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The Mandapa and the Pillared Hall
The first Hindu temple will have a portico in front of the sanctuary. The most important temples have no less than a mandapa, the group of spectators before the fundamental sanctuary. The mandapa can be closed or opened with one or two corridors. In the middle of the 7th and 8th century, the mandapa have level ceilings generally set with huge slabs of stone. The space between the columns was solved in the introduction taking into account the rationality of extraction and transport. The stone slabs for the material have been cut down into dazzling models, continuing with the use of stone cutting. In the temple of northern India, in the mid-ninth century, the mandapas were based on the hypothesis and geometry of the vastupurashamandala. The mandapa reflects the central plan of the place of the fundamental cult, the focal abyss of the mandapa orders the course of the action and has a width indistinguishable from that of the garbhagriha. A distinctive type of roof motifs, including most light ceilings, has generally been perceived.
OCCO
Figure 3.21: - The north Indian temple mandapa form. Source: (Hardy, 2007)
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