Temple tank

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about a Temple tank. For other uses, see Tank (disambiguation).
Temple tank in Hampi, Karnataka.
Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple
at Chikkaballapur district, Karnataka.

Temple tanks are

Indus Valley civilization. Some are stepwells
with many steps at the sides.

Tank design

Since ancient times, the design of water storage has been important in India's temple architecture, especially in western India where dry and monsoon seasons alternate. Temple tank design became an art form in itself.[3] An example of the art of tank design is the large, geometrically spectacular Stepped Tank at the Royal Center at the ruins of Vijayanagara, the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire, surrounding the modern town of Hampi. It is lined with green diorite and has no drain. It was filled by aqueduct.[4]

The tanks are used for ritual cleansing and during rites of consecration. The water in the tank is deemed to be

Ganges River.[5]

Stepwell

In India, a stepwell is a deep masonry well with steps going down to the water level in the well. It is called a vav in west India and a baoli in north India. Some were built by kings and were richly ornamented.[6] They often were built by nobility, some being for secular use from which anyone could obtain water.[7]

Haridra Nadhi

Haridra Nadhi

Haridra Nadhi, tank of the

Thiruvarur District of Tamil Nadu
.

The area of the temple tank is 23 acres (93,000 m2). It is also called Daughter of

Kaveri river.[citation needed
]

Kalyani

Kalyani, also called pushkarni, are ancient

Hindu stepped bathing
wells.

These wells were typically built near

Ganesha Chaturthi
.

Sarovar

In Sikhism, temple tanks are called sarovar (Punjabi: ਸਰੋਵਰ sarōvara).[8]

Gallery

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Sun Temples in India". Retrieved 2007-02-24.
  2. ^ Shuichi Takezawa (August 2002). "Stepwells – Cosmology of Subterranean Architecture as seen in Adalaj" (PDF). Journal of Architecture and Building Science. 117 (1492): 24. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  3. ^ "Architecture - Stepwells". Archived from the original on October 6, 1999. Retrieved 2007-01-09.
  4. ^ "Great Tank". art-and-archaeology. Retrieved 2007-01-13.
  5. ISBN 0-7946-0011-5
    .
  6. ^ "Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent - glossary". Retrieved 2006-12-18.
  7. ^ "Vav / vavdi / Baoli / Bavadi - Traditional stepwells". Retrieved 2006-12-19.
  8. ISBN 978-81-7380-530-1
    .

Further reading

  • C.P.R. Environmental Education Centre (2002). Sacred tanks of South India. pp. 328.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kalyani (temple tank).
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