The Mayamata is a Vastusastra, that is to says a treatise on dwelling and as such, it deals with all the facets of gods temple dwellings, from the choice of a site to the iconography of temple walls. It contains many precise descriptions of villages and towns as of temples, houses, mansions and palaces. It gives indications for the selection of proper orientation, of the right dimension and of appropriate building materials. It intends to be a manual for the architect and a guidebook for the layman. Well thought of by the traditional architects (sthapatis) of South India, this treatise is of interest at a time when technical traditions, in all fields are being scrutinized for their possible modern application. The Mayamata has so far been translated into Tamil and into French. The present English version is based upon the edition, with French translation, previously published by Dr. Bruno Dagens in the Publication Series of the French Institute of Indology (Pondicherry).
Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi motilalbanarsidass.com, [email protected] The Matamata is a Vastusastra, i.e. a treatise on dwelling, and as such, it deals with all the facets of gods' and men's dwellings, from the choice of the site to the iconography of the temple walls. It contains numerous and precise descriptions of villages and towns as well as of temples, houses, mansions and palaces. It gives indications for the selection of proper orientation, correct dimensions, and appropriate materials. It intends to be a manual for the architect and a guidebook for the layman. Well thought of by traditional architects (sthapati-s) of South India, the treatise is of great interest at a time when technical traditions, in all fields, are being scrutinized for their possible modern application. The present bilingual edition prepared by Dr Bruno Dagens contains critically edited Sanskrit text which is an improvement over the earlier edition by the same scholar and published as No.40 of Publications de L'Institut Francaisd' Indologie, Pondicherry. The English translation, also published earlier, has now been revised with copious notes. The usefulness of the edition has been further enhanced by adding an analytical table of contents and a comprehensive glossary. In the series of Kalamulasastra early texts on music, namely, Matralaksanam, Dattilam and Brhaddest, have been published. The medieval texts on music, especially, the Sribastamuktavali (No.3 in the series) and the Nartananirnaya (No.17 in the series), bring us up to the 15th and 16th centuries. In the case of architecture, despite the IGNCA's endeavour to publish portions of the Brhatsamhita, the Agni Purana and the Visnudharmottara-Purana, first, this has not been possible. Instead, our scholars were able to complete work first on a late but important text, namely, Silparatnakosa. We hope that the sections on architecture in the Brhatsamhita, the Agni Purana and the Visnudharmottara-Purana which predate the medieval texts, will be published soon, along with revised and re-edited texts of Manasollasa and Aparajitaprccha. The Mayamatam is the fourteenth and fifteenth volume in the Kalamulasastra series of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA).
In this ground-breaking study the traditional Indian science of architecture and house-building, Vastu Vidya, is explored in terms of its secular uses, at the levels of both theory and contemporary practice. Vastu Vidya is treated as constituting a coherent and complete architectural programme, still of great relevance today. Chakrabarti draws on an impressive amount of textual material, much of it only available in Sanskrit, and presents several extremely valuable illustrations in support of the theories expounded. Each chapter deals with one architectural aspect, and chapters are divided into three sections. For each aspect, the first section explains the prescriptions of the traditional texts; the second section deals with the rather arbitrary use of that aspect by contemporary Indian architects trained in the western manner but striving to relate to Indian roots; while the last section in each chapter explores the selected use of that particular aspect by contemporary Vastu pundits, with their disregard for architectural idiom
In this ground-breaking study the traditional Indian science of architecture and house-building,Vastu Vidya, is explored in terms of its secular uses, at the levels of both theory and contemporary practice. Vastu Vidya is treated as constituting a coherent and complete architectural programme, still of great relevance today. Chakrabarti draws on an impressive amount of textual material, much of it only available in Sanskrit, and presents several extremely valuable illustrations in support of the theories expounded. Each chapter deals with one architectural aspect, and chapters are divided into three sections. For each aspect, the first section explains the prescriptions of the traditional texts; the second section deals with the rather arbitrary use of that aspect by contemporary Indian architects trained in the western manner but striving to relate to Indian roots; while the last section in each chapter explores the selected use of that particular aspect by contemporary Vastu pundits, with their disregard for architectural idiom.
This new volume in the GCI's Readings in Conservation series brings together a selection of seminal writings on the conservation of historic cities. This book, the eighth in the Getty Conservation Institute’s Readings in Conservation series, fills a significant gap in the published literature on urban conservation. This topic is distinct from both heritage conservation and urban planning despite the recent growth of urbanism worldwide, no single volume has presented a comprehensive selection of these important writings until now. This anthology, profusely illustrated throughout, is organized into eight parts, covering such subjects as geographic diversity, reactions to the transformation of traditional cities, reading the historic city, the search for contextual continuities, the search for values, and the challenges of sustainability. With more than sixty-five texts, ranging from early polemics by Victor Hugo and John Ruskin to a generous selection of recent scholarship, this book thoroughly addresses regions around the globe. Each reading is introduced by short prefatory remarks explaining the rationale for its selection and the principal matters covered. The book will serve as an easy reference for administrators, professionals, teachers, and students faced with the day-to-day challenges confronting the historic city under siege by rampant development.
For more than 30 years, Yoga Journal has been helping readers achieve the balance and well-being they seek in their everyday lives. With every issue,Yoga Journal strives to inform and empower readers to make lifestyle choices that are healthy for their bodies and minds. We are dedicated to providing in-depth, thoughtful editorial on topics such as yoga, food, nutrition, fitness, wellness, travel, and fashion and beauty.
The idea of the book floated about seven years ago, back in 2015, in the reading room of Bhai Gurdas Library, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar when I (Sakshi Sahni) was preparing for my Ph.D. entrance exam along with Hardeep Sekhon who was preparing for Assistant Town Planner exam. As time flew, Sanjay Mishra got involved with the tedious task of typing registers. Puneet Mehra got involved in co-ordinating, sorting and arranging the PPSC papers. Simranjot Singh took all the task of sketching and preparing illustrations using various software like Autocad, Sketchup, coral draw, photo shop etc. Gulpreet Kaur helped in the academic section editing and drafting. Rawal Singh helped in history of Architecture questions and its framing. The huge daunting task which seemed impossible was completed in the span of seven years by consistent efforts of all the authors with grace of almighty. With all of us placed at different locations, managed to contribute what we could do at our best. Planning students were great motivation and inspiration to us for whom the work has been produced and will help in their PPSC and GATE exam preparation. Since all the authors are the product of Guru Ram Das school of Planning, who made us what we are today we would sincerely like to express our gratitude towards our alma mater and would like to dedicate this book to Guru Ram Das ji and to the Department which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
