BUDDHIST

ARCHITECTURE

Sta Cruz, Pauline Mhargel V.

History of Architecture 3 – A50
June 10, 2020
AR. Yusef Maru Pablo
 GEOGRAPHICAL

A millennium before

the domination of Buddhism

in India, the earliest and

oldest civilization in South

Asia, emerged along the

lower valleys and tributaries

of the Indus River. This

civilization has a culture that

is, as ancient as other great

civilizations similar to Egypt and Mesopotamia.

The ancient forms of arts, architecture, religion, and culture of the Indian subcontinent was

produced the Indus Civilization. Meanwhile, North India, the Holyland of great world religions,

such as Hinduism and Buddhism, was the origin of the spiritual heritage of the majority of Indians

and millions of Asians.

GEOLOGICAL AND CLIMATE

Buddhist architecture in the early years were made with earth materials particularly stones

and bricks. Rock-cut architecture were also common and early temples were often made by timber.

Since most of Northeast India and much of North India are under the humid subtropical climate,

Buddhist architecture was influenced as well by the country’s climate. It has two main seasons,

wet and dry, which makes India classified as a tropical country. Thus, because of the tropical
climate, their structures consist of flat terraced roofs influenced by the Egyptians, the Assyrians,

and the Persians for them to be able to emit coolness, to exercise, and to sleep.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL

In the realm of political practice, ever since the age of the historical Buddha, Siddhattha

Gotama (Sanskrit, Siddhārtha Gautama), Buddhism has influenced both governments and been

identified by governments as a source of their authority and legitimacy. Buddhist monarchs

controlled Buddhist-majority realms across Southeast and East Asia at different times over the past

two thousand years, and even today many nations in Asia understood their governments to own a

requirement to control how that's in step with Buddhist values. Hindu society divided people into

castes and lots of people disliked it. Gautama Siddhartha, 563-483 BC, gave up his own life so as

to look for wisdom, from then, after 6 years he found enlightenment through thinking deeply into

processes he called meditation. Overcome human weakness including greed and anger, in return,

attain Salvation or Nirvana.

RELIGION

Religion was the foremost influential facet for Buddhist architecture. Not solely did

Emperor Asoka created Buddhism as the official state religion, but he also actively supported

Buddhist missionary work. Buddhist architecture was perpetually inclined with Siddhartha

Gautama. For the primary time in his antecedently secure existence, Siddhartha witnessed aspects

of human suffering within the variety of disease, old age and death.

He additionally encountered a wandering ascetic (a Hindu sadhu or holy man) and was

inspired by this instance to renounce his antecedently opulent style and seek for answers

concerning the which means and purpose of human life and suffering. Ultimately, and once several
 later years of utmost self-denial,

discipline, travels, and encounters with

others who offered him numerous

varieties of guidance and inspiration,

Siddhartha sat all the way down to create

a final effort in his quest by meditating

beneath a tree (later called the Bodhi

Tree, or Tree of Awakening) at Bodh

Gaya in northern Asian country. once

prolonged meditation, he received

profound insights concerning the character of human life and existence, and he became the

Buddha—a Sanskritic language term meaning the “Awakened One.”

as a result of the vedic religion already entrenched within the Indian society; concepts like

atman, Brahman, yoga practices and asceticism, Samsara, karma, rebirth and reincarnation, etc.

were the commonplace. Buddha’s teachings and alternative Sramana religions, whereas not

denying these, gave recent interpretations with basic variations primarily focused on doctrinal

problems concerning the character of atman, Brahman, and alternative ‘superstitious’ practices

equivalent to ritual bathing and animal sacrifices.

After Buddha’s enlightenment at Bodh Gaya, he ultimately determined to share the fruits

of his arousal to the “truth” or “law” of human existence (the Dharma ) with others. He first offered

his teachings to a small cluster of his previous companions of ascetics who gathered at a deer park

in Sarnath. These followers became the primary members of the Buddhist community (the Sangha

), that dilated greatly through succeeding many decades of the Buddha’s travels and teaching in
northern India. once the Buddha’s peaceful death, his teachings continued to be orally

disseminated further as taken by a growing variety of schools and progressively settled monastic

communities.

After the Buddha’s death sacred sites were made to the Buddhist pilgrimage in India. He gave

directions to his disciples about the dispersal of his bodily relics and directed his followers to place

his ashes into stupas that serves as his memorials of teaching.

HISTORICAL

Buddhism traditionally began in c. 532 BCE when Buddha preached the primary sermon

in Isipatana close to Varanasi and based the Sangha; the first five monk-disciples (bhiksu) were

reborn throughout this momentous occasion whereas the order of nuns (bhiksuni) would later be

founded in c. 527 BCE in Vaishali. The lifetime of a bhiksu or bhiksuni since the earliest days of

Buddhism, as epitomized in Buddha’s life.

Although Buddhism began in India, and during several periods of history was supported

and inspired by major political leaders, by the thirteenth century Buddhism had significantly

declined in India. numerous cultural and political factors were likely influential during this process

of decline, like the growth and recognition of devotional and revival movements among Hinduism,

the reabsorption of numerous Buddhist concepts and deities into the ever-expanding Hindu

pantheon, and therefore the Islamic invasions of India that began within the 12th century. Buddhist

monasteries were attacked and ransacked within the Islamic conquests, and by the thirteenth

century, Buddhism was just about extinct in its Indian birthplace. Islam and Hinduism are these

days the dominant religions in Asian country, and Buddhism is wide practiced in world regions

outside the Indian landmass.

 Theravada and Mahayana are considered to be the two major branches of Buddhism,

among these early centuries, 18 completely different colleges of Buddhism eventually emerged,

as well as the Theravadan branch that these days continues to be followed in Southeast Asia and

Sri Lanka. A crucial stage within the historical development of Buddhism materialized round the

first century ce with the movement called Mahayana (or “Great Vehicle”). The term “Great

Vehicle” contrasts Buddhism with the many Hinayana (“Lesser Vehicle”) colleges.

Both Buddhism and Mahayana colleges trace their history back to the teachings of

Gautama himself, though it ought to be noted that no Buddhist texts were written down, in any

language, throughout the life of Gautama or maybe shortly thenceforth. The Buddha’s teachings

were memorized and transmitted orally and translated into a spread of languages and dialects

through several centuries before the earliest scriptures were committed to writing.

The many kinds of Buddhism, even so, all represent approaches to the principal teachings

of Gautama regarding the likelihood of achieving enlightenment via moral behavior associate

degreed via the event of wise attitudes reflective of an awareness of the realities of human life

within the cosmos.

 ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER

From India, Buddhism has spread

throughout many other Asian countries

adapting local buildings and traditions to add

up to the development of the indigenous styles

of art and architecture. According to Leslie

Ross in Art and Architecture of the World’s

Religions, 297. She stated: “One of the keys

to the success of the religion was the ability of

Buddhism to adapt to and evolve within

different cultures and their existing beliefs. . . Lion capital, Asoka pillar at Sarnath, India, 273 –
32 bce . The Art Archive
Buddhist art serves to remind, to support and

to reinforce the eternal truths of the religion, and its development and style remain integral to the

history of the religion, the two not being easily separated.”

Some particular characteristics of different world regions and branches of Buddhism were

symbols, forms, materials, and art styles. This reflect different doctrinal emphases and differing

liturgical practices. An example is the focus of Threvadan Buddhist art to the attention on the life

and deeds of the historical Buddha. While, Mahayana Buddhist art focuses more on the expansive

visual vocabulary of Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and realms of the superficial.

Among the earliest and still most widespread and prevailing symbols in Buddhism are

wheels, lions, lotus flowers, trees, and footprints. The lion was a conventional Indian image of

royalty and power. The lotus flower as an especially vital Buddhist image of spiritual purity and

enlightenment. Trees refer to varied events within the life of Gautama Siddhartha, primarily his
 attainment of enlightenment beneath the bodhi tree at Bodh

Gaya. The wheel indicates that the teaching “is in constant

motion and provides a path toward spiritual enlightenment

and ultimate unleash.” Lastly, footprints function as

reminders of the physical journeys of the Buddha throughout

his decades of teaching and traveling in northern Bharat.

Furthermore, Buddhism played a critical role affecting

practices in terms of the concepts of marking sacred sites with

Footprints of the Buddha,
limestone panel from the
Great Stupa at Amaravati,
India, first century bce .
physical structures and the activities of making pilgrimages to
visit these sites. Several various relics and pilgrimage
monuments was given importance as it is the material focus of

spiritual activity. Stambhas, Topes, Rails, Chaityas, and Viharas are monument examples of

Buddhist architecture that are later on called as temples.

Chaitya at Ellora Caves

According to Ching in A Visual Dictionary of Architecture, he characterized: ‘

• Stambhas, a freestanding memorial pillar in Indian architecture, displaying carved

inscriptions, sacred emblems, or a sculpture.

• The stupa, dagoba in Ceylon, Chorten in Tibet and Nepal, or tope is a Buddhist
memorial hill erected to enshrine a relic of Buddha and to celebrate some event or
mark a sacred spot. Formed on a funerary tumulus, it has an artificial dome-shaped
mound raised on a platform, enclosed by an outer ambulatory with a stone vedika
and four toranas, and crowned by a chattri.

• Rails are often used as the enclosure to topes.

• Chaitya is a Buddhist shrine in India, usually sculpted out of the solid rock on a
hillside, begetting the form of an aisled basilica with a stupa at one end.

• Viharas, a Buddhist monastery in Indian architecture often unearthed from solid

rock, consisting of a central pillared chamber surrounded by a verandah onto which
open small sleeping cells. Adjacent to this cloister was a courtyard containing the
main stupa.

Vihara of Ajanta Cave

 The stupa is, however, one of the

most distinctive and common varieties

of Buddhist architecture and is the

foundation for several later Buddhist

architectural forms, such as pagodas

(characteristic of Buddhist architecture

in China and Japan) and the distinctive

Tibetan chorten kind, and variations in

Thailand, Indonesia, et al.. however, as a result of stupas (of no matter size) aren't buildings into

which people will enter. In distinction, stupas are totally solid structures, typically shaped of

mounded rubble coated with stones, brick, or plaster, and their operate is to mark sacred places,

function relic-containing memorials of holy figures, and symbolize religious concepts.

Stupas mark and build sacred sites; they function symbols of the Buddha and his teachings,

and therefore the entire cosmos is also symbolized in a stupa. Symbols have continuously played

a important role in Buddhist art, and it seems that for the primary many centuries after the Buddha’s

life, symbols were primarily used to refer to the Buddha and his teachings and to represent the

objects honored at the sacred sites of Buddhist journey. The forms and designs of Buddhist temple

design (both related to monastic complexes or freelance of monasteries) mirror the regional

building practices of the Asian regions to that the faith unfold.

In Japan and China, ancient wooden construction techniques are used, and large Buddhist

monastery complexes typically have many various structures, assembly halls, pagodas (derived

from the stupa kind and regional types of secular gate and watch towers in addition as religious

ceremony towers), dwelling quarters for monks, facilities for guests, and so on. The layout and
enclosures of these complexes typically mirror imperial or palace styles as well, with, for example,

large halls full of Buddha images in a kind resembling the style of imperial audience halls.

Meditation practices are particularly emphasized within the Ch’an (Chinese) and Zen

(Japanese) branches of Buddhism. in line with traditions, Ch’an practices were delivered to China

from India within the late fifth century ce by the legendary figure called Bodhidharma (whose

name suggests that “Enlightened Tradition”). Ch’an Buddhism was later sent to Choson and Japan.

There are various branches of this sort of Buddhism, several of that believe extensively on practices

of rigorous disciplined and formal sitting meditation ( zazen ) to still the mind and permit insights

and enlightenment to arise directly. Order and ease designed to supply quiet harmony and lowest

distractions are particularly characteristic of Zen aesthetics, well incontestible, for instance, within

the sort of “dry gardening” seen at the Ryoan-ji Temple in Kyoto, Japan.

Buddhist architectural plans of temples are all hewn out of stones which is why it only have

one external façade. Their temples resemble

Christian Cathedrals having three aisles formed

by two rows of piers and semi-circular

sanctuary.

Monasteries also called as the viharas

were also rock-cut consisting of central hall

enclosed on three sides by the cells for the

priest. Soon after, the introduction of columns

in the central space for rock overhead support was Borobudur, Java ca. 800 ce , floorplan.
Courtesy of Ricochet Productions.
made.
 Openings were expressed through a form of a horseshoe arch on the façade being the only

source of light. It is usually an open framework decorated with wood. In the early chaityas, roofs

were semi-circular excavated in the rock and ornamented with wood ribs or imitations of stones.

Columns were often octagonal on their plan. Buddhist columns are often octagonal on plan, the several

forms of capitals resemble in certain the Assyrians and Persepolitans. While at Bedsa, the sculptures of

lions, horses, or elephants, and the "chakra" also called Buddhist wheel occur.
\

PROMINENT
EXAMPLES
 The Great Stupa at Sanchi

Date built: Commissioned in the 3rd century BCE.

Architect: Commissioned by Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Dynasty.

Location: 46 km north-east of Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh, India Architectural

Purpose: believed to house ashes of the Buddha.

 Borobudur

Date built: 800 C.E.

Architect: The rulers of the Sailendra Dynasty

Location: Island of Java, Indonesia

Purpose: Buddhist pilgrimage site.

 Mahabodhi Temple

Date built: In the 3rd century B.C., and the present temple dates from the 5th–6th centuries

Architect: Emperor Ashoka

Location: Bodh Gaya

Purpose: One among the four holy sites that relates to the life of the Buddha particularly for the

attainment of Enlightenment.
 Jetavanaramaya stupa

Date built: 273 -301 AD

Architect: king Mahasen and completed by his son Sirimeghavanna

Location: SRI LANKA

Purpose: A place for meditation containing relics

 Thiksey Monastery

Date built: 1430 AD

Architect: Sherab Zangpo

Location: Leh Manali Hwy, Thiksey, Jammu and Kashmir

Purpose: Thiksey Monastery consists of four main buildings; they are the auditorium in yellow
building, guardian deity shrine in red building, Tara temple, and Maitreya temple. The
auditorium is that the oldest building and the purpose of the hall is to assemble the monks and
skim prayers in it. The red building consists of guardian shrines that are mostly covered with a
veil, the veils are removed only during the Gustor festival and when something unrest happened
within the village.
References:

Chikkalgi, Roopa. “Buddhist Architecture.” LinkedIn SlideShare, March 23, 2017.

https://www.slideshare.net/roopachikkalgi/buddhist-architecture-73527008.

Ching, Francis D.K.. A Visual Dictionary of Architecture. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.,

2012.

Fletcher, Banister. History of Architecture on The Comparative Method. London: Bradbury,

Agnew, & CO. LD., Printers, 1905.

Phuoc, Le Huu. Buddhist Architecture. Grafikol, 2012.

Ross, Leslie. Art and Architecture of the Worlds Religions. California: Greenwood Press, 2009.