architectural structures (for example: OMA et al. 1997). This approach led to high rise luxury apartment buildings in many cities that define the skyline often very prominently often coupled with the privatisation of public space (Spencer 2016). This again leads to the displacement of the poorer because they are driven out of the down town areas. Social housing—if still available—is then shifted to the outskirts. Such neoliberal planning ideas are found around the globe, in all countries. Neoliberal planning paradigms have also found its way into India: The new middle class is claiming new areas of land, mainly on the land of the poor, leading to displacements of the urban poor (Fig. 11.4).

11.6 On Slums The term “slum” was first used in England in the nineteenth century and it denoted low standard housing and was used for the workers’ settlements that had sprung up near the factories and were densely packed, dusty and with little infrastructure and were home for the working class and urban poor. Today the UN-Habitat defines slums as settlements where more than half of the inhabitants live in unacceptable accommodation without basic utilities: they live without property or other legal rights, access to clean water or sanitation, without proper houses or adequate accommodation sprawling at the edge of the cities (Habitat II 1996). A slum is usually defined as a compact area of overcrowded populations, poorly built congested dwelling condition, unhygienic environment usually with inadequate infrastructure and lacking in proper sanitary and drinking water facilities. Slums are accepted as natural by-products of urbanization (Davis 2006), however, it seems that there is a strong relation between globalisation and the emergency of new slums or the enlargement of existing slums (Davis 2006). It seems that neoliberalisation and globalisation are bringing even larger proportions into slums. On the other hand, slums are also the result of local politics (Gilbert 2007): too often slums are seen as a “disgrace to the city”, not suitable to transport the image of a city that aims to play a leading role on the global market. These rationales provides arguments for slum clearances, to clear unhealthy environments and replace these areas by new urban quarters, around the world, and—because this book highlights India—also in India.

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Fig. 11.4 30 St Mary Axe by Norman Foster, Financial District, City of London, London, U.K.). Source Jack Soley. https://upload.wikime dia.org/wikipedia/commons/ 4/42/30_St_Mary_Axe_% 28The_Gherkin%29%2C_ Central_London.jpg, accessed 6 Oct 2022

11.7 Slum Clearance in India Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and other cities in India aim to become part of the global market and participate in the neoliberal international economy. To achieve these goals

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it seemed to be important to have—among other tasks—a city scape that meets the demands of global players. As discussed above the arguments of the “city beautiful” (Broadbent 1990; Hall 2005; Wilson 1989) with its order and immense dimensions is seen an appropriate vehicle to transport the message of India as an important player on the global market. Slums produce a negative image of a city and thus the slums must be cleansed: in a world-class city there is no space for slums (Dupont and Gowda 2020). It is argued that slum dwellers themselves are a sign of underdevelopment that must be eliminated. At the same time it is argued that adequate space must be created for the newly emerging middle class. Such ideas are discussed in India since mid twentieth century and led to a series of court cases brought by the middle class demanding the eviction of slums. Their argument was that slum dwellers were dirty and polluters and incapable of adopting civilised way of life. They were unlawful persons who were guilty polluting the land that belonged to the state. It was even argued that slum dwellers steal the electricity that was paid for out of the taxes of the rightful inhabitants of the city (Jodhka and Prakash 2016). During the second half of the twentieth century slum dwellers were evicted from their neighbourhoods on a large scale. In the 1990-ies, the homes of 400 000 people living in Delhi were demolished in only five years (Jodhka and Prakash 2016), which was just a peak of the evictions, because by the end of the century 1.5 mio people were left homeless due to evictions (Dupont and Gowda 2020). In Mumbai, for example, there were 400 000 people forcibly evicted in only a few months, starting in November 2004, ending in February 2005. Such slum eviction means a dispossession of the people leading to a further impoverishment (Dupont and Gowda 2020). However, the number of slum dwellers increased constantly: in 2001 52 mio Indian people lived in a slum, in 2011 it was already 65 mio people (Sinha and Shekhar 2017). Officially, it was argued that the slums had to disappear from the city centre, on the one hand to make the city attractive, and on the other hand to gain the land on which the slums stood as housing for “legal” citizens. The middle class, who benefited most of the new land, often claimed that slum dwellers were living here illegally. The middle class was a new phenomenon in the urban centres of India, and grew steadily, fuelled by the introduction of the new, neo-liberal economy aiming to encourage foreign investments. Slum rehabilitation in the state of Maharashtra, for example, has progressed from the regressive approaches of ‘slum clearance’ and ‘demolition’ to that of provision of basic amenities and finally in-situ up gradation and redevelopment. The concepts of poverty and slum settlement are almost synonymous in India and hence any scheme for poverty alleviation has slum redevelopment as a major part of it (Jodhka and Prakash 2016). For example, the destruction of slums along the Yamuna River has long been an issue in the development plans for Delhi since the 1970s. Time and again, proposals were made for canalisation and treatment of the river banks for residential and recreational purposes for the middle class citizens. From 2003 onwards, the first projects were implemented and the slums began to be demolished (Barta and Mehra 2006). Officials argued that the slum dwellers were mainly responsible for the pollution of the river, which is why they should no longer settle there. In a last attempt, hundreds of slum dwellers drove

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to the house of the prime minister to get political support. The prime minister had been actively campaigning for the slum dwellers and promised to do something. However, at the same time, the police was already taking massive action against the slum dwellers and arresting all the leaders of the protests. All other slum dwellers were threatened with immediate demolition of their shacks if they continued to join the protests (Jodhka and Prakash 2016). To replace the shacks of the slums along the Yamuna, the government had promised to provide replacement quarters. But only 6 000 plots were provided for 27 000 families. It was argued that all those who could not prove that they had lived on the banks of the Yamuna before 1998 were not entitled to a replacement plot. The new plots were only between 12 and 18 m2 in size, and fees of up to 500 euros per year still had to be paid for them, which was unaffordable for most (Barta and Mehra 2006). Moreover, the new plots were only allocated for five years and it was decreed that dwellings could only be built after the survey work was completed. However, the survey work was so protracted that many erected huts, constantly fearing that they would be demolished during their absence. Thus, many no longer dared to go to work, or to bring valuables such as stoves to the new areas (Barta and Mahra 2006). The demolition of the slums along the Yamuna started from the southern tip of the area and moved systematically to the north where it was more densely populated, mainly by a Muslim population. All slum dwellers were evicted by the end of April 2003 even if they had no new places to stay (Barta and Mahra 2006). Most of the displaced then settled in the outer areas of the city. By resettling in the outskirts people were no longer able to get to their jobs because slum dwellers cannot afford public transport. Thus many lost their jobs, further worsening their precarious situation. Finally, manly women, children and old people stayed in the new settlements while the men stayed in the city—even overnight as street sleepers. Women lost their jobs and so the family income decreased dramatically and children could no longer go to school because they were too far away from the new settlements—leading to impoverishment of the future generation as well. However, the evictions had consequences for the legal city as well who now lacked the labour it desperately needed (Batra and Mehra 2006). Even if such slum demolitions were an exception in this form they do still occur. The middle class claims the space of the slums for itself and it is still officially said that the slum dwellers themselves are to blame for their fate which also has to do with the fact that the slum dwellers are mostly Dalits or Muslims who are at the bottom of the hierarchy of Hindu society. Rubbish collectors and people who deal with human excreta are still considered dishonourable and impure which puts them in constant social isolation. They are exploited, discriminated against and still experience repression from Hindu society (see Chaps. 2, 4, 5, and 10). Time and again, there are slum upgrading programmes to improve the situation in the slums. In Mumbai for example a slum upgrading programme for sanitary systems was launched by the World Bank in the 1980s. But by 1989, only a few years later, only 1 toilet for 100 people was installed and due to the sporadic maintenance of the toilets they soon could not be used any more. Sometimes there are nowadays toilets that would generally work but people must pay for their use which again is a

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Fig. 11.5 Map of downtown Mumbai with Dharavi highlighted. Source Google maps, author compilation

financial burden. Until today, 41% of Mumbai’s population or nine million people live in slums (World Population Review 2021) and nearly all of them have no access to toilets such that people have to relieve themselves in the public spaces of the city, like public parks, in the streets, often next to the houses. Relieving in the public is also a feminist issue because women are often terrorised and abused, sexually assaulted or harassed and so women have to go in groups between two and five in the morning where they have more privacy (Davis 2006).

11.8 The Largest Slum of Asia: Dharavi Dharavi is Asia’s largest slum and is a district of Mumbai. It has an area of some 2.1 km2 or 520 acres and an estimated population of one million people (World Population Review 2021). Thus, 73.000 people live on one square mile which makes Dharavi one of the most densely populated areas in the world. Today Dharavi lies in the centre of the city on the southern banks of the Mahim Creek. Two major railway lines, the Central Railway and the Western Railway line, run alongside the area. Thus Dharavi is well linked in terms of transport and is therefore sought-after especially for the rapidly growing middle class. Because of its strategic location, the neighbourhoods adjacent to Dharavi are today high priced real estates (Boano et al. 2011) (Fig. 11.5). Dharavi was originally a marshland with several islands partly overgrown with mangroves and far away from the British colonial town. Fishermen, the Son Koli

11.8 The Largest Slum of Asia: Dharavi

Fig. 11.6 Dharavi seen from the Sion Dharavi overway, Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author

Fig. 11.7 View into Dharavi from the Sant Mohidas Marg, Mumbai. Source Author

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Fig. 11.8 Daravi citizens, posing proudly in front of the neighbourhood church. Source Author

caste lived on some of the islands owning the fishery rights of Mahim Creek. But as Mumbai grew the swamp was used as a garbage dump although this was illegal. Over time the marshland was filled with rubbish and earth, turning the swamp land into settlement space. Later, those industries that produced too much pollution in the city centre where shifted to Dharavi (Björkman 2014). With the industrial relocation the unwanted workers who came from all parts of India were resettled as well (Weinstein 2014). Distilleries for alcohol production were built in some hard-to-reach places in the mangrove forest to be then sold to the middle class in the “legal city”. Particularly the Koli neighbourhood was famous for the high quality liquor (Fuchs 2006). The area attracted unskilled workers mostly Dalit or Muslims and soon the place was overcrowded. By the 1980s Dharavi had become Asia’s largest slum (Weinstein 2014). Dharavi turned within a few decades from a fishermen’s island into a quarter of outsiders, criminals, into a rubbish dump and generally a polluted area. Dharavi is today considered a place of the greatest filth and waste and of organised crime (Fuchs 2006). In the1980s, industrial production was loosing importance in Mumbai making way to post- Fordism and neo-liberalism. The government of Maharashtra started once again a slum improvement to make the city suitable for an international global market by evicting most of the slum dwellers. Slum clearances have been a national agenda in Mumbai since the mid 1950s and with the help of the World Bank a series of housing programmes in the slums had been launched between 1970 and 1980. With this initiative nearly 40% of Dharavi’s population was partly relocated into the outskirts of the city, others were simply evicted and their homes destroyed and only

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35.000 dwellers were allowed to stay (Weinstein 2014). For a better space efficiency and also to tackle the shanties high-rise buildings were planned with standardised housing units: 20 m2 per family, which was often less space than they had before (Fig. 11.6). But these apartments were provided only for those who could prove that they had lived in Dharavi before 1995 (Fuchs 2006). However, the building developers of the new houses were not skilled in understanding the dynamics of the slums and—as global acting companies—only interested in maximising their profits. By the end of the programme only a few dozen apartment buildings were built, some of the roads were widened, some parts of the slum got electricity lines and a sewage system, however much of these improvements is owing to the self-organisation of the residents (Fuchs 2006). The next redevelopment programme which started in February 2004 aimed to bring electricity, infrastructure, and redevelopment of houses to the area. In some areas of the slum residential buildings and office buildings were to be built, which could be sold on the global market and could add to the global prestige of Mumbai in general (Weinstein 2014). However, also with this programme not much was achieved. Water supply remains poor, and 80% of Dharavi’s population have to collect water from a public stand post which only carry water for one hour a day. Only six% of the slum dwellers have their own toilet, 43% use public toilets, and 50% use the open spaces. Drainages are poorly maintained and this creates health problems for all because this contaminates groundwater generally. Finally the disposals are not on solid grounds again contaminating the ground (Sinha and Shekhar 2017) (Fig. 11.7).

Fig. 11.9 Schoolchildren of Dharavi. Source Author

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Fig. 11.10 Workshops and shops in the basements of a slum. Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author

11.9 Dharavi: A Cosmos on Its Own Caste and religion bind the basis for the functioning of Dharavi as a self-organised unit. For the underprivileged caste organisation is significant. Within caste the panchayat system continues. Larger castes have external representatives such as judiciary, banking functions, political organisation and also intra-caste disputes. Major castes have their own temples, mosques or churches (Fig. 11.8) and are dwelling in the same neighbourhood which are called chawls in Maharashtra. Some of these chawls have mixed populations others consist mainly of one caste. Within a neighbourhood people look out for each other and there is a lot of social engagement. For example one of my interviewees had a small plot of land on which he wanted to construct a building for children and senior citizens to have a place to come together or play. Another example are many schools in Dharavi: the children whose parents can pay the fees are taught in classrooms and those who cannot sit in the courtyard and are provided with learning material by the teachers through the window. In this way even the most socially disadvantaged receive a certain education. It is therefore not surprising that many slum dwellers in Dharavi speak fluently English (Fig. 11.9). Many in Dharavi like to live here because this is what they identify as their home. They like their neighbourhood and have friends in Dharavi. However, living conditions are very low. Most of the homes are very small: average houses in Dharavi have a three to four floors all together being not more than 40 m2 (Björkman 2014). Steep leathers lead to the upper floors which each consist of only one room. On each floor a family of five to six lives and in most groundfloors small workshop

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or shop are placed (Fig. 11.10). Some of the groundfloors lie below ground level and are regularly flooded during monsoon. If the space is used as a workshop then people have no income for the entire monsoon season which lasts for three months. Houses with workshops are found all over the slum, particularly alongside wider lanes (Fig. 11.11). In lanes that are less than one meter wide small apartments are included in the groundfloor area instead of the workshops (Fig. 11.12). Hardly any of the apartments have a toilet or a water tap so all water must be carried up the steep leathers (Fig. 11.13). Although people help each other in a neighbourhood entrance doors are locked with iron beams and padlocks, windows have iron bars and girls are licked up by their parents to protect them from assaults. Dharavi is not only a slum, it is also a production site. As outlined above in 1887 a first industrial tannery was established and other manufacturing plants have been steadily setting up since. Dharavi’s production today is 1.5% of Mumbai’s GDP, with Mumbai accounting for five% of the GDP of all of India (Bhide and Spiess 2013). There are tanneries, embroidery, paper making, pottery making or plastic recycling and laundries for the legal city (Fig. 11.14). Small scaled business include food processing, bakeries, restaurants, printing shops, tailor shops, carpenters, and many groceries. 80% of waste collection and recycling is done in Dharavi (Bhide and Spiess 2013). Since many slum dwellers are engaged in unskilled works as well as in the informal sector low wages and an uncertain employment are common. Sometimes

Fig. 11.11 A carpenter workshop in Dharavi. Source Author

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Fig. 11.12 A narrow lane with overhanging balconies: every inch of the slum is used. Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author

the wages are denied, sometimes slum dwellers are resigned from work without being noticed before (Sinha and Shekhar 2017). However, Dharavi’s inhabitants work for the legal city and produce goods the “legal” city needs (Fig. 11.15). Dharavi is a powerful economic hub for the entire city of Mumbai. Nevertheless, there are severe restrictions against the residents of Dharavi. For the residents of the “legal” city Dharavi’s people are still criminals, uneducated and dirty. Even if people want to live on in Dharavi and want to cope with the situation there slum dwellers often get troubles from the outside world. According to my informants it is for example a problem to give an address in Dharavi to one’s employer; this may

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Fig. 11.13 A steep stepladder leads to the upper floors, Dharavi. Mumbai. Source Author

mean that the person does not get the job or is dismissed even though he or she may have good qualifications. Many Dharavi residents have graduated from school and some have even studied. But being a resident of Dharavi one is stigmatised.

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Fig. 11.14 The area between the railway tracks is used for drying laundry for the “legal” citizens, Dharavi, Mumbai. Source Author

Fig. 11.15 Shop in Dharavi selling and producing products for the “legal” city and the global market. Source Author

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11.10 Conclusions All over the world slums are seen as dangerous places where crime is prevalent. The example of Dharavi showed that this is a settlement area of the poorest population where people live under extreme living conditions. There is a lack of infrastructure, of water pipes, sewage systems, the buildings are in poor condition, the flats are extremely small and dark, electricity is hardly available, many do not even have a place to stay and sleep on the street. However, it definitely offers a quality of life, too: Neighbourly help and solidarity are very pronounced in Dharavi. It is, too interesting to see that the crime rate is no higher than in other parts of the city that are not monitored by the police or private organisations. One of the most threatening conditions is the constant uncertainty about remaining in the slum. The residents have no property rights and have to constantly fear that they will be evicted by the state. Much would change for the slum dwellers if they were given the land rights. This would give them the security that the small changes they make to the buildings would also improve their livelihoods in the long run. Since the 1970s Dharavi’s citizens fight for the right to be considered rightful citizens of Mumbai. However, not much has changed since then. It can be assumed that the pressure of Mumbai’s middle class keeps political debates about the right to stay in place for Dharavi’s dwellers low. Dharavi, like many slums in India, also faces another problem: as shown above, the Dalit residential areas, i.e. the slums of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, were located between the British stations and the old Indian cities. After independence this intermediate space was closed more and more by construction so that the former slums which no one had considered as residential areas are now located in the city centre and highly valued places. Today, Dharavi lies in the city centre of Mumbai. Newly developed areas, such as Navi Mumbai, are on the other side of Than Creek from where it is over 30 km to the city centre. From this point of view it is understandable that the middle class of Mumbai is pushing into Dharavi. A solution to the problem of these different interests, those of the slum dwellers and those of the middle class, is therefore very complex, but must be solved by authorities soon.

References Batra L, Mehra D (2006) Das neoliberale Delhi: Der Blick vom Trümmerfeld eines planierten slums. In: Ahuja R, Brosius C (eds) Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata. Annäherung an die Megastädte Indiens. Draupadi, Heidelberg, pp 173–190 Benevolo L (2007) Die Geschichte der Stadt. Campus Verlag, Frankfurt, New York Bellwinkel M (1980) Die Kasten-Klassenproblematik im städtisch-industriellen Bereich. Historisch-empirische Fallstudie über die Industristadt Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, Indien. Franz Steiner Verlag, Wiesbaden Bhide A, Spiess M (2013) “Dharavi ground up”: a dwellers-focused design tool for upgrading living space in Dharavi, Mumbai, India. https://oead.at/fileadmin/p184_final_report_engl. Accessed on 22 Jul 2021

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Björkman L (2014) Becoming a slum: from Municipal colony to illegal settlement in liberalizationera Mumbai. Int J Urban Reg Res 38(1):36–59. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2427.12041 Boano C, Lamarca MG, Hunter W (2011) The frontlines of contested urbanism: mega-projects and mega-resistances in Dharavi. J Dev Soc 27:295. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0169796X1102 700404, http://jds.sagepub.com/content/27/3-4/295. Accessed on 10 Nov 2020 Bornberg R, Jaimes M (2007) Haussmannisation at its best: lessons from the Plan Rotival in Caracas. Trialog 93:12–18 Broadbent G (1990) Emerging concepts in urban space design. Van Nostrand Reinhold, London, New York Brogner D (2000) Kaste und Politik in Indien. GIGA, German Institute of Global and Area Studies, Heidelberg, Berlin. https://doi.org/10.11588/ijb.2000.0.1189 Carmona M (2002) Haussmann: his life and times and the making of modern Paris. Ivan R. Dee Inc., Chicago Davis M (2006) Planet of slums. Verso, London Dumont L M (1976) Gesellschaft in Indien. Die Soziologie des Kastenwesens. Europaverlag, Wien Dupont V, Gowda MM (2020) Slum-free city planning versus durable slums. Insights from Delhi, India. Int J Urban Sustain Dev 12(1):34–51 Fuchs M (2006) Slum als Projekt: Dharavi und die Falle der Marginalisierung. In: Ahuja R, Brosius C (eds) Annäherung an die Megastädte Indiens. Draupadi, Heidelberg, pp 47–64 Gilbert A (2007) The return of the slum: does language matter? J Urban Reg Res 31(4):697–713 Jodhka S, Prakahs A (2016) The Indian middle class. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Habitat II (1996) United Nations Conference on Human Settlements: Habitat II. Urban exodus. https://www.un.org/en/conferences/habitat/istanbul1996. Accessed on 10 March 2020 Hall P (2005) Cities of tomorrow. Blackwell Publishing, Malden, Oxford, Victoria Hatherley O (2017) The architecture of neoliberalism by Douglas Spencer review—privatising the world. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jan/12/the-architecture-of-neo liberalism-douglas-spencer-review. Accessed on 31 May 2022 Jodhka SS, Prakash A (2016) The Indian middle class. Oxford University Press, New Delhi Kennedy D (1996) The magic mountains. Hill stations and the British Raj. University of California Press, Berkley, Kolge N (2017) Ghandi against caste. Oxford University Press, New Delhi MVRDV (2015) Valley. https://www.mvrdv.nl/projects/233/valley. Accessed on 31 May 2022 Olivelle P (2009) The Dharmasutras. The law codes lf Apastamba, Gautama, Baudhayana, and Vastistha. Translated from the original Sanskrit and Olivell P (ed) Oxford University Press, Oxford OMA, Koolhaas R, Mau B, (1997) S, M, L, XL: Office for metropolitan architecture. The Monacelli Press, New York Pechilis K (1999) The embodiment of Bhakte. Oxford University Press, New York and Oxford Pieper J (1974) Die anglo-indische Station. TH Aachen Dissertation, Aachen Rao M S A (1974) Traditional Urbanism and Urbanization. In: Rao M S A (ed) Urban Sociology in India. Reader and source book. Orient Longman, New Delhi, pp 95–114 Siebert S (2011) Kaste, karma, kremation. Die soziale und kulturelle Dimension des Todes in Nordindien. Tectum Verlag, Marburg Singh K (2008) Social change in modern India. Navyug Publishers & Distributors, Delhi Sinha SK, Shekhar R (2017) Problems and development of slums: a study of Delhi and Mumbai. In Sharma P, Rajput S (eds) Sustainable smart cities in India. Challenges and future perspectives. Springer Nature, Cham Spencer D (2016) The architecture of neoliberalism. How contemporary architecture became an instrument of control and compliance. Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, London Sutcliffe A (1993) Paris. An architectural history. Yale University Press, New Haven Vidler A (1978) The scenes of the street. In: Anderson S (ed) On streets. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, London, pp 29–222

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Chapter 12

Conclusions

Abstract In the last chapter the main findings of the book are concluded by bringing together the different synthesis that were presented in the nine episodes that were described in the previous chapters. This conclusion summarises the built cultural heritage of India with its various facets, starting from pre-historic times. This chapter, too, aims to identify future research within the field of urban design in India, but also elsewhere. Keywords Urban form in India · Socio-spatial configurations · Built heritage of India Cities are spatial organisations that have evolved over the course of time being updated and reorganised whenever a change was necessary, be it a social, economic or environmental necessity. The constant update results in a built environment that is connected to and distinctive of the society that built it over centuries. In this book this correlation was demonstrated by building on the case of India. India was chosen because its urban history is one of the oldest in the world and was continuously inhabited for nearly seven millennia. Such a long period of time cannot be reflected in only one book, which led to the idea to concentrate on nine epochs of Indian urban history that are described in the nine episodes of the book. Those developments of spatial organisation in Indian cities were chosen, which in my opinion are still visible in the cities today and play an important role in urban development, in the past, now and thus will most probably also be important in the future. With this, the book offers the reader an overview of a reduced but essential set of urban design developments in India over the millennia. As not all readers are familiar with India’s heritage and history the book starts with a general introduction of the vast subcontinent by drawing on facts about climate, landscape, and introduces the main religion of India, Hinduism since it is until today an important shaping factor for cities and villages. This is followed by a brief description of the caste system, the stratification of society, as it is still in place today. Following this brief and general introduction to the culture and environmental conditions of the Indian subcontinent, the main part of the analysis of India’s urban developments commences. Episode 1 describes some of the most important planning theories that have existed in India since ancient times, like the Vastu Shastras, © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9_12

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Shilpa Shastras, the Puranas, or the Mansaras. These texts, most of them written in Sanscrit were composed around third to tenth century CE and describe, among other aspects, how towns and villages should be structured, like the direction the main streets or the division into quarters. These concepts are translated into town Mandalas, geometric diagrams that are the basis of town planning. Although these village and town concepts described in the treatises or the mandalas are based on geometry they must be interpreted as mental diagrams and not meant to be implemented following the strict geometry. Each square of the diagrams, whether drawn or described, represents a particular cosmic energy that is guarded by a certain deity. For example, the centre is dedicated to Brahma, the creator of the universe and should therefore remain free from any structures in the house so as not to impede the flow of energy through the building. This is an important planning strategy in the Indian climate because the ventilation of the buildings is particularly important. Agni, the fire god, to draw another example, must be located in the south-east of the house where the kitchen should be located and this part should be as far away from the sleeping rooms as possible—they should lie in the north of the house, in the square of Kubera. This planning rule again deals with the climate conditions in India: the north is the coolest place, whilst the south is the hottest area of the house. Such diagrams also exist at the urban level but on a larger scale. The square of Brahma for example, represents the centre of the city and should therefore be designated for the main temple where the axis between the divine and human worlds passes through. The other squares with their guarding deities are the residential quarters of the castes. Taking again the example of Agni, the fire god, his square in the urban context is where the cremation sites are located: outside the city walls. The dead corpses must be brought through the southern city gate, which is often only used for funerals. These planning tools, as mentioned above, originated in Vedic times and have been in use ever since. Another source of influence on Indian cities and architecture are the cities of the Indus Civilisation or Harappa Civilisation, outlined in Episode 2. Harappan cities, coming into existence as early as 2600 BCE were the expression of a new development of town planning that had emerged as a consequence of long distance trade. Harappan cities were equipped with sophisticated drainage systems and nearly all houses had toilets and baths. The harbours were equipped with warehouses and docks that made loading, unloading and storing of the cargo easy. Harappan cities were abandoned around 1800 BCE for unknown reasons. However, the inhabitants seemed to have moved further into the Ganga plains, where they encountered the early Aryan population. It seems that many elements of the Harappa culture were incorporated into the Aryan culture, such as the city layout with straight streets, circumfencing city walls or water tanks in the centre of the city: all these elements were commonly used in Harappan cities and found until today in Indian cities. The main residential building in Harappan cities was the courtyard house, which is the predominantly used house in India until today. This courtyard house with its inner logic is described in the next episode, Episode 3. The chapter starts with an introduction to the several parts of the house, that follow a mandala: The centre must

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be free of obstructions to allow ample air circulation. The central courtyard is used as a distribution space, from where all rooms of the house can be reached. Bedrooms are usually equipped with an en-suit bathroom such that a bedroom and bath functions as a unit. The kitchens (in India there are two) should lie as much to the south as possible and as far away from bedrooms: again a measure against the hot climate of India. Since India has many climatic zones and is vast in scale different types of courtyard houses have evolved to suit local and social factors on the ground. These types range from the Bhungas, earthen circular huts that are placed on plinths, as they are still in use at the Rann of Kutch, to the multi-storey buildings of the Himalayas. At a superficial glance, both of the aforementioned building forms do not look similar to courtyard houses. On closer inspection, however, it can be seen that these two types follow the same logic as what is commonly referred to as a courtyard house. In episode 3, houses in India were discussed as they are the smallest unit of towns and villages. In the following chapter, episode 4, the next larger unit of cities is dealt with, the residential quarters on the one hand, and the public facilities on the other. Traditional villages and towns are still built according to planning rules ground in Hinduism. Each caste (in larger cities, sub-castes) has a neighbourhood on their own equipped with markets, water points, and shrines, so that everything the community needs for daily life is in close proximity. The front porch of the houses is the most important gathering space for adjacent living neighbours as social life is taking place here on a daily basis: The hustle and bustle in the streets is observed by many which is a disturbing circumstance for the younger ones in particular. On the other hand, old or sick people are helped or children are looked after together. In a society where there are neither old people’s homes nor kindergartens mutual help in the neighbourhood is essential. The centre of villages and cities is dedicated to Lord Brahma, the creator. Therefore, it is the place were main temples are erected. Episode 5 analyses temple cities. Particularly in temple towns the mandala must be followed strictly. How this mandala is implemented and thus provides pilgrims and believers with a mental map is shown with reference to three cities: Shrirangam, Varanasi and Madurai. Of central importance here is that the entire urban layout of such temple cities is seen as an oversized mandala, and the believer can thereby place himself in the world. As kings gained power they manifested this power in layout and design of their capitals, as was discussed in episode 6. Adherence to the ancient Hindu planning rules, the Shilpa Shastras were of particular importance in building capitals for rulers. However, over the course of time, kings moved their palaces to the centre of the city, which was so far preserved for the main temple. Kings’ palaces incorporated the shrines of the main deities, like in Bhaktapur, or palaces were standing adjacent to the main temples. However, in Jaipur, the centre is only marked by the palace of the king. In summary, it can be stated that kings from now on claimed the urban spaces for themselves, which until then had only been reserved for the priests, the Brahmins. Another urban development in India was the influence of Islam. Islam was brought to India by Muslim conquerors. The first cities to be built on the Islamic model were in the region around Delhi where the Delhi Sultanate was proclaimed. Later, the

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Mughal rulers ensured the spread of Islamic urban planning ideas particularly in the northern part of India. Islamic urban planning follows its own rules which on the one hand can be derived from the Q´ran, and on the other hand is a response to nomadic life in desert regions. A completely new spatial element on the Indian subcontinent was the Garden of Paradise, which was introduced by Mughal rulers either as a landscape garden, a palace garden or a tomb garden. Cities, on the other hand, were less redesigned according to Islamic traditions, for several reasons: for one, Islamic cities are divided by a ruler into several quarters, each of which is then given to a clan. The clan then has the opportunity to design the interior according to its own ideas. It is therefore not surprising that in Arab cities Islamic quarters are located next to Christian or Jewish ones; that has always been the tradition. Therefore, the Islamic rulers did not care too much how the interior of the quarters in India were organised: following the old tradition, each clan could live as it suited the clan. However, the fact that the narrow and winding alleys within a quarter did not develop, as is known from the Arab region, is mainly due to the fact that Islam was brought to India by the rulers and a small upper class. Even though many later converted to Islam, they were familiar with Indian urbanism, not the urban settlements of the Arab world and thus stuck to Indian traditional layouts of cities. Islamic urban structures and architecture have become closely interwoven with local Hindu architectural traditions. Islamic rulers have adopted architectural traditions of Hindu rulers and vice versa which is evident, for example, in the palaces of the Mughal rulers (Muslims) or the Maharajas (Hindus): they are hardly distinguishable because of their layout and ornamentation. It thus can be argued that Islamic ideas on urbanism and architecture blend well with the local traditions. However, this was quite different with the following foreign influence. The British built their urban and architectural ideas in India, as discussed in Episode 8. British colonial masters brought their own ideas of urban planning and architecture to India aiming to be distinguishable from the local heritage. British cottages were built, hardly suitable for the Indian climate, because with British architecture the colonial masters wanted to demonstrate their alleged superiority. It was only 200 years that the British colonial masters developed a new type of house, the bungalow, that were better adapted to the climate in India than the cottages that were used before. But even this was less suited to the Indian climate than the traditional Indian courtyard houses: bungalows are still oriented outwards and have no inner courtyard for cross-ventilation. Today, English houses, whether bungalows or cottages, are only habitable with the use of electric air-conditioning. New planning ideas were also introduced in urban development, namely wide boulevards with lawns and bushes. Such boulevards were intended as visual axes, where trees could not be planted: they would have obscured the view of the buildings that were to be emphasised. Boulevards, however heat up strongly in the Indian sun and the lack of trees means that no shade is created making these streets almost unusable during the day in high summer. Today, mainly air-conditioned cars drive along these roads further heating up the microclimate. Cyclists and pedestrians can hardly use these streets during the day. But the width of the streets hardly allows any change in design to make them suitable for pedestrians.

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During the British rule, the British cities were built far away from the traditional Indian cities. Vast green areas lay between the British and Indian quarters. After the British withdrew from India the division between Indian old towns and British settlements were obsolete. Slowly, the two parts grew together resulting in a shift of the traditional city centre. However, particularly this area was the realm of the Dalit, the untouchables which is outlined in the last chapter of the book, episode 9. Slums are recognised as illegal settlements, as dangerous places where crime is prevalent, all over the world. In India, however, the exclusion of a population group is culturally embedded. Dalit, the untouchables are not part of Hindu society and as such have never been entitled to live within Hindu towns or villages. On the other hand, Dalit are responsible for many activities such as cleaning, rubbish disposal or taking care of burials. For these activities they have to go to the cities to their employers which is why Dalit mainly settled along the catchment roads or in front of the city gates. When the British colonial masters set up their settlements in a distance to the Indian old towns the gap between was soon occupied by the Dalit because from there they had easily access to their Indian as well as British employers. Today however, these parts are highly sought after location, because most of the old slums lie today in the city centres. This situation led to many slum evictions in the last decades. Looking at the example of Dharavi, a slum in Mumbai, reveals that a slum offers some qualities of life. Neighbourly help and solidarity are very pronounced in Dharavi. Living conditions are, of course, poor: there is a lack of infrastructure, water pipes, sewage systems, the buildings are in poor condition, the flats are extremely small and often underground and dark, electricity is hardly available, many do not even have a covered place to stay and sleep on the street. Despite these conditions it is interesting to see that the crime rate is no higher than in other parts of the city, which is stunning because slums are not monitored by the police or private organisations. Dharavi, like many slums in India, also faces another problem: as shown above, the Dalit residential areas, i.e. the slums of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, were located between the British stations and the old Indian cities. After independence this intermediate space was closed more and more by construction so that the former slums which no one had considered as residential areas are now located in the city centre. Today Dharavi lies in the city centre of Mumbai. Newly developed areas, such as Navi Mumbai are on the other side of Than Creek from where it is over 30 km to the city centre. A solution to the problem of these different interests, those of the slum dwellers and those of the middle class, is therefore very complex. These nine episodes highlighted some of the stages of urban development of Indian cities and villages. Certainly, there were more cultural influences that have not been pointed out here. For example, Jain architecture or the Buddhist built heritage were not addressed as well as the building traditions of the many local ethnic groups, all of which have left their mark on the space. However, in selecting these nine episodes the general principle has been demonstrated that a distinctively Indian urban tradition and architecture has developed with the influences mentioned—with one exception: the British-European building traditions, that do not correspond to India’s heritage. The book gave an insight to the cultural peculiarities of India that make up a distinct and unique urban fabric that is only native to India. This cultural heritage

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of Indian cities and villages must be transferred into the future. There should be no rupture in the settlement pattern that negates the old structures and replaces them with new, imported urban models that have nothing to do with the history and people of India.

Glossary

Agamas tantric texts on philosophy, cosmology, but also yoga and instructions for the proper conduct of prayers. Ananta Shesha It is the cosmic serpent that holds all planets of the universe while singing the glories of Lord Vishnu. Artha´sastra a treatise on statecraft, military strategy and economy, which was composed by Kautilya, the chief advisor of Chandragupta, the first king of the Mauryan empire. It was written between the second century BCE and the third century CE. Avatar it is the material appearance of a celestial being on earth, whenever humans need help. It is a side aspect of a god, which is the needed aspect to solve the problems on earth. Ayodhya is the legendary city where Lord Rama reigned, according to the Ramayana. There is a city named Ayodhya in India, but it is until today disputed if the city described in the Ramayana and the real city in Uttar Pradesh are identical. Brahma is one of the Trimurti, the triple deity (with Vishnu and Shiva). He is the absolute, the impersonal source of all being in the unmanifested state. Brahmastan the central area of a Mandala. Brahmin member of the higest caste of the four Varnas, mainly occupied as priests, scholars, and temple attendents. Baoli Step well. Bazaar market street. Caravan serai a hotel-like building that was used by caravans and other traders as stop-overs for the night. Caravan serais were built every 30 km or so, at the end of a day trip by camels. They were equipped with sleeping areas, kitchens, spaces for social interaction, repair workshops, and spaces for physicians. Caste is a stratification of the socitey. There are many different sub-castes, but the main castes are Brahmins, the priests, Kshatriyas, the warriors and kings, the Vaishya, the merchants, and the Shudra, the workers. Chahar Bagh a persian garden. Chowk a neighbourhood square. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023 R. Bornberg, Urban India, Cities, Heritage and Transformation, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23737-9

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Glossary

Dalit the untouchables and outsiders of Indian society, who are not part of the Varna, the caste system. They are referred to being unclean and impure. They are mainly involved in all jobs dealing with meat and body substances (including cremations). Darwaza A gateway in Mughal times. Devi The goddess, who is the fusion of the powers of the main Hindu deities into one. Dharma The duty to perform the duties of one’s caste and to live one’s life according to the caste rules. By following the rules, karma is reduced, which predetermines one’s rebirth in the next life. Dravidians The Dravidians are a ethno-linguistic group in South India, who later had a great impact Indian art and way of life. Durbar is a conference of rulers. Under the reign of the Mughals the Durbar was holding court. During British colonial times, Durbar was also a ceremonial gathering. The Durbar Square was the space where the Durbar was taking place. Ganesha is son of Parvati and Shiva, and is normally identified by his elephant head. He is patron of arts and sciences, but most importantly, brings good luck. His mount is a rat or a mouse, to indicate that even the smallest creatures can move the heaviest and largest burden. Garuda half man half eagle, is the mount (vahana) of Vishnu. Gopuram A gateway tower in South India. Ghat A series of steps leading to a body of water. Karma the balancing world justice. Through one’s deeds, one accumulates karma, i.e. “ballast”, or reduces karma through the fulfilment of the respective dharma. Kshatriyas caste of the aricstocraty of warriors and kings. Lakshmi She is consort of and energy of Vishnu. She assists Vishnu in creating, protecting and transforming the universe. Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati forms the Tridevi. Lingam or Shivalinga is the phallus-like representation of Lord Shiva. Mahabharatha is next to the Ramayana the major ancient Indian epic. Particularly the discussion of the four goals of life, the “Purusartha”, are of core importance in Hinduism. Mandapa pillard hall. Mandala a geometric scheme within symbols are embedded. And are used as guidances for establishing sacred spaces. Mandalas have various scales, starting from small pictures to the layout of cities and were an important tool in town planning. Manram the central community space of a traditional village, and is seen as the heart of the village. Mansara a treatise of architecture, urban design, but includes texts on politics and economy, or cosmology. It was composed around 400 CE in north India. Mashrabiya lattice window, which is used in the Islamic world. Mayamatam A planning treatise with 36 chapters, composed in south India under the rule of the Cholas and Pallawas (9th centry CE).

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Moksha is one of the four aims of life. It is the most important aim, because it means liberation from life, it is the stage of highest knowledge, and means union with universe and the celestial world. Mount Kailash a mountain in the Himalaya massive, in the centre of six mountain ranges, which today lies in the territory of China. It is described as a pillar of the world, because the six adjacent mountain ranges form a lotus petal. It is home of Shiva and Parvati, his wife, and their children Kartikeya and Ganesha. Mount Meru the sacred centre of universe in metaphysical, spiritual and phyiscal terms. Since the five-peaked Mount Meru is 1.000.000 km high, our solar system revolve around Mount Meru. Sometimes Mount Kailash is identified as Mount Meru. Nandi mount (vahana) of Shiva, but also guarding deity of Mount Kailash, home of Shiva. Pada is a square shaped measurement unit to design villages or town. Villages and towns are defined by the number of padas they comprise of. Panchayat a self-governing village body, that was already known in Vedic times, (1700 BCE). It is the grassroot governance of villages and quarters. Parvati is consort of Lord Shiva, and goddess of love, beauty, bravery, harmony and fertility. Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati forms the Tridevi. Pol a gateway in the Newar towns of the Kathmandu valley, Nepal. Pooja prayer to a god. They range from the daily poojas performed at home to the large temple festivals. Puranas an encyclopedia of more than 400.000 verses written in Sanskrit, composed between the third and tenth century. The topics covered include temple construction, architecture, town planning, main characteristics of the gods and goddesses, but also love stories, or sagas of kings and heroes. Purusartha guidances to achieve the four goas of life: Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. For each caste there is a certain Purushastra, like for the Brahmins the Dharma Shastra is of highest importance, and the Shudra, the workers, should concentrate on the Artha Shastra. Prakrama is a circumambulation path through a temple. In some of the larger temples each Prakrama is encolsed by temple walls. Lord Rama Lord Rana is one of the main deities in Hinduism, because he is the seventh Avatar of Lord Vishnu. His life and fulfillment of the goals of life is described in the Ramayana. Ramayana is one of the two ancient Sanskrit epics with nearly 24.000 verses, composed between the seventh and fourth century BCE. It mainly described the four goals of human life by by following the progression of Lord Rama, a prince of the celestial city Ayadhya. Rgveda the oldest part of the Vedas, and thus is one of the most important texts of Hinduism. The Rgvedas is a colletcion of more than 1000 hymns dated between 1900 and 1200 BCE. Saraswati consort of Brahma, goddess of knowledge, wisdom, learning, art and music. Saraswati, Lakshmi and Parvati forms the Tridevi.

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Shilpa Shastra planning treatise with various aspects that were summarised in the Shilpa Shastras, which literally means the science of arts and crafts. Lord Shiva is one of the Trimuti, the triple deity (with Brahma and Vishnu) and one of the main gods of Hinduism. He is the destroyer, but also creator of the new. Shudra caste of the workers and farmhands. Smitri tantric texts that comprise “what is remembered”. This includes tales and epics, such as the Ramayana or the Mahabharata. Stupa it is a hemispherical structure with the relicts of Buddhist monks or nuns and is used for meditation. Tantra descriptions of rituals, because via rituals believers can achieve enlightenment, and thus leave the circle of birth and rebirth. Tulsi the sacred basil plant. It is believed that the twigs and leaves of the Tulsi are the manifestation of goddess Lakshmi, Vishnu’s consort. Thok, or Tok a neighbourhood. Twice born all higher caste members, i.e. Brahmins, Kshytriyas, and Vaishyas, are also referred to as twice born: their first birth is their natural birth, and their second birth is when they receive the sacred thread. With this they are intellectually born after the training of a guru. After the second birth the child has to fulfill the duties of the caste. Vahana mount vehicle of gods, for example: Shiva’s mount is Nadni, the bull, Ganesha’s is a mouse, Vishnu’s vahana is Garuda, half eagle, half man. Varna is translated into order (social) class, or colour. In Hinduism is it mainly used to describe the four castes, the Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (kings, warriors), Vaishya (merchants), and Shudra (simple labourers). Vaishya the caste of merchants, landlords and agriculturalists. Vastu Purusha Mandala in a mandala the cosmic man, Purusha, lies on the ground. In the beginning of time Purusha was pushed on earth by Brahma and other gods, in order to bring energy to humans. Vastu Shastras art and science of architecture and urban design, as well as building of temples. Lord Vishnu is one of the Trimurti, the triple deity (with Brahma and Shiva). He is the preserver and protects, transforms and creates the universe.