2. Literature review
2.3 Settlement planning in Vedic period
2.3.8 Siting considerations and environmental rationales
38
Nandyavarta for square, oblong and circular settlements from left to right respectively
Swastika Prastara
Padmaka Karmuka Chaturmukha
Figure 2.4: Diagrams for Vedic villages
2.3.8 Siting considerations and environmental rationales
39 easier communication. Proximity to hill ensures supplies of minerals, fuel and timber.
According to Sukracharya (শুরাচাযয), the capital should lie at the foot or the side of a mountain which is strategic for defense, but a mountain should not be included within the city. Both the Mansara and Mayamata suggests various kinds tress to be planted within the streets, public places and houses of the settlements. Majority of them are well –known for their medicinal property and the writers believe that they could purify air.
The Mansara asks to examine the site in terms of color, smell, taste, shape, direction or orientation, sound and touch. The Mansara and Rajavallabha by Sutradhara Madana (সূত্রধর মদন) classifies four types of soil which are associated with the four castes in terms of color, smell, taste, form, direction, sound and touch:
a. The soil appropriate for Brahmans is white in color, has fragrance like ghee (clarified butter) and agreeable to the taste. White symbolizes purity and holiness.
b. Soil suited for the Kshatriya or warrior class is red, smells like blood and astringent in taste. Red being the color of blood symbolizing battle and martial spirit.
c. Soil for Vaisyas is yellow, smells like sesame oil and sour to taste. Yellow being the color of gold is emblematic to commerce.
d. Soil for Sudras is black, has fish-like odor and tastes pungent. Black signifies ignorance and dark complexion of the Non-Aryan population.
2.3.8.2 Environmental rationales
The Vedic literary sources present the environmental rationales using the determinants that are perceptible through sensory experiences, which are the sun, wind and rain. The effects are often described in metaphors. According the Vedic scriptures, The ground should be smooth with a declivity towards the east, producing a hard sound, with a stream running from left to right, of an agreeable odor, containing a great quality of soil, producing water when dug to the depth of a man with his arm raised above his head and situated in climate of moderate temperature. Ground with irregular shape or undulated surface are prescribed to be avoided.
40 Mayamata says the ground should rise slowly towards the south and the west and slant down towards the north and the east. According to Bhoja, the ground should be slightly elevated to the middle and slanting towards east and north-east. A southern declivity increases insanitation and brings about diseases; declivity towards north increases wealth; slope towards west is detrimental to peace and prosperity; depression in the middle increases poverty and depression on the boundary brings happiness.
All the Shilpa Shastras are in favor of eastward slope as it obtains the benefit of the morning sun. Locating a settlement to the west of a mountain is prohibited as the mountain will obstruct the sun-rays during sunrise.
Being located to the north of the equator, an inclination towards the north is challenging as it lessens the incidence of sunlight from the south and exposes the buildings to the chill winds of winter from the Himalayan ranges. Although, the south provides ample sunlight and wind from the ocean, the Shilpa Shastras focus on the fact that a southerly declivity will provide too much exposure to the sunlight which would increase the heat gain of the built forms and also dry up the soil. This considerations are further strengthened religiously, as the diagram of Padavinyasa (পদনেনযাস; described later in this chapter) shows the north as a quarter of light and region of the Devas (বদে, Deities) or the shining ones, while in the south presides Yama (যম), the god of death. The inclination should not be distinctively perceptive to the eye.
The slopes are also useful for facilitating drainage. In case of southern declivity, the wastes of the settlement would be drained and washed away towards the southern ditch.
The wastes usually decompose faster in summer than the winter. Southern declivity would have invited the polluted air into the settlements, thus causing insanitary scenario and hence Northerly slopes are encouraged as they helps the contaminated air to waft away.
The prevailing winds and rains in India are from south and west (east for Bangladesh), a south or westward slope will expose the built forms to storms and showers. Also, exposure to the northerly winds of the summer, which has been considered as the season of epidemics in India, is not conductive to the salubrity of the town.
41 2.3.8.3 Bounding condition
Mayamata states different schemes of measurements for establishing a town, such as:
a. The length of one side of a town may range from 1000 dandas and the circumference may have four variations from 2000 to 8000 dandas having a common difference of 2000 dandas.
b. The lateral measurements for a good, mediocre and bad towns are 768, 704 and 640 dandas respectively while the sides of the same are 832, 896 and 962 dandas having a common difference of 64.
c. The length may be 2, 1¾, 1½, 1¼, 11⁄6, 11⁄8 or 1 times the breadth of the settlement (figure 2.5).
d. The towns can be divided into 78 kinds according to their lengths of a side ranging from 300 dandas to 8000 dandas by a common addition of 100 dandas.
e. The circumference of a splendid town varies 25 times from 1600 to 4000 dandas by a common addition of 500 dandas.
Figure 2.5: Various Length to width ratio of settlements suggested in Vedic literature with same area
These measurements apparently seems arbitrary and they were not strictly adhered to in practice, but the measurements provided enough varieties. The master builder had a wider scope to adjust the measurements according site space and population.
42 As stated earlier, the Vedic villages did not contain fortified walls but they were most likely to be surrounded by moats. Therefore, further discussion regarding fortified walls is not relevant to this research.