Early Hoysala Art (Pictorial Volume)

Vinay K. Hegde and B.S. Surya Prakash and S.K. Ramachandra Rao

Vidyalankara, Sastra-Chudamani, Sangita-Kalaratna, Professor Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra Rao is a well-known scholar who combines traditional earning with modern research. Well versed in Sanskrit, Pali, Ardhamagadhi and several modern Indian languages and acquainted with Tibetan and some European languages, he has written extensively on Vedanta. Buddhism, Jainism, Indian Culture, Art and Literature.

In his professional career, however, he was a Professor of Psychology. He has headed the Department of Clinical Psychology in the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, and the Department of Indian Culture in the Collision College Study Center of the University of the Pacific (U.S A). At present, he is the Senior Associate of National Institute of Advanced Studies (Indian Institute of Science), Bangalore, and Guest Faculty, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore and member of the Governing Council of TTD (SVCL Research Centre). Tirupati.

He has been Member of Karnataka State Lalitha Kala Academy and Sangita Nritya Academy; he has served on the Agama Board (Govt. of Karnataka). He is President of Silpa-Kala Pratishtana. The Govt. of Karnataka has honoured him with the 1986 Rajyotsava Award. He has received awards from Lalita-Kala Academy and Sangita Nritya Academy. He is the recipient of the Veda Sanman for the year 2000 by the Govt. of India (H.R.D. Ministry).

Kendriya Samskrita Vidya-peetha, Tirupati, (deemed university) has awarded him honoris causa degree ‘Vachaspati’ (2003). He is the recipient of the prestigious Veda-ratna award (2004) from Sri Gangeswarananda Foundation.

He has written more than sixty books in Kannada, a play in Sanskrit and a Pali commentary on a Buddhist classic. One of his books on Iconography in Kannada as won the State Sahitya Academi Award, as also another of his books on the Tirupati Temple.

Among his numerous English Publications are three volumes of Encyclopaedia of Indian Medicine (Popular Prakashan Mumbai), Tibetan Tantrik Tradition and Tibetan Meditation (Arnold Heinemann Delhi), Consciousness in Advaita, and a series of six books on Indian Temples (IBH Prakashana Bangalore) and Origins of Indian Thought (Bangalore University); Kalpatharu Research Academy has published his Pratima-Kosha in six volumes. Agama-Kosha in Twelve volumes, Art and Architecture of Indian Temples in three volumes. He was awarded D. Litt. Honoraris causa by the Karnatak University (2005).

He at present engaged in the 30-volume project Rgveda-Darsana (Fifteen volumes of which have appeared).

He is also a musicologist, a sculptor and painter, and has held some one-man shows.

The Kalpatharu Research Academy, Bangalore is an Institution running with the benign blessings of His Holiness Jagadguru Shankaracharya, Sri Sri Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamiji under the auspicious of Dakshinamnaya Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham, Established in 1981. Kalpatharu Research Academy has stride across the horizon of lndological Research and Publications with giant steps, and today stands as an Institution known for its unique quality of Research work.

Kalpatharu Research Academy is dedicated to the cause of preservation of ancient heritage of India: it has encouraged Research in the fields of Agama, Veda, Tantra, Jyoutisha, Mantra Sastra, Vaastu, Yoga, Silpa, and Ayurveda etc.

Among its prestigious publications (numbering more than Hundred till now), are Six Vol’s. of Pratima-Kosha, Twelve Vol’s of Agama-Kosha, Three Vol’s of the Art & Architecture of Indian Temples, Vastu-Silpa-Kosha in three Vol’s, Devata-rupa-mala in Four Vol’s and several Koshas like Ganesha-Kosha, Lalita-Kosha and Navagraha-Kosha, Oshadhi-Kosha, Salagrama-Kosha, Gita-Kosha, Hanumat-Kosha, Vanaspathi Kosha etc.

The Academy has plans of undertaking intensive Research in the field of Veda and Vedanga, and intends publishing “Bharatiya-Samskriti-Sarvasva-Kosha” an encyclopedic work in several volumes dealing with all aspects of Indian Tradition & Culture. It seeks to promote Education, Culture, and Science, Art and learning in all its branches. The approach will be broad based and multi disciplinary.

An extensive, comprehensive and specialist reference library has been built up to assist the Research Workers in the Indological disciplines. A valuable collection of Palm Leaf manuscripts relating to Veda, Vedanta, Vedanga and allied subjects has already been made; the collection work is continuing.

Dakshinamnaya Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham has been running a Guru-Kula type of Institution on traditional lines to impart Vedic Education at several places. Some of these Institutions are over 100 years old. It is the intention of Kalpatharu Research Academy to take an active part in continuing this age-old tradition and act as the Research & Publication wing for these Institutions.

Our ambition is to develop as a National Center for higher learning in Veda, Vedanga and Shastras and facilitate the propagation of unique Sanskrit and Vedic texts in the National and International arena.

This Publication is the 115th of its achievement in this field.

Kalpatharu Research Academy, Bangalore has brought out many useful volumes highlighting the manifold aspects of Indian culture. This is in perfect accordance with the tile ‘Bharatiya-Samskriti-Sarvasva-Kosh’. In keeping with this avowed purpose, we are now publishing an art-book, a pictorial volume dealing with the origin and development of Hoysala Art. It represents a visual survey of important but little noticed monuments of the tenth and eleventh centuries. We are grateful to Prof. Dr. S.K. Ramachandra Rao for having planned this pictorial volume with the help of his students Vinay K. Hegde and B.S. Surya Prakash.

We are deeply indebted to His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Bharati Tirtha Mahaswamiji, Jagadguru of Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham and the chief patron of the Academy for his generous blessings and we also acknowledge the keen interest evinced by Shri V.R. Gowrishankar. Administrator of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham and Chairman of the Academy.

We also acknowledge the generous financial assistance from the Ministry of Human Resources Development, Department of Education, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and Dept. of Education, Govt. of Karnataka, Bangalore.

We record our appreciation of the excellent production of this volume by the Omkar Offset Printers.

It is usual to recognize Hoysala architecture and sculpture in the well known temples at Belur, Halebid and other cites in the Hassan district of Karnataka. But the provincial capital of the early Hovsalas was Tondanur (Tonnur) in the Mysore area, and we have monuments there which exhibit the influences of Ganga. Rashtrakua and Chola idioms on the Hoysala style. The present pictorial volume contains photographs of the monuments in Tonnur and the neighbourhood suggesting the formative phase of what may be described as Hoysala art. My young friends and students, Vinay Hegde and Surya Prakash have taken fine and representative photographs of the specimens of architecture and sculpture of the early Hoysala art, although most of these monuments have undergone changes in the later 1-loysala, Vijayanagar and the Mysore Wodeyar periods.

I am grateful to Sri Sri Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamiji of Sri Sringeri Sharada Peetham and the chief patron of the Academy the Administrator of the Peetham, Sri V.R. Gowrishankar and the Chairman of the Academy. I am indebted to Sri Daivajna K.N. Somayaji Director of the Academy for accepting this work among the Academy’s publications. I also acknowledge the courtesy and co-operation of my friends in the Omkar Offset Printers during the production of this volume.