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A Study of Various Aspects of Town Planning of the Vijayanagar Capital 1(1), 2007, 113-124
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A STUDY OF VARIOUS ASPECTS OF TOWN PLANNING OF THE


VIJAYANAGAR CAPITAL
Priya Thakur

ABSTRACT

The town planning of Vijayanagar is important in many aspects. It was


the centre of consequential political, cultural, social, religious and mercantile
activities in its golden days. In this paper, I will discuss the various aspects
of the town planning of Vijayanagar, on the basis of accounts of foreign
travellers and archaeological evidences available from the various
excavations going on in and around modern village of Hampi at a number
of sites. No town can subsist without a good natural supply of water and
hence the rivers, lakes, ponds and tanks are fundamental prerequisite for
the lying out of a town. An important feature in the town planning of
Vijayanagar was the provision of a full and continuous supply of water
distributed throughout the entire enclosure areas. Important features of
town planning of this capital city like - arrangement of palaces, official
and residential complexes, temples, roads and streets, gateways, watch
towers, and last but not the least, the water-supply system, are discussed
in this research article.

Preface
"Town planning has both social and economic purpose; socially successful planning
tends to make peoples' lives happier, because it results in a physical environment, which
promotes health, facilitates social intercourse, and has visual attractiveness. A proper spatial
relationship between the communities in a region and the constituent parts of a town,
compactness of development and an efficient arrangement of communication routes - all
result in human activities being carried on more efficiently and less wastefully and thus
increase wealth."
The above statement of L. Hilberseimer (1949) regarding the aims of town planning
is true not only in modern aspects, but also for the towns and cities of historical times. The
rulers kept the similar objectives in consideration in earlier times while setting up a new
capital. From the advent of the human civilization, man attempted to improve his living
conditions at a very slow but steady pace from his primeval way of living to the contemporary
level. Along with this, the evolvement of the villages from an aggregate of huts to the

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114 mySOCIETY
conception and construction of towns and cities and metropolitans consistently progressed
as civilization advanced. "Rome was not built in a day." This famous saying is literally true in
the case of Vijayanagar - the legendary capital of Vijayanagar Empire. The city became
renowned for re-establishment of Indian culture, its support for music, art and literature.
With the prime purpose of caring for the people and their welfare, this empire stretched
physically covering Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu and Maharashtra and became a
by-word for golden rule.
A town or city is the embodiment of the culture of the citizens who shape it, build it
and beautify it. Hence a study of the past is an asset for the present. The town planning of
Vijayanagar is important in many aspects. It was the centre of consequential political, cultural,
social, religious and mercantile activities in its golden days, that is, from 14th to 16th centuries
AD. It was acclaimed as one of the most glorious cities of the contemporary world by a
number of foreign travelers who visited the capital at different times.

Town Planning of Vijayanagar


Earlier works on Vastu Sastra (Shukla 1961) like Manasara, Samarangana
Sutradhara, Mayamata, etc, suggest that prevailing feature that is noticeable in all the
prescribed plans, as advocated by the different authorities on the subject is, that generally in
the central part of the city all the public buildings of importance, such as the royal palace, the
Court, the temple, the Council house and the like are to be located. This was an ideal
arrangement both for the healthy and efficient functioning of the corporate life of the citizens
as well as from the point of view of the architectural appearance and grandeur of the city.
According to Mayamatam, "a town called 'royal capital' is impregnable at the north
and at the east. It is encircled by a wall beyond which is a glacis of earth; beyond that is a
moat, and lastly, farther away is a fortified garrison keeping watch in all directions, the royal
guard facing to the east and to the south. This town has high gateways, various types of
gallery and temples to all the gods. It is frequented by all sorts of courtesans and has a
number of gardens. Elephants, horses, war-chariots and foot soldiers abound. People of all
classes live there. It has gates and posterns and, inside, a great number of dwelling houses as
well as the king's palace." (Dagens 1994)
All the aforementioned characteristics of a "royal capital" can be observed in
Vijayanagar. The contemporary literary works in Kannada, Sanskrit and Telugu, as well as
the graphic descriptions provided by the various contemporary foreign travelers help in
understanding the archaeological remains of the city's past glory. The information associated
with the town planning including various aspects like palace architecture, residences of royal
and common population were collected from the memoirs of the foreign travellers who

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A Study of Various Aspects of Town Planning of the Vijayanagar Capital 115

visited Vijayanagar capital during the reign of various rulers from Nicolo Conti to Cesar
Frederici. These travellers provide us with descriptive details about the capital and its social,
religious and political conditions. For the accuracy of these details regarding the capital with
its buildings, roads, water spots as well as bazaars and gateways, we have to thoroughly
analyze the archaeological as well as epigraphical records.
Mayamatam further mentions that, when town is located in a forested country or
when it contains dwellings for all people, and shops, it is called pura or nagara.
(Kananavanadese vasarvajanavasasankarinam || 25|| Krayavikrayakairyuktam
puramuditam yat tadeva nagaramiti |) (Dagens 1994). We can identify these definitions
of pura and nagara with nomenclature of 'Vijayanagar' and various suburbs like Acyutapura
or Krishnapura.
The ground on which the capital seat of the Vijayanagar kings was built is very
irregular and consequently very little symmetrical pattern can be determined in its town
planning. Therefore, the make up of the different quarters of the city cannot be readily
established. One portion however has been identified as the citadel and within this wall the
imperial buildings were grouped. This citadel must be identical with the seventh fortress
mentioned by the Persian traveler, Abdur Razzaq. He describes the city in following glowing
terms -
"The City of Bidjinagar (Vijayanagar) is such that the pupil of the eye has
never seen alike it … It is built in such a manner that seven citadels and the same
number of walls enclose each other … The seventh fortress is placed in the centre of
the others, and in that is situated the palace of the king." (Sewell 2004)
Razzaq also mentions the cultivated fields, gardens and houses between the first,
second and third fortification walls. But at present it is difficult to identify these walls, but still
cultivated fields exist between the scattered structural remains. Only structures built of solid
masonry survive, notably the compound walls, gateways, tanks, ceremonial and residential
structures related with the king and the nobility. The remnants range from relatively complete
building to assemblage of debris lying on the ground. Houses and other buildings associated
with common population of the city have now vanished from view, since they were constructed
of perishable materials, such as mud, rubble, timber, and thatch and terracotta tiles. In spite
of the incomplete record, the overall town planning of Vijayanagar can still be figured out.
Modern researchers have assigned a term "Urban Core" to that part of the
Vijayanagar, which has the highest density of sacred as well as civil buildings. Some scholars
divide the 'Urban Core' into two separate zones, namely - the Royal Centre and the Sacred
Centre. The same nomenclature of the two zones has been followed in this paper.

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116 mySOCIETY
Royal Centre
It is located at the western end of the urban core. There were many ruins of platforms
hidden under the heaps of debris. It is further divided into various irregular walled enclosures,
like - Royal Enclosure, Zanana Enclosure, Danaik's Enclosure, etc. Royal Enclosure is the
largest in size and quadrangular in shape. It contains a number of important structures.
Mahanavami Dibba (Platform) in the northeast corner of the enclosure is the most important
structure. The Audience Hall with hundred stone columns, an underground chamber, many
palace basements of different sizes to the south of the King's Audience hall are other important
structures.
Two gateways link the Hazâra Râma temple with the Royal Enclosure near the
King's Audience hall. In between these two gateways, towards the north of the Audience
Hall, is a large water trough, meant for providing drinking water to horses of the nobles, who
came to the palace. The famous Hazâra Râma temple is located on the north side of this
enclosure. This vicinity is the core of the Vijayanagar capital.
Danaik's(Dandanayaka = Commander-in-Chief) enclosure consists of a multi-
domed watchtower at the northwest corner, a two-storeyed octagonal pavilion and a mosque-
type structure and ruins of some palace or some other important structure. This enclosure is
situated towards the western side of the Hazara Rama temple. The Zanana Enclosure
consists of one palace basement, one water palace basement, a water storage tank, the
famous Lotus Mahal, a rectangular building (most probably a treasury or an armory) and
three watch towers, built in different styles, at different directions of the enclosure wall.
Through a small entrance from the eastern wall of this enclosure, this compound is linked
with the Parade ground, the Elephants stable and the Guard quarters. The last two structures
are perpendicular to each other, former facing west and latter facing south.

Residences of Nobility and the Common People


Recently almost fifteen palace basement structures have been excavated near the
Danaik's Enclosure and it has been labeled as the Noble Men's Quarters. These structures
are clustered closely together without any visible overall planning. But there are narrow
lanes in between these structures, thereby giving a good idea of a crowded elite residential
quarter. It is still premature to say which class of people used to dwell in this area. But
evidence of gymnasium, underground storage tanks, wells, toilets with sewage system, and
an excellent drainage system for removing the sludge water - suggest that the inhabitants
belonged to aristocracy class, as this block enjoyed maximum civic amenities.

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A Study of Various Aspects of Town Planning of the Vijayanagar Capital 117

Palace Basement in One of the Residential Enclosures

We see some prevalent characteristics in various palatial structures like all the palaces
are facing either east or north, each palace or group of palaces is set in a large enclosure of
massive tapering stonewalls, the large palaces have side projections to create a symmetrical
plan with projections and recesses. The floors, both inside and outside the palaces, are of
thick concrete, finely plastered with lime; several coats of plaster, one upon the other, indicate
several renovations. Most of these structures were destroyed by fire, as is clearly evidenced
by the qualities of ash and charcoal, and by the cracked stonework, often found in the
excavations.
The planning of the residential houses was done on the basis of 'Jatis' or 'Varnas',
that is, depending on the various professions. In those times, considerations of productiveness
in corporate life and the principle of the 'Varnasramadharma' developing in a social
stratification of the people in general and of the functionaries of the state, led to a segregation
of the classes following different pursuits.
At present, no physical evidences are available which can help us to understand the
pattern of the layout of the residences of common men. It seems that the domestic dwellings
and private houses must have been that of the poorest description as no trace of them other
then the structures in the ruined bazaars remain.

Sacred Centre
It was located along the southern bank of Tungbhadra River. It was subsequently
divided into four independent quarters, or puras, each dominated by a walled temple complex,
namely -
*Hampi with its Virupaksha temple,
* Krishnapura with Krishna temple,

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118 mySOCIETY
* Achyutapura with its temple dedicated to Tiruvengalanatha, and
* Vitthalapura with its Vitthala temple.
Each of these localities was named after either the deity that was housed in the main
temple of the area or after the names of the kings, queens, princes or nobles. These areas
were units by themselves with their main temples, car-streets, markets and houses etc. Near
each temple was a large tank for bathing and various religious ceremonies. These temples
stand in high walled enclosures surrounded by clusters of accessory shrines, colonnades,
mandapas, wells etc. These puras or suburbs were linked by roads and pathways, which
were marked by gateways, many of which are still in use. The car-streets were flanked by
galleries built in stone, which were meant for lodging the pilgrims during the festivals. One
can see archetypes of such galleries even today at the Hampi Street in front of the Virupaksha
temple.

Roads
While most of the roads have now disappeared, the alignment of structures and
gateways indicate a radial system with the main routes converging on the royal centre.
These roads had a three-fold function: (Shukla 1961)
*They were highways for traffic,
* They demarcated the plots for buildings and constituted a vital limb in town planning,
* They had sanitary value, providing arteries of free ventilation.
A long highway was connecting Tirumladeviammana Pattana (Modern Hospet) with
the capital. Besides many temples, both sides of the roads were adorned with beautiful
mansions. On the both sides of the present-day 'Hampi-Hospet Bus route', there are a few
remnants of old temples and gateways, though now in a deploring state, evoking the grandeur
of the bygone days. Alongside the roads, a number of side streets, lanes and bye lanes were
provided, connecting the main roads and going through the different localities and allocating
places to the necessary articles of daily use.
The major roadways and even some of the pathways of the capital were paved in
stone. Footpaths over the hills and ridges are marked by stairways built by cutting into the
face of the rocks. An undated inscription with c. AD 15th century characters, on a rock
south of the Hemakuta Hills, outside the fort by the side of the steps mentions about Kampana,
who had caused construction of the steps. (Devarakonda Reddy 2000)

Fortifications and Gateways


The seven walls of fortifications mentioned by Abdur Razzaq are not visible now.
He also says that the fortress was in circular form, but it is now difficult to ascertain as the

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A Study of Various Aspects of Town Planning of the Vijayanagar Capital 119

traces of fortifications can be seen only at some points. The safeguarding advantages of the
rocky hills of the terrain were capitalized on wherever possible, with lines of straight walls,
running in between ranges to produce an unsymmetrical configuration of fortification for the
urban core. Moats and ditches were provided along with these walls but they are filled up
now. All the surviving walls are built with massive earthworks encased on the outside by a
layer of granite blocks laid one on the top of another without the help of any mortar. The
compound walls of the various enclosures in the Royal Centre survive till now and were built
by almost the same method, the only difference is that they are slightly tapering towards top.
These walls are more preserved as compared to the other structures in Vijayanagar.
A number of gateways, of varying sizes, are located at the various parts of Vijayanagar.
These can be further grouped into two types:
*Gateways built in the fortification walls for defensive purpose, and
* Normal gateways built at various junctions on the roads for the traffic to pass
through.
The first type of gateways followed a somewhat standard pattern. The approaches
to the gateways were through projecting barbican enclosures that created zigzag entryways.
Some of these barbicans were spacious enclosures with service structures, guardrooms, and
shrines, for example, Bhima gateway. The entrance was flanked by massive bastions and
roofed with flat slabs or lotus corbels (Bhima gateway), or supporting an upper chamber
(Tâlârghatta gateway) or in one case, a lofty dome. On heavy-traffic roads, gateways were
built with three entrances, the central one open to vehicles and elephants and either side for
pedestrians. In vehicle-free zones, gates were built with single entrances flanked by high
platforms where fruits and drinks were at the disposal of passerby. (Filliozat 1985)
The other type of gateways were built either at the important junctions at the roads
or the beginning or end of the streets near temples. These were built granite blocks in a
simple way, sometimes as structures with corbels or two-storeyed pavilion type gateway.
Singharada Hebbagilu appears to be the main gateway to the city, for it has an elaborate
arch. Reference to this gate is clearly indicated in an epigraph on a boulder located to the
north of this gate. It is ascribable to the reign of Bukka-I (1356-77 AD). (Sri Vira Bukkrayana
vijayanagarada pattanada mudana singharada hebbagila….) (Nagaraja Rao 1985)

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Gateway Opposite to the Hazara Rama Temple with Paved Road

Water Supply System


In earlier times, water was used not just for agricultural, irrigation, occupation and
industry-related and domestic needs. Since water generally held importance in ritualistic
practices, structures like tanks, reservoirs, wells, step-wells, southern India's temple tanks
(kalyani tank) etc. were invariable accompaniments to religious complexes, temples and
sacred groves etc. Besides this, the royalty and aristocracy (alongside with endowing public
reservoirs, wells and step-wells etc., and providing State patronage to larger irrigation works,
'bunds' and embankments, etc.), combined water bodies with their palaces and gardens.
Thus, there developed a vast range of water-related architectural features - both religious
and secular, with regional and sub-regional styles.
No town can subsist without a good natural supply of water and hence the rivers,
lakes, ponds and tanks are fundamental prerequisite for the lying out of a town. An important
feature in the town planning of Vijayanagar city was the provision of a full and continuous
supply of water distributed throughout the entire enclosure areas. It is interesting to note that
as early as 14th century, the kitchen was provided with literally running water. This was
brought by means of a number of aqueducts, sluice etc. Such a constant stream furnished
the gorgeous tanks and baths adjacent to the palaces, like the Queen's Bath, the Octagonal
Bath, octagonal fountain etc. with its requirements.
For the provision of water for domestic purposes of the common population, the
rulers, temples, trade guilds etc built various wells, ponds and tanks. A number of inscriptions
give detailed information about the construction, repair and ownership of these water bodies.
The rulers had realized the practicing of an artificial application of water to soil with the
purpose of promoting cultivation in by - gone days. Irrigation technology made a steady
progress in India through successive stages and the monarchs of Vijayanagar made unique

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contributions to this field. Both religious and economic motives prompted the rulers and their
officials to undertake the task of providing irrigation facilities to the people.

Stepped Tank Inside the Royal Closure

Krishnadeva Raya in his monumental work, Amuktamalyada, observes that the state
should create irrigation facilities and thus help the cause of agriculture. There is reason to
believe that the technique of tank -building and of erecting dams was much advanced and
the science of Hydraulics (Jalasastra) was studied by the professionals during the period.
The unique record of 1369 AD (Epigraphia Indica XIV) refer to the formation of the
Porumâmilla tank, enumerates not only the 12 essentials required to construct an excellent
tank, but also 6 faults in this regard.
Bazaars and Streets
Foreign travelers mention these bazaars as very long and broad. Abdur Razzaq
describes that there were four bazaars situated opposite to one another, near the king's
palace. At the head of each bazaar, there was a lofty arcade and magnificent gallery. In the
town planning of this city, individual ward was set apart for a cast or trade association or
guild of note which possessed autonomy on its own. Both foreign as well as Indian scholars
have used the term 'bazaar' for this avenue. But, 'rathavithi' (in Sanskrit) and rathabidi are
the terms used in inscriptions and in literature. A bazaar is a market place whereas 'rathabidi'
is for religious purpose. So the road was rightly called 'rathavithi' i.e. the Chariot Street.
(Filliozat 2001).
There were bazaars or streets named such as Pan-Supari street or Soolai (Dancing
girls) bazaar, belonging to specific professions. The street opposite to the Virupaksha temple,
called Hampi bazaar still exists with long rows of colonnaded structures on both sides of the
road. Similarly, there is a Krishna bazaar opposite to the Krishna temple, which is now a

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122 mySOCIETY
cultivated field. Long and large avenues with galleries on either side were laid for the festivities
and processions of gods.
According to Abdur Razzaq :
"The space which separates the first fortress from the second, and up to the
third fortress, is filled with cultivated fields and with houses and gardens. In the space
from the third to the seventh one meets a numberless crowd of people, many shops and
a bazaar. By the king' palace, there are four bazaars, placed opposite each other...
Above each bazaar is a lofty arcade with a magnificent gallery, but the audience-hall
of the king' palace is elevated above all the rest. The bazaars are extremely long and
broad... Each class of men belonging to each profession has shops contiguous the one
to the other; the jewelers sell publicly in the bazaars pearls, rubies, emeralds, and
diamonds." (Sewell 2004)

A View of the Virupaksha Temple and the Hampi Bazaar


Conslusion
From the above discussion, we may conclude that the architects who planned the
capital were familiar with the Úâstric model but their approach was not based completely on
theory but on the practical needs and limitations of their times. The town planning of
Vijayanagar was of radial pattern. This pattern provided an easy approach to the centre of
the city. It had an architectural grandeur with all the major roads converging towards the
monumental structures located at the core of the city. Each part of the city was developed
according to its function and we can determine for each part of the plan, its rightful place in
the whole.

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A Study of Various Aspects of Town Planning of the Vijayanagar Capital 123

In case of Vijayanagar, while analyzing its town-planning, we have to consider various


prominent factors like :
* Geographical settings like position of the river, natural rocks and boulders as well as
hills orchestrated the town planning of Vijayanagar. It readily provided builders with
raw materials in form of massive boulders to erect huge gateways. It also brought
about the necessity of carving footpaths on the face of natural rocks and boulders.
* The political causes during those times also had its influence on the town planning of
the capital. Mounting Muslim power in the south led to the proper fortification in and
around the capital with a number of huge gateways. This also led to the increased
contact of the rulers with the foreign powers. One can observe this result of Islamic
influence on the architectural style of some of the gateways.
* Economical and religious conditions of the state intermingled to some extent. Bazaars
were located near the main temples because these temples were the centers of
attraction for common population as well as pilgrims coming from all over the country
throughout the year.
One important thing should be pointed out here after mentioning the names of the
various structures in the article. The nomenclature of these buildings were given by various
scholars at different times which tend to differ as still the purpose of construction and the
functions of a number of buildings are yet to be properly discussed and identified. The town
planning of this city manages to match the standards of the modern times as it was based on
requirements as well as a concept of life.

References
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