We should begin by determining what we think a maṭha to be in the early Śaiva context. In the seventh and eighth centuries, maṭhas began to receive royal patronage. By the ninth and tenth centuries maṭhas collected taxes and agricultural profits (Sears 2014, 6). In the later period and in the south, maṭhas come to be a place for pilgrims passing through, or an institution for professional adepts, a place one might abide in on a hereditary basis. There is a rise in endowments for maṭhas in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, with the head of the maṭha perhaps being the rājaguru, the royal guru, of the dominion, hence a figure of political importance (Nandi 1987, 194–195).
But the maṭha of the earlier Śaiva world is at base something simpler. It is a place for an initiate to stay in for an extended period for the purposes of study, as an āśramin. It is housing for initiated students, with a guru offering teaching. Brunner-Lachaux (1998, 380), describing the situation as given in the Somaśambhupaddhati, tells us: “Celui dont Somaśambhu parle (et qu’ il nomme āśrama en SP1, p. 316) est d’ abord un lieu où vivent des initiés de différents grades, sous la conduite matérielle et spirituelle d’ un guru.” This was not a shelter for itinerant ascetics, not a locus of political power, but both a residence and a school for initiates or, in Sanderson’s (1988, 681) terms, a lodge for cult lineage members.
Next, let us look more closely at these maṭha residents. The residents are initiated āśramins assigned, as Brunner-Lachaux described, into four levels according to their type of initiation. The samayin has received the samaya dīkṣā, the initiation for the pledge-holder or neophyte, and is qualified to study the teachings. The putraka has received the nirvāṇa dīkṣā and will thus be liberated at the moment of death. The ācārya has received the consecration for officiants (ācārya abhiṣeka) and is qualified to teach and give dīkṣā. And the sādhaka has received the sādhaka abhiṣeka and is qualified to practice rituals in order to obtain supernatural powers.
As we see stated at Mohacūrottara 4.243, all these initiates, at whatever their level, are further regarded as being veritable liṅgas, “markers” or sacred images, of Śiva. They are mobile (jaṅgama) liṅgas, as opposed to the fixed (ajaṅgama or sthāvara) liṅgas which are images installed permanently in a temple. To establish either is an act of great piety:
saṃsthāpya sthāvaraṃ liṅgaṃ prāsāde yad bhavet phalamtat phalaṃ labhate vidvān maṭhe saṃsthāpya jaṅgamam 243
The reward that a wise man gains from establishing a mobile image (jaṅgamam liṅgam) [i.e. an ascetic] in a maṭha is the same as the reward that he gains from establishing a fixed image (sthāvaraṃ liṅgam) in a temple. (243)
Having found the residents to be initiates of different types, all considered to be mobile liṅgas, let us think about their initiation into that role, and why one might build a maṭha for them.
If the adept is a mobile liṅga, is, then, his dīkṣā (initiation) equivalent to the pratiṣṭhā (installation) of an immobile liṅga, an image in a temple? The matter has been considered by, among others, Hikita (2005, 193), and Mori (2005, 232); the latter observes that pratiṣṭhā brings the deity into a fixed liṅga, while dīkṣā does the same thing into a mobile one. As Mori (2005, 202–203) notes from the twelfth-century Vajrāvalī of Abhayākaragupta: “and [the ācārya] carries out also the installation of an image, etc., like the installation of a disciple (śiṣyapratiṣṭhām iva pratimādipratiṣṭhāṃ kuryāt).” Mori goes on to demonstrate that “in actuality there are many correspondences between the installation and consecration ceremonies.” Given that dīkṣā (initiation of an adept) and pratiṣṭhā (installation of an image) are parallel processes, the place of installation, the home for the initiate, is important, just as the temple, the shelter for a fixed image, is a place of consequence.
If the place has consequence, then there should be a reward from its establishment. An immobile liṅga is installed in a private shrine for the benefit of the commissioning sādhaka. What of the installation of a mobile liṅga, an adept, in a maṭha? Who benefits from that? What is the incentive? As we saw above, the Mohacūrottara states at 4.243 that the installation of a mobile liṅga in a maṭha brings merit to the patron who commissions and funds it. So we here move on from the idea of installation of an immobile liṅga in the private shrine, for the benefit of the sādhaka patron, to something else, to a liṅga that can move about, but must still be installed and housed, bringing reward to the patron who houses it.
In looking for accounts of this housing for adepts, I am drawing upon six early Śaiva records, the same six on which Professor Sanderson worked with me some two decades ago (for a study published recently as Mills 2019): the Kiraṇa, Devyāmata, Piṅgalāmata, Bṛhatkālottara, Mayasaṃgraha, and Mohacūrottara. I will go through what we can learn about the maṭha from these texts. We will find the most useful material in the Mohacūrottara (10th- or 11th-century) and Devyāmata (in which the prāsādalakṣaṇa material shows signs of being substantially earlier; see Mills 2019).
1 Housing in General
To begin, I should give a very brief outline of how these texts describe building plans for houses in general: normal housing, not maṭhas in particular. The texts give accounts of the elevation, the vertical design, that are easily followed. But descriptions of the plan, the horizontal design, rely on some basic background knowledge, which I now supply.
Measurements are made in hastas, hands, a measure from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger of the patron. Those measurements are checked for their āya. The āyas are formulae used to test measurements, to ensure that they are suitable for use. A common presentation is of six sets of āyas: āya, vyaya, ṛkṣa, yoni, vāra, and tithi or aṃśa. There are 12 āyas in a list of items beginning with siddhi; 10 vyayas in a list of items beginning with śikhara; 27 ṛkṣas in a list of the nakṣatras; 8 yonis in the list of 8 that is dhvaja, etc.; 7 vāras in a list of the days of the week; 30 tithis in a list of the lunar days in a month; and 9 aṃśas in a list of items beginning with taskara. In each list, some members are regarded as auspicious, some as inauspicious.
The measurement to be tested is multiplied by a set number. The product of that multiplication is then divided by the number of items in the āya set. The remainder is checked against the corresponding āya in the set to determine whether the measurement is suitable or not. Let me give an example: in the yoni āya list, the listed yonis are numbered from 1 to 8. Dhvaja (flag) is 1, dhūma (smoke) is 2, siṃha (lion) is 3, śvan (dog) is 4, vṛṣabha (bull) is 5, khara (donkey) is 6, gaja (elephant) is 7 and khaga (bird) is 8. The yonis with an odd number are regarded as auspicious. Those with an even number are considered inauspicious. A measurement to be checked against the yoni āyas is multiplied by the number 3. The product is then divided by the number of yonis, 8. If the remainder is 1, the yoni āya for that measurement is dhvaja, which is auspicious; if it is 2, the yoni āya for that measurement is dhūma, which is inauspicious, and so on. Each yoni āya, from dhvaja onward, is associated with a planet, and also with the cardinal and intermediate directions from the east onwards in a clockwise direction, according to the positions assigned to those planets. Below, we will see these associations used to indicate directions in house construction.
Moving now from measurements to design, the plan for the construction is always in the form of a square. That square is divided into a grid of cells (padas), with the same number of cells along each side. In the pattern that we will see here, the pattern for the construction of housing, as opposed to temples or funerary grounds or other things, there are 9 cells along each side of the square, producing a grid of 81 cells in total. See figure 20.1 as an example from the Bṛhatkālottara of such a configuration. Once these padas have been laid out, deities are installed in them. In the most common pattern 45 deities are installed. 32 of those deities are placed in the 32 padas around the outer edges of the plan, and 13 deities are placed inside that framework, with Brahmā at the very centre. When building houses, particular attention is paid to the consequences of a doorway placed at any of the 32 padas around the periphery. See figure 20.2 for an example of an account of doorway consequences, again from the Bṛhatkālottara.
Figure 20.1
The 9 × 9 plan, Bṛhatkālottara, chapter 112 (the vāstuyāgapaṭala)
Figure 20.1
The 9 × 9 plan, Bṛhatkālottara, chapter 112 (the vāstuyāgapaṭala)
Figure 20.1
The 9 × 9 plan, Bṛhatkālottara, chapter 112 (the vāstuyāgapaṭala)
E
Figure 20.2
Deity, nakṣatra, and consequence of door position. Bṛhatkālottara, prāsādalakṣaṇapaṭala 238c–243b. Positions with an asterisk are those recommended in 243c–245b
Figure 20.2
Deity, nakṣatra, and consequence of door position. Bṛhatkālottara, prāsādalakṣaṇapaṭala 238c–243b. Positions with an asterisk are those recommended in 243c–245b
Figure 20.2
Deity, nakṣatra, and consequence of door position. Bṛhatkālottara, prāsādalakṣaṇapaṭala 238c–243b. Positions with an asterisk are those recommended in 243c–245b
This fundamental 9-by-9-part deity map is used as the basis for plans of greater or lesser complexity. For housing, we will see descriptions of three types of design.
2 Type 1: The 9-by-9 pura
The most involved, which I will call type 1, is the design for a 9-by-9-part pura, a residential complex for a community and its lead figure. That lead figure might be a king or a lesser noble, an important functionary such as a general, or a guru. Other members of the community and all the functions of community life are arranged on the 81 cells of the 9-by-9 plan just described, with careful specifications as to what should be placed in each cell of the periphery in particular.
Here is an account of a type 1 complex from the Mayasaṃgraha, 5.156–159 and 181–187 (between verses 159 and 181, the text digresses to describe maṇḍapas and column types):
puri vā devagarbhāyāṃ niveśo vo nigadyatemata1viṣkambhamānena kṛtasīmni mahītale 156śaṅkvādinā gṛhāṇīśapadādīni prakalpayettatraiśe japahomārcādhāmopaskaraṇānvitam 157parjanye sarvavādyāni2 vidheyāni vipaścitāsnānārghasādhanaṃ vastu jayante marubhṛnmukhe3 158traye pratolī saddvārakapāṭārgalaśobhitāmaṇḍapaś ca vibhūtyarthaṃ geyanāṭyādisiddhaye 159…bhṛśāditritaye kuryāt pākasthānaṃ yathepsitampūṣṇi bhojanabhāṇḍāni vitathe salilāśrayaḥ 181dhanuḥkhaḍgaśarādīni vidadhyāt tu gṛhakṣateyame saṃyamināṃ sthānam ātmālokanasiddhaye 182gandharve gāyakasthānaṃ bhṛṅge vyākhyānasaṃśrayaḥ4snānadhāma mṛgasthāne koṇe śaucagṛhaṃ tataḥ 183maṭhaṃ vā vipulaṃ kuryād gṛhakṣatacatuṣṭayetāmbūladantakāṣṭhādidhāma dauvārike5 hitam 184sugrīve puṣpadante ca pracetasi ca bhojanamabhyāgatāśrayaṃ kuryād vidvān asuraśoṣayoḥ 185muṣalolūkhalakumbhaśilāyantrādikaṃ rujigandhasthānaṃ gandhavahe puṣpāyanam ahitraye 186somadvaye kośagṛhaṃ vidyādhāmāditidvayebrahmādiṣu padeṣv antar amarālayamaṇḍapaḥ6 187
This record lists a place for worship at Īśa; music at Parjanya; ritual bathing and offering at Jayanta; a gateway at Indra, Sūrya and Satya (marubhṛnmukhe traye); the kitchen at Bhṛśa, Antarikṣa and Agni (bhṛśāditritaye); eating vessels at Pūṣan; a water tank at Vitatha; a store room at Gṛhakṣata; a place for ascetics to achieve contemplation of the self (saṃyāmināṃ sthānam ātmālokanasiddhaye) at Yama; singers at Gandharva; a place for teaching the śāstras (vyākhyānasaṃśrayaḥ) at Bhṛṅga; bathing at Mṛga; toilets at Pitṛ (koṇe); betel, etc., at Dauvārika; food storage at Sugrīva, Puṣpadanta and Pracetas; a room for visitors at Asura and Śoṣa; tools at Roga (ruji); perfumes at Vāyu (gandhavahe); flowers at Nāga, Mukhya and Bhalvāṭa (ahitraye); the treasury at Soma and Ṛgi (somadvaye); and a school (vidyādhāma) at Aditi and Diti (aditidvaye). Within this framework, at Brahmā, etc., are a temple and maṇḍapa. At Gṛhakṣata, Yama, Gandharva and Bhṛṅga, a maṭha is introduced as an alternative at 184ab.
3 Type 2: The 5-by-5 nandyāvarta / nandikāvarta
A second design, somewhat less elaborate, is termed the nandyāvarta or nandikāvarta. This serves as a simpler residence to house higher-ups—nobility, army generals, and gurus—and their households. In this case, laid over the fundamental 9-by-9-part deity map is a building design of 5 parts by 5 parts, with spacing between chambers that produces an array of nine chambers in total, or eight if the central position is left undesignated. Each of the eight or nine chambers is assigned a function. See figure 20.3 for some examples of these 5-by-5 designs.
Figure 20.3
The nandyāvarta/nandikāvarta set of nine chambers
Figure 20.3
The nandyāvarta/nandikāvarta set of nine chambers
Figure 20.3
The nandyāvarta/nandikāvarta set of nine chambers
Take for example the description of a type 2 design from Piṅgalāmata 10.96c–114b:
aṣṭaśālayutaṃ dhanyaṃ nandikāvartam7 ucyate 96cdāyacakraṃ vibhajyādau śālāsādhanahetukampūrve tu śrīgṛhaṃ kuryād dhvajāyena vipaścite 97yāmye śayyāgṛhaṃ proktaṃ siṃhāyena vijānataḥpaścime bhojanaṃ gehaṃ vṛṣāyena8 vidur budhāḥ 98nyāsaṃ gṛhottare kuryād gajāyena na saṃśayaḥdhūmāyena prakartavyaṃ pākaṃ dahanagocare9 99pāyudaṃ pitarasthe tu śvanāyena na saṃśayaḥdhānyādikṣodanaṃ gehaṃ vāyavyāṃ rāsabhena tu 100yāgamaṇḍapa aiśānyāṃ dhvāṅkṣāyena tu sundarimunitārākareṇaiva rudras tridaśa eva ca 101daśapañcakareṇaiva daśasaptadikchaktikamekaviṃśatkareṇaiva dhvajāyaṃ pūrvato bhavet 102caturaśraṃ samantāt tu kartavyaṃ śrīgṛhottamam10śriyaṃ tatra likhet13 sākṣāc chrīgṛhaṃ tena cocyatedaśasaptakareṇaiva vistaraṃ dakṣiṇottaramsiṃhāyaṃ ca bhavet tena dakṣiṇe śayanāśrayaḥ16 105daśapañcakareṇaiva sadīrghaṃ dakṣiṇottaramrudrasaṃkhyākareṇaiva vistaraṃ pūrvapaścimam 106vṛṣāyaṃ ca bhavet tena paścime bhojanāśrayaḥtrayodaśakareṇaiva pūrvapaścāyataṃ kuru 107rudrasaṃkhyākareṇaiva dakṣiṇottaravistaramgajāyaṃ jāyate tena bhāṇḍāgārottareṇa tu 108daśāṣṭakaradīrghaṃ tu vistareṇa trayodaśaḥdhūmāyaṃ jāyate tena vahnau pākaṃ vidur budhāḥ 109pradīrghaṃ daśahastaṃ tu ṣaṭkaraṃ vistareṇa tuśvānāyaṃ jāyate tena pitṛsthāne tv avaśyakam 110dviraṣṭakaradairghyaṃ tu dviṣaṭkaṃ vistaraṃ priyedhvāṅkṣāyaṃ jāyate ’traiva aiśānyāṃ yāgamaṇḍapaḥ 112śrīgṛhe21 vāthavā taṃ tu viṣamaṃ caturaśrakamvittānusārato budhvā coktā nyūnādhikaṃ bhavet 113tṛtīyaṃ nandikāvartaṃ cumbakasya prakīrtitam 114ab
This account lists the eight chambers of the nandikāvarta for a cumbaka as follows: the assembly chamber is in the east, the sleeping quarters are in the south, the dining hall in the west, the treasury in the north, the kitchen is in the southeast, the lavatory in the southwest, the granary in the northwest, and the shrine in the northeast. For each chamber, the correct āya proportion is assigned.
4 Type 3: The house with four, three, two, or one rooms
The third, lowest, level of complexity produces housing for normal citizens, graded according to either caste or initiation class. Here we see a design, again laid over the basic 9-by-9 deity map, for a residence with only four rooms, or three, two, or one, in descending order according to levels of caste or initiation.
An example of a type 3 presentation for different initiation levels is given at Piṅgalāmata 10.93–95 and 114c–128 (verses 96–114b cover the Nandikāvarta, as seen above):
sāmānyaṃ saṃpravakṣyāmi cumbakādyāśrayaṃ priyesvakṛtānyakṛtāṃ22 vāpi śālāṃ caivādhunā śṛṇu 93catuḥśālaṃ triśālaṃ ca dviśālaṃ caikaśālakamśālāsaṃkhyā bhavanty23 etā vibhāgas tv adhunocyate 94ācāryasya catuḥśālaṃ triśālaṃ24 sādhakasya tuputrakasya dviśālaṃ ca samayī hy ekaśālakaḥ25 95…svastikāvartam anyac ca tasyaiva catuḥśālakam 114cdvittahīno yadā bhadre tadā tat kathayāmi tesapātribhojanaṃ cāpye sayantranyāsam uttare28yady asya saṃnikṛṣṭaṃ tu taddiśāyāṃ prakalpayet 116taddiśāya yutaṃ caiva kalpanaṃ gṛhavarjitamtriśālaṃ sādhakasyaiva29 kathayāmi sadādhunā 117hiraṇyāvartakaṃ caiva hīnaṃ cottaramandiramkartavyaṃ sādhakendreṇa bhogamokṣaphalārthinā 118suprabhāvartakaṃ vāpi prāgghīnaṃ sukhadaṃ bhavetcullikāvartakaṃ caiva yāmyahīnaṃ na śobhanam 119pakṣaghnāvartakaṃ devi na śastaṃ30 cāpyahīnakamdvayaṃ grāhyaṃ dvayaṃ varjyaṃ yato vai sukhaduḥkhadam 120dviśālaṃ putrakasyaiva śṛṇuṣva varavarṇinivṛṣasiṃhayutaṃ dhāmasiddhārthaṃ tat prakīrtitam 121sukhamokṣakaraṃ nityaṃ putrakasya na saṃśayaḥgajānaḍvānsamāyuktaṃ yamasūryaṃ vidur budhāḥ 122mṛtyudaṃ ca yato devi varjitavyaṃ prayatnataḥgajadhvajasamāyuktaṃ daṇḍākhyaṃ tad vijānataḥ 123rājadaṇḍakaraṃ nityaṃ na prāptaṃ viśeṣataḥdhvajasiṃhasamāyuktaṃ vātākhyaṃ tad gṛhaṃ bhavet 124kalahaṃ ca bhaven nityaṃ na śastaṃ varjayet sadāvṛṣadhvajasamāyuktaṃ pakṣi31nāmnā ca viśrutam 125vittanāśakaraṃ nityaṃ varjitavyaṃ prayatnataḥgajasiṃhasamāyuktaṃ kākīnāmnā ca tad gṛham 126janaiḥ saha virodhaṃ32 tu tyaktavyaṃ taṃ na saṃśayaḥsamayinaikaśālaṃ tu tac chṛṇuṣva varānane 127dhvajaṃ vā paścimāsyaṃ tu siṃhaṃ vā cottarānanamvṛṣaṃ vā prāṅmukhaṃ bhadre dakṣiṇāsyaṃ gajaṃ na hi 128
In verse 10.95 we are told that the house for an ācārya has four rooms, that for a sādhaka has three, and that for a putraka has two, while the samayin has one room. The verses from 114cd onward describe the four-roomed, three-roomed, two-roomed and one-roomed house. In the case of the four-roomed one, recommended for the cumbaka when money is wanting, we are given an account of the rooms at 115cd–116ab. The shrine is in the east, the kitchen and bedroom are in the south, the vessel store and dining room are in the west, and the utensils and treasury are in the north. In the case of the three-roomed house for the sādhaka, we are told that there may be a room lacking in the north or in the east, but not in the south or in the west. The house with no room in the north is termed the hiraṇyanābha, while that without a room to the east is termed a suprabhāvartaka. In the case of the 2-roomed and 1-roomed house, the direction of the rooms is described in terms of the 8 āya direction associations, from dhvaja in the east onwards in a clockwise rotation.
5 Maṭhas
Having looked at accounts of construction of housing in general, in types 1, 2 and 3, we now are ready to look at what the texts have to say about maṭhas in particular. The Bṛhatkālottara and Kiraṇa give details on the design of temples and also on the construction of domestic buildings for different members of society, from kings down to ordinary caste members. But these texts do not refer to a maṭha or anything that could be understood as a maṭha.
The Mayasaṃgraha mentions the maṭha, but quite briefly. As we saw above, Mayasaṃgraha 5.156–159 and 181–187 describes the pura on a 9-by-9-plan, listing the uses to which each of the 32 padas around the outskirts of the plan is put: kitchen, storage areas, armories, meeting rooms, etc., in a type 1 design. On reaching those padas at the centre of the south side, the text tells us that:
dhanuḥkhaḍgaśarādīni vidadhyāt tu gṛhakṣateyame saṃyamināṃ sthānam ātmālokanasiddhaye 182gandharve gāyakasthānaṃ bhṛṅge vyākhyānasaṃśrayaḥ 183ab…maṭhaṃ vā vipulaṃ kuryād gṛhakṣatacatuṣṭaye 184cd
At Gṛhakṣata one should set up [a storeroom for] bows, arrows, swords, and other weapons. At Yama there should be a place for ascetics to achieve contemplation of the self (saṃyāmināṃ sthānam ātmālokanasiddhaye). Singers are stationed at Gandharva. At Bhṛṅga is a hall for the exposition [of the śāstras]. Or one may construct a large maṭha on the four [positions] which are Gṛhakṣata and [Yama, Gandharva and Bhṛṅga].
Here, the Mayasaṃgraha is giving the maṭha as an option, to be placed on the south edge of a pura, as an alternative to a combination of items: weapons, ascetics, singers, and a space for teaching. Why here, on the south side? Bakker (2004, 118) has pointed out that the south, a direction associated with the inauspicious, with death, is also viewed as being the benign right side of the deity or guru as he faces east. Thus it is a suitable position for the initiate, at the right side of the deity or guru.
The Piṅgalāmata, in chapter 10, verses 3–77, in describing a 9-by-9 type pura, lists the uses to which each of the 32 padas all around the outskirts of the plan are used. In verses 33–36 the Piṅgalāmata, like the Mayasaṃgraha, places the maṭha on the south side, at the padas of Yama and Gandharva.
yame gandharvake kuryān maṭhaṃ bhūmitrayānvitam 33cdathavā dvayasārdhaṃ tu bhūmikaikāthavā priyeuttamaṃ madhyamaṃ caiva kanyasaṃ ca yathākramam 34ācāryasya tad evoktaṃ nijaṃ śayanahetukamiṣṭāhnikaṃ jayaṃ dhyānaṃ yogābhyāsaṃ tu tatra vai 35vīrabhojyānnapānādyair vīraiḥ saha samācaret 36ab
My dear, at Yama and Gandharva one should make a maṭha with three storeys, two [storeys] or one storey. [These are] the best, middling and least [maṭhas] in turn. That is the place for the ācārya to sleep, for [prognostication of] auspicious days, triumph, meditation, and the practice of yoga. [There the teacher] may associate with vīras (vīraiḥ saha), sharing vīra food and drink, etc.33
Altogether, so far, from the Piṅgalāmata and Mayasaṃgraha, we have learned that the maṭha is generally placed in the south. The Mohacūrottara and Devyāmata give more information on the nature of the construction itself. The Mohacūrottara uses the term maṭha. The Devyāmata does not.
First let us look at what the Mohacūrottara has to say. At Mohacūrottara 4.234–243 we get a more detailed depiction of the maṭha:
maṭhaś cāntakadigbhāge liṅgināṃ sthitaye hitaḥyatas te dakṣiṇāśāyāṃ vaseyuḥ śivabhāvitāḥ 234prāsādavistaraṃ sūtraṃ tanmānaṃ jagatībahiḥprākāraṃ kārayet tyaktvā tataś cāśramiṇāṃ gṛham 235maṭhāgre tatsamaṃ tyaktvā siṃhāyaṃ dakṣiṇe sthitamvipulaṃ vā prakartavyaṃ kartur icchāvaśena tucaturaśre śarair bhakte madhyaṃ tyaktvā vilopayet 237gṛhāṇāṃ svecchayā nyāsaḥ saumye syād veśanirgamaḥekabhaumaṃ dvibhaumaṃ vā tribhaumaṃ vā yathāsukham 238dīrghaśālāvṛtaṃ bāhye prāci yāgālayānvitampākādigṛhavinyāsaṃ yathāyogaṃ niveśayet 239pūrvoktam antaraṃ sārdhaṃ36 tasyāpy ardhaṃ yathāyathammaṭhikaikātra†yaṃ kāryaṃ† paṭṭaśālā catuṣkikā 240bhūmayaḥ pūrvam uddiṣṭā vittābhāve kuṭī matāsamasūtraṃ susaṃsthānaṃ vāstupūjāpuraḥsaram 241liṅgināṃ ca gṛhaṃ kāryaṃ mahāpuṇyajigīṣayāetad37 eva mahāpuṇyaṃ kathayāmi tavākhilam 242saṃsthāpya sthāvaraṃ liṅgaṃ prāsāde yad bhavet phalamtat phalaṃ labhate vidvān maṭhe saṃsthāpya jaṅgamam 243
And a maṭha for ascetics to stay in (liṅgināṃ sthitaye) should be in the south. For they, as devotees of Śiva, should reside to the right [of Śiva]. (4.234)One should build a wall (prākāram) at a distance 1 temple-width beyond the temple base (jagatī). At a distance from there (tyaktvā tataḥ) is the housing for ascetics (āśramiṇāṃ gṛhaṃ). (4.235)In front of the maṭha (maṭhāgre), leaving a distance of the same [size] (tatsamaṃ tyaktvā), [houses should be built that are sized according to] the siṃhāya in the south, the vṛṣāya in the west, and the dhvajāya in the east. (4.236)Or they may be made as large as the patron wishes. They are on a square site divided into five [parts along each side]. One should leave the intermediate spaces empty (madhyaṃ tyaktvā vilopayet). (4.237)The installation of the houses is according to the wishes [of the patron]. There should be a [door for] entry and exit to the north. [The houses] may have one, two, or three floors, or as is pleasing. (4.238)Externally, [the building] is surrounded by a long hall (śālā). In the eastern side of the building is the place for worship (yāgālaya). One should install the kitchen and so forth as appropriate. (4.239)At a distance of 1½-times the previously given distance, and half that, as is suitable, is a single maṭhikā, in the form of a set of four (catuṣkikā) awnings (paṭṭaśālā). (4.240)The storeys (bhūmi) are as have already been taught. If money is lacking, a hut (kuṭī) is approved. (4.241ab)One should build the dwelling for ascetics with the same measurements and a good design, [and] performing the veneration of the site (vāstupūjā), out of a desire to attain great merit. I will now describe to you this great merit in full. (4.241cd–242)The reward gained from establishing a mobile image (jaṅgamaṃ liṅgam) [i.e., an ascetic] in a maṭha is the same as the reward gained from establishing a fixed image (sthāvaraṃ liṅgam) in a temple. (4.243)
So, here, we seem to have a maṭha housing complex to the south of the temple, bracketed to the east, south and west by actual residences. Verse 237 indicates that each individual residence is of the 5-by-5 type 2 variety. The term maṭhikā is introduced, referring to a set of 4 awnings, and a simple hut, kuṭī is given as a cheaper alternative.
And, finally, in Devyāmata, chapter 105 we are given another account of the residence for initiates. The terms used for the residence are gṛha (verses 1, 15, 17), āśrama (verses 15, 17), and veśman (verse 41). The term maṭha is not used. The terms used for the residents of these domiciles are āśramin (verse 1), prāsādāśramin (verse 82), dīkṣita (verses 16, 17), gṛhin, and gṛhamedhin (verse 72). In verses 15–19b is given an account of the residence (gṛha) for the initiate (dīkṣita), outside the temple exterior wall and to the south of the temple:
dakṣiṇāyāṃ diśi śastaṃ gṛham āyatanasya tuprākārasya bahiḥ kāryam āśramāyatanasya tu38 15vastavyaṃ liṅgam āśṛtya dīkṣitaiḥ sujitendriyaiḥtadabhāve ’thavānyasmiṃ pradeśe sumanorame 16nātidūrāmbhasaḥ kāryam āśramaṃ dīkṣitātmanāṃasaṃkīrṇẹ śubhe deśe vastavyaṃ dīkṣitātmabhiḥ 17ekaśālaṃ dviśālaṃ vā triśālam athavā gṛhamcatuḥśālagṛhaṃ vāpi kāryaṃ vittānusārataḥ 18kāryaṃ hiraṇyanābham vā sukṣetram vā manoramam 19ab
A residence (gṛham) is recommended to the south of the temple. The residence (āśramam) should be built beyond the outer wall of the temple. (15)It is to be dwelt in by initiates (dīkṣitaiḥ), their senses well-subordinated, who have come to (āśṛtya) the image (liṅgam). Or, in its absence (tadabhāve), [they should dwell in] another pleasant place (pradeśe sumanorame). (16)The residence (āśramam) for the initiates (dīkṣitātmanām) should be built not too far from water. Initiates (dīkṣitātmabhiḥ) should live in a fine, unpolluted place. (17)The residence (gṛham) should have one, two, or three rooms. Or a four-roomed residence should be built, according to funding. (18)A pleasing hiraṇyanābha or sukṣetra39 may be built. (19ab)
In verse 18, the housing described is of type 3. In verses 54–74b the consequences of a doorway at each of the peripheral padas of the 9 by 9 deity map are given in some detail:
evaṃ yathākrameṇaiva dvārāṇāṃ phalam ucyateīśe hy agnibhayaṃ vidyāt parjanye strīviṣo gṛhī 54jaye ca dhanasampanno māhendre nṛpavallabhaḥkrodhaparas tathāditye satya ṛta40paro bhavet 55bhṛśe tasya bhavet krauryaṃ cauryaṃ caiva tathāmbarealpasutas tathā cāgnau pūṣākhye preṣyatāṃ vrajet 56vitathe ’vinītatāṃ yāti gṛhī gṛhakṣate sudhīyame ca raudratāṃ yāti gāndharve śrīm avāpnuyāt 57bhṛṅgarāje bhaven nisvo mṛgākhye41 nṛpapīḍitaḥuktaṃ dvārāṣṭakaṃ tubhyaṃ gṛhe ’smin dakṣiṇāmukhe 58procyate saviśeṣeṇa gṛhe ’smim paścimāmukhepaścime pitṛdevatye gṛhī syāt sutapīḍitaḥ42 59ripuvṛddhis tathā tasya vidyā dauvārike padesugrīve dhanasampat syād gṛhiṇaḥ sarvadā bhavet 60sutārthabalasampat syāt pade ’smim puṣpadantakevāruṇe dhanasampattiṃ nṛpabhayaṃ tathāsure 61dhanakṣayaṃ tathā śoṣe rogaḥ syāt pāpayakṣmaṇiaṣṭau devāḥ samākhyātā gṛhe ’smin paścimāmukhe 62vāyavyādikrameṇaiva procyate hy uttarāmukhebaddhabandhas tathā roge ripuḥ syān nāgasaṃjñike 63mukhye sutārthalābhaṃ syāt sampad bhalvāṭake tathādhanasampat tathā some putravairam anantake 64strīdoṣaś cāditau jñeyo daridrā gṛhiṇo ditaukathitāni viśeṣeṇa svadevatānvitāni tu 65hitāvahitāni yāni syūr dvārāṇi śṛṇu yatnataḥjayākhyaṃ yat tṛtīyaṃ tu suprabhūtadhanapradam 66māhendrākhyaṃś caturthaṃ tu gṛhiṇāṃ sarvakāmikam43gṛhakṣataṃ caturtham tu gṛhe ’smin dakṣiṇāmukhe 67bhakṣyapānasutavṛddhiṃ karoti gṛhamedhināmgandharvākhyaṃ tathā ṣaṣṭaṃ śrīsaukhyaś ca sukhapradam 68dvāradvitayaṃ śaṣṭaṃ hi gṛhe ’smin dakṣiṇāmukhedhanasampatkaraṃ dvāraṃ tṛtīyam paścimāmukhe 69caturthaṃ puṣpadantākhyaṃ sutārtha44balavardhanampañcamaṃ vāruṇaṃ dvāraṃ dhanasampatkaraṃ nṛṇām 70dvāratṛtayam ākhyātaṃ gṛhe ’smin paścimāmukhemukhyādhidevataṃ dvāraṃ tṛtīyaṃ cottarāmukhe 71dhanasutārthasampattiṃ karoti gṛhamedhināmbhalvāṭākhyaṃ caturthaṃ tu gṛhiṇāṃ sarvakāmadam 72dhanasampatkaraṃ proktaṃ pañcamaṃ somadevatamguṇādhikaṃ47 tato vidvān sthāpayed dvāram ādarāt 74ab
Thus, in due sequence, the consequences (phalam) of doorways are given. [With a doorway] at Īśa, the householder will have the risk of fire; at Parjanya, harm from women. (54)At Jaya [the householder] is endowed with wealth. At Māhendra he is dear to the king. At Āditya there is anger. At Satya there is lawful conduct. (55)At Bhṛśa is awfulness. And at Ambara there is theft. At Agni there is a lack of sons. At Pūṣan is servitude. (56)At Vitatha the householder comes to a lack of decorum, at Gṛhakṣata he gains wisdom. At Yama he attains savagery. At Gāndharva he acquires glory. (57)At Bhṛṅgarāja there is malady. At Mṛga one is oppressed by the king. The set of 8 doorways have been described to you, in the house facing south. (58)Next it will be specifically described for the house facing west. In the west, at the Pitṛdeva position, the householder will be oppressed by his sons. (59)There is an increase in the enemy and his knowledge at Dauvārika. At Sugrīva is always an increase of wealth for the householder. (60)At Puṣpadantaka is a gain in sons, wealth and power. At Vāruṇa is an increase in wealth. At Asura is danger from the king. (61)There is loss of wealth at Śoṣa and disease at Pāpayakṣman. Eight deities have been listed, in the house facing west. (62)Those facing north are listed next, in sequence, from the northwest (vāyavya) on. At Roga is bondage. At Nāga (Vāsuki) is an enemy. (63)At Mukhya is an increase in sons and wealth. At Bhalvāṭa is gain. At Soma is a gain in wealth. At Anantaka is heroism in sons. (64)At Aditi is trouble from women. At Diti is poverty. Specifically listed with their own deities are those doorways which are especially good. Listen with care. The third one, named Jaya, brings great power and wealth. (65–66)The fourth one, named Māhendra, fulfills every desire for the householder. The fourth one in the house facing south, Gṛhakṣata, increases food, drink and sons for householders. The sixth one, called Gandhārva, brings glory, pleasures and contentment. (67–68)The second set of doorways has been declared, on the south side. On the west side, the third doorway (i.e., at Sugrīva) brings an increase in wealth. (69)The fourth, called Puṣpadanta, increases sons, power and strength. The fifth doorway, Vāruṇa, brings increased wealth for men. (70)The third set of doorways has been declared, on the west side. And on the north side, the doorway governed by Mukhya brings an increase in wealth, sons and property to householders. The fourth one, named Bhalvāṭa, gives men every desire. (71–72)The fifth one, whose deity is Soma, brings an increase in wealth. After learning the features of doorways as described, specifically, the wise man should carefully establish a doorway with ample good qualities. (73–74ab)
One should note that, while these are the consequences for doorway positions in a residence for ascetics, the consequences do not fall on the ascetic residents themselves, but on the patron who commissions and funds the building of the residence, and who gains the benefit from it.48 So, the consequences are not in any way to be connected to the lives of the residents. None-the-less, it is worth noting that these are the same consequences that we see repeated over and again for domestic buildings of all sorts. The model that is being used is that for normal housing.
The portion from 81 to 86 describes the layout of the residence (gṛha) for the prāsādāśramin:
gṛhaṃ niṣpādayed yatnād yathokta49lakṣaṇānvitamantaradiśvibhāgaṃ ca gṛhaprāsādayos tataḥ 81uktaṃ yathākrameṇaiva prāsādāśramiṇāṃ gṛhamāgneyyāṃ mahānasaṃ śastam īśānyāṃ yāgamaṇḍapam 82ratnahiraṇyavastrāṇām aindrādiśi praśasyateyāmyāśre ’py uttare50 kāryaṃ sthāpanaṃ salilasya tu 83dhānyānāṃ sthāpanaṃ śastaṃ vāruṇyāṃ sarvadāhitamudūkhalasya vāyavyāṃ sthāpanaṃ samudāhṛtam 84sarvavastuṣpadānāṃ tu kauberyāṃ nilayaṃ smṛtamnātidūraṃ na cāsannaṃ pracchannaṃ parivāritam 85gṛhasyāvāhṛtaṃ kāryam avaśyakāraṇaṃ gṛhampūrveṇa vanaṣaṇḍaṃ tu tathā puṣpaphaladrumāḥ 86
One should carefully arrange the residence (gṛham) in such a way that is has the characteristics that have been taught. Then [one should arrange] the area in between (antaradiśvibhāgam) the residence and temple. (81)The residence for those who come to the temple (prāsādāśramiṇām) is described in due sequence. In the southeast is the kitchen (mahānasam). In the northeast is the space for worship (yāgamaṇḍapam). (82)Storage for gems, gold and cloths (ratnahiraṇyavastrāṇām) is recommended in the east, and for water in the south and centre.51 (83)Grain storage (dhānyānām) is recommended in the west. In the northwest is storage for the mortar (udūkhalasya). (84)To the north is general storage (sarvavastuṣpadānām). Not too far away (nātidūram), nor adjoining (na cāsannam), is a secluded (pracchannam), sheltered (parivāritam) (85)lavatory building (avaśyakāraṇaṃ gṛham), aside from the residence (gṛhasyāvāhṛtam). To the east (pūrveṇa) should be made a copse (vanaṣaṇḍam), and trees with flowers and fruit (puṣpaphaladrumāḥ). (86)
This is an account of a type 2 nandikāvarta type of construction, with 8 rooms on a 5-by-5 plan.
From verse 87 on we get a detailed description of the trees for the surrounding gardens. Then the chapter ends:
kathitaṃ saviśeṣeṇa gṛham āśramiṇāṃ tava52 94cdantaraṃ diśvibhāgaṃ ca prāsādagṛhayor drumānprākāraḥ svapramāṇena prāsādānāṃ prakīrtitaḥ 95prākārasya bahiḥ proktam udyānaṃ sumanoramamkartavyaṃ ca tathodyānaṃ prākārapariveṣṭitam 96pūrvavac ca ṛjuḥ kāryaḥ prākāraḥ sucayas samaḥprākārasya bahiḥ sthāpya parivārālayāḥ priye 97evaṃ yathākrameṇaiva kāryaṃ sarvam aśeṣataḥgṛhād udyānaparyastaṃ prākāreṇa samanvitam 98tat sarvaṃ samudāyena kartavyaṃ samudāhṛtam 99abiti gṛhavāstupaṭalaḥ
The residence (gṛham) for the āśramins has been described to you in particular; (94cd)and [also] the intervening (antaram) area (diśvibhāgam) between the temple and residence (prāsādagṛhayoḥ), and trees. The surrounding wall (prākāraḥ), with its measurements, has been described for temples. (95)The pleasing garden (udyānam) beyond the surrounding wall has been described. The garden too is to be surrounded by a wall (prākāraveṣṭitam). (96)As before, the surrounding wall should be made straight, well erected and level. My dear, having established the subsidiary shrines (parivārālayāḥ) beyond the wall, (97)everything should be made thus, complete, and in due sequence. Beyond the residence, it is surrounded by a garden and has a surrounding wall. Everything to be done has been altogether declared. (98–99ab)Thus ends the chapter on the residence.
Looking back over what we have seen, in the Bṛhatkālottara and Kiraṇa we saw no mention of a maṭha, but from the Mayasaṃgraha and Piṅgalāmata came the information that the maṭha should be on the south side. When it came to details of the maṭha design, we saw in the Mohacūrotttara and Devyāmata descriptions that looked very much like those for houses for any other person, in types 2 and 3, to the south of a type 1 complex.
We have been looking at the building designs for clues as to what went on inside them, following the sensible line of thinking of Sears (2014, 76), who writes, “the architecture of the monastery indexes the concerns of its residential community.” But perhaps all we have learned from the building designs for the maṭha is that dorms are dorms, in the end. While the installation of a jaṅgama liṅga, an initiate, is equal in merit to the installation of an ajaṅgama liṅga, an image, there is by no means the same glamour in its housing. This proves to be a practical domestic establishment entirely like that of an altogether ordinary person who is not initiated—not a jaṅgama liṅga.
Acknowledgment
My gratitude to Professor Sanderson is enormous. His guidance is invaluable in many ways, but I will point out just two. On the one hand there is his stern search for error in the material, on the other is his patient tolerance of error in the student—a tolerance that I put to some pretty severe testing, of course. None of this work would have been possible without it.
156c mata ] em.; matetyādi C; mano A
158a ºvādyāni ] C; ºpākāni A
158d ºbhṛnº ] C; ºtvan A
183b ºsaṃśrayaḥ ] em.; ºsaṃśraye A
184d dauvārike ] em.; daurike A
187d maṇḍapaḥ ] C; maṇḍalam A
96d nandikāvartam ] AC; vandikāvarttam B
98d vṛṣāyena ] BC; vṛṣayena A
99d dahanaº ] AC; hadahana B • ºgocare ] BC; ºgocaraṃ A
103b ºgṛhottamam ] BC; ºgṛhottamaḥ A
103c bhadre ] BC; bhadraiḥ A
103d saṃyutaḥ ] BC; saṃyutaiḥ A
104a likhet ] C; likṣet AB
104c ekonaº ] A; ekonaṃ C; ekūnaṃ B
104d ºpaścāyataṃ ] A; ºpaścāyaṃ BC
105d śayanāśrayaḥ ] A; sayanāyayaṃ BC
111a bhaved ] AC; bhave B
111a dairghyaṃ ] BC; dīrghyaṃ A
111c jayate ] AC; jayante B
111d kaṇḍanīgṛham ] BC; kaṇḍaṇīgṛhī A
113a śrīgṛhe ] A; gṛhe BC
93c svakṛtānyakṛtāṃ ] A; svakṛtānyakṛtam BC
94c bhavanty ] AB; bhavaty C
95b triśālaṃ ] AB; triśāla C
95d ekaśālakaḥ ] em.; ekeśālakam ABC
115c sayāgāsthānaº ] A; sayāgasthānaº BC • ºpūrve ] A; ºpūrvaṃ BC
115d ºśayanāntake ] AB; ºsamayāntake C
116b uttare ] AB; uttaram C
117c sādhakasyaiva ] em.; sādhakaścaiva ABC
120b śastaṃ ] A; saptaṃ BC
125d pakṣiº ] BC; pakṣī A
127a virodhaṃ ] A; virodhe BC
Shaman Hatley notes that “Vīra likely refers to sādhakas: ‘heroic sādhakas’ might be a good rendering. Vīrapāna refers to impure liquids such as alcohol, used in rituals of the Bhairava- and Kulatantras.”
236c vṛṣāyaṃ ] F; vṛṣoyaṃ H
236d dhvajāyaṃ ] F; dhvajeyaṃ H
240a sārdhaṃ ] em. Sanderson; sārdhaṃ Ātmārthapūjāpaddhati; cārddhaṃ FH
242c etad ] H; tad F
Sanderson, by email communication, points out that the sense intended is certainly āśramam āyatanasya tu.
As recorded, for example, in Bṛhatkālottara, prāsādalakṣaṇapaṭala 223–224 and Kiraṇa 19.18–19, the hiraṇyanābha is a building with three rooms, in the east, west and south, and the sukṣetra is a building with three rooms, in the west, south and north. At Piṅgalāmata 10.118–119 (above), the building without a room in the north is termed a hiraṇyanābha, while that without a room to the east is termed a suprabhāvartaka.
ṛtaº ] em.; nṛtaº MW; nanṛṃta N. The emendation to ṛta is supported by the fact that at Bṛhatkālottara, prāsādalakṣaṇapaṭala 239 we see dharma at Satya.
58b mṛgākhye ] em.; mṛṣākhye NM; mṛṣākhya W
59d sutapīḍitaḥ ] N; sutapātitaḥ MW
67b sarvakāmikam ] em.; sarvakarmikam N; sakāmikam MW
70b sutārthaº ] MW; sutākhyaṃ N
73c jñātvā ] N; jñāna MW
73d yathoktaṃ] N; yathoktā MW
74a guṇādhikaṃ ] N; gaṇādhikan M; gaṇādhika W
I thank Shaman Hatley for this observation.
81b yathoktaº ] MW; antaraṃ N
83c yāmyāśre ’py uttare ] MW; yāmyāśreruttare N
I take uttare to refer to the position to the north of the southern cell. That is, the centre. I find support in the fact that, in verse 22 of this chapter, we were informed that the water supply should be in the centre of the house (gṛhamadhye).
94d tava] em.; bhavaḥ MW
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Mayasaṃgraha
(A) NAK 1–1537; NGMPP reel no. A31/18
(C) A copy of a commentary to the Mayasaṃgraha: the Bhāvacūḍāmaṇi of Bhaṭṭa Vidyākaṇṭha. Shri Raghunath Temple Manuscript Library no. 5291, now in the collection of the Ranbir Research Institute, Jammu.
Mohacūrottara
(F) NAK 1–1633; NGMPP reel no. B26/29
(G) NAK 4–1622; NGMPP reel no. B27/18 (missing the section of chapter 4 discussed here).
(H) NAK 5–1977; NGMPP reel no. A182/2.
Somaśambhupaddhati
Hélene Brunner-Lachaux, ed. 4 volumes. Collection Indologie, nos. 25.1–4. Pondichéry: Institut Français de Pondichéry, 1963, 1968, 1977, 1998.
Secondary Sources
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Granoff, P.E. 2004. “Images and their Ritual Use in Medieval India: Hesitations and Contradictions.” In Images in Asian Religions: Texts and Contexts, edited by Koichi Shinohara and Phyllis E. Granoff, 19–55. Vancouver, BC: University of British Columbia Press.
Hikita, Hiromichi. 2005. “Consecration of Divine Images in a Temple.” In From Material to Deity, Indian Rituals of Consecration, edited by Shingo Einoo and Jun Takashima, 143–198. Manohar: New Delhi.
Mills, Libbie. 2019. Temple Design in Six Early Śaiva Scriptures. Critical Edition and Translation of the Prāsādalakṣaṇa-portions of the Bṛhatkālottara, Devyāmata, Kiraṇa, Mohacūrottara, Mayasaṃgraha & Piṅgalāmata. Collection Indologie, no. 138. Pondichéry: Institut Français de Pondichéry/École française d’ Extrême-Orient.
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Sanderson, Alexis. 2001. “History Through Textual Criticism in the Study of Śaivism, the Pañcarātra and the Buddhist Yoginītantras.” In Les Sources et le temps, edited by François Grimal, 1–47. Publications du département d’ Indologie, no. 91. Pondichéry: Institut Français de Pondichéry/École française d’ Extrême-Orient.
Sanderson, Alexis. 2004. “Religion and the State: Śaiva Officiants in the Territory of the Brahmanical Royal Chaplain (with an appendix on the provenance and date of the Netratantra).” Indo-Iranian Journal 47: 229–300.
Sanderson, Alexis. 2007. “The Śaiva Exegesis of Kashmir.” In Melanges tantriques a la memoire d’ Helene Brunner/Tantric Studies in Memory of Helene Brunner, edited by Dominic Goodall and Andre Padoux, 231–442, 551–582 (bibliography). Collection Indologie, no. 106. Pondichéry: Institut Français de Pondichéry/École française d’ Extrême-Orient.
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Sears, Tamara I. 2014. Worldly Gurus and Spiritual Kings, Architecture and Asceticism in Medieval India. New Haven; London: Yale University Press.