Architectural
Overview
The site houses the architectural
remains of a vast Buddhist monastery, Somapura Mahavihara, covering 27 acres (11
ha). It was an important intellectual centre for Dharmic Traditions such as
Buddhists (Buddha Dharma), Jains (Jaina Dharma) and Hindus (Sanatana Dharma)
alike. The 21 acre (85,000 m²) complex has 177 cells, viharas, numerous stupas,
temples and a number of other ancillary buildings. The outside walls with
ornamental terracotta palques still display the influence of these three
religions.
The first builder of the monastery was
Dharmapala Vikramshila (770-810AD), the king of Varendri-Magadha, as inscribed
on a clay seal discovered in the monastery compound. The plan of the monastery
can be described as a large square quadrangle measuring approximately 280 m or 920
feet, with the main entrance, an elaborate structure, on the northern side. The
outer walls of the monastery are formed by rows of cells that face inwards
toward the main shrine in the centre of the courtyard. In the last building
phases of the Monastery these cells, which formed the outer wall, totalled 177.
The main central shrine has a cruciform ground plan and a terraced
superstructure that rises in three terraces above ground level to a height of
about 24 m or 70 feet. The upper level is a massive rectangular central block
which forms the central brick shaft. The intermediate terrace is a wide
circumambulatory path which passes four main chapels or mandapas architectural
plan, it is in fact a simple cruciform that has been elaborated with a series
of projections at the re-entrants, a form that is copied at all levels on the
main shrine. At the intermediate level there were originally two bands of
terracotta plaques running around the full perimeter of the shrine, out of
which half are still preserved in situ.
The rooms were used by the monks for
accommodation and meditation. In addition to the large number of stupas and
shrines of various sizes and shapes, terracotta plaques, stone sculptures,
inscriptions, coins, ceramics etc. have been discovered.
The ground level today is 1 m or 3
feet above the original pradakshinapatha
or main circumambulatory path, below the base of the lowest band of
terracotta plaques. Archaeological excavations have revealed a 15 feet pathway
that follows an elaborated cruciform shape, a feature that can be discerned
from the foundations of the outer wall that enclose the pathway and that still
exist. At the base of the shrine, there are over 60 stone sculptures which
depict a variety of Hindu divinities. The main entrance to the monastery was
through a fortified gate on the northern access to the central temple. The majority
of the ancillary buildings, such as the kitchen and the refectory, are located
in the south-east corner, but there were also a few structures to be found in
the north-east corner.
Comments
Post a Comment