ancient India had with numerals and other branches of science. Astronomy and astrology were important preoccupations and the building treatise, Vaastu Shastra, relies on calculations based on cosmogony and religious abstract theory. Later examples manifest more overtly the relationship between architecture and the sciences.
Sawai Jai Singh II, the 18th-century ruler of Jaipur, was a keen scholar, statesman and astronomer, who was inspired by the works of Mirza Ulugh Beg, the astronomer-king of Samarkand. He built five observatories, called the Jantar Mantar, in the northern cities of Delhi, Ujjain, Varanasi, Mathura and Jaipur.
A perfect blend of function and aesthetics makes these buildings unique creations. A collector of Western scientific instruments, Jai Singh was convinced that the available instruments were not adequate to achieve the degree of accuracy he sought in building observatories. Instead of placing instruments within them, he therefore designed the structures themselves as instruments. Elegant futuristic forms were created by combining various geometrical shapes-hemispheres, arcs, cylinders, cubes and triangles. Until as recently as the advent of the satellite, these structures were used to predict certain meteorological phenomena.
Jantar Mantar, Jaipur
The Jantar Mantar in Jaipur is the largest and best preserved of Jai Singh's five observatories. Built between 1728 and 1734 in red sandstone, it is set in a large garden and consists of sixteen different large-scale instruments or yantras. Of these instruments, the Laghu Samrat Yantra can calculate Jaipur's local time up to an accuracy of 20 seconds. The Chakra Yantra is used to determine the angle of stars and planets from the equator. The Ram Yantra observes the celestial arc between the horizon and the zenith, and also measures the sun's altitude. The Jai Prakash Yantra, believed to be Jai Singh's own invention, verifies the accuracy of the other instruments. The Rashivalaya Yantra is composed of twelve pieces, each representative of a zodiac sign. It is used to cast horoscopes. The 23-meter-high Samrat Yantra is used to forecast the year's rainfall.
South of the City Palace in Jaipur, the Jantar Mantar (literally "instrument to make calculations") was the most ambitious of Jai Singhll's observatories. It looks like a futuristic playground.
The Jantar Mantar in the heart of Delhi is a popular tourist attraction.
Jantar Mantar, Delhi
The Jantar Mantar complex in New Delhi, now obsolete, is located in the heart of the city, in a pleasant park surrounded by high-rise buildings. Built in 1724 and made of red brick and plaster, on a smaller scale than the Jaipur observatory, the structure is popular with tourists.
The Rashivalaya Yantra, made up of twelve pieces, each facing a different constellation, was used by astrologers to make horoscopes.
The Ram Yantra was one of two identical structures used to calculate the celestial arc from horizon to zenith, as well as the altitude of the sun.
Also in the Jaipur observatory, the Unnatansha Yantra was used to determine the position of the celestial bodies at any time of the day or night.
Architecture and Water
Indian cosmology perceives water as a purifying and regenerative element, and it is an essential part of prayer and consecration. Water is also held in reverence because of its scarcity in many parts of the country. India depends on the monsoon rains to replenish its water sources and for irrigation. Failure of the monsoon means death and famine to many, while its timely arrival is an occasion for rejoicing.
Adalaj Vav, built in 1499 by Rudabai, the wife of a local chieftain, is covered with sculptures of dancing maidens, erotica and images of Shiva. It comprises a series of platforms and galleries raised on pillars on the sides of the stepwell.
The sacredness of water finds acknowledgment throughout the subcontinent through extraordinary and monumental architecture that displays the acme of engineering achievement.
Stepwells or Vav
The concept of the vav, or stepwell, was a response to the harsh climate of Gujarat and Rajasthan in the west of India and the acute shortage of water. Since wells access ground-water, they are the most reliable source of a continuous water supply. The best examples of the vav in Gujarat are those created by the Solanki kings in the 12th and 13th centuries. Later, the Muslim rulers of the state carried on this architectural tradition.
The vav came to be associated with more than just a water source. The architecture around the original well was designed in such a way that the vav came to be a subterranean retreat. The vav consists of two elements. The well itself is a vertical shaft with a thick surrounding wall to maximize water retention. A series of imposing flights of steps, built over an inclined passage, broken at various regular levels by landings, leads from the ground level to the water level deep below.
Rani-ki-vav at Patan, Gujarat's largest stepwell, was built in 1050 in the Solanki period and extensively restored in the 1980s.
The flights of steps, built between two massive retaining walls, are covered at various levels, as are the series of pillared galleries and chambers that open out from each landing. The Rani-ki-Vav at Patan, which descends to seven stories beneath the ground level and measures 36 meters by 4 meters, gives an idea of the scale. Pillars, capitals, railings and walls, all made of local stone, are sumptuously carved, with a mixture of decorative motifs and iconography, creating a unique architecture.
Reservoirs and Tanks (Kunds)
A combination of practical water storage with pleasure and palaces on the one hand, and with temples and rituals on the other, is common in Indian water architecture. The balance of sacred and royal aspects is different at every site. In Rajasthan, the temple tank or kund takes the form of a deep storage basin with long and narrow flights of stairs leading down to deep reservoirs. The design of these tanks combines the cooling features of wells with those of a water basin conducive to purification rituals.
Ghats
The ghat, meaning "riverbank" or "steps leading to water," is a common feature of many temples situated on the banks of rivers. In Hinduism, every river is representative of the Ganges, believed to flow out of the hair of the god Shiva, and whose waters are therefore considered to be most sacred.
Hindus believe that death in this life is but a stage in the journey of the soul. Hence the ashes of those who are cremated are immersed in the waters of sacred rivers, to mark the beginning of this onward journey. The ghat provides the physical place to commemorate this, and some of India's most colorful architecture has developed along the banks of sacred rivers, in joyous but respectful celebration of the journey of the soul.
A section of the ghats at Benaras.
