Mahavira Jain Vidyalay Suvarna Mahotsav Granth Part 1

Author(s): Mahavir Jain Vidyalaya Mumbai
Publisher: Mahavir Jain Vidyalay

Page 716

ANCIENT INDIAN PALACE ARCHITECTURE: 245
it was the stable (mandura) for the king's own horses who were known as Bhupalavallabhaturanga. Later on such horses for the king's own use began to be called merely as Vallabha. It should be noted that the arrangement for the horse and elephant wings and the army outside in the Skandhāvāra was a general one but inside the Rajakula in the first floor it was intended to accommodate the horses and the elephants for the king's own use. It is therefore that Bāņa often refers to the king riding on the royal elephants or horses entering the entrance and crossing the four courts mounting near the big staircase (Mahd-sopana) leading to the hall of public audience.
In the second court at the centre was located the Vähyasthāna Mandapa, i.e., the hall of public audience also called Sabha from ancient time or Sadas, also known as Asthāyikā or Sarvosara. In Moghul palace architecture this was known as Darbare-am. In front of it was the extensive first court also called Ajira. Upto this point the king had the privilege to mount his horse or elephant. In order to gain access into the audience hall the king had to dismount at the foot of the staircase. After mounting the steps the entry into the audience hall was obtained. We may understand in the light of the above why Harsa rode on the back of his she-elephant upto the foot of the stairway and dismounting there entered the Asthanamandapa and put his seat on the throne placed there. (Ityevam āsasāda āvāsaṁ, mandiradvāri ca visarjitarājalokaḥ, praviśya ca avatatāra, bāhyāsthānamaṇḍapasthāpitam asanam ācakrāma.) Candrapida took the decision of his military conquest in the Asthanamandapa. In the Kadambari it is described as Sabhamandapa (Kadambari, 111). In the Delhi fort there is an open court in front of the Darbare-am which may be identified as Ajira. At the time of Prabhakaravardhana's illness, his friendly kings and feudatories assembled in the Ajira to express their sympathies (154). When theking used to convene a Darbar or hold assembly or courts of justice it was always in the Darbare-am or Bahyasthanamanḍapa. After the death of Rajyavardhana, Harṣa took counsel with his Senapati Simhanada and Marshal of the Elephants Skandagupta in the Bāhyāsthānamaṇḍapa. At that time there were many kings present in that hall. When Harṣa had taken the decision to go on a military expedition for the conquest of the whole earth and had dictated the same to his minister for peace and war (mahasandhivigrahaka) named
4 The Darbare-am has been called Sarvosara Sanskrit Sarvopasara in the language of its time in the Prthivicandra-carita (1421).