THE PRECINCT

Mandir Ṣri Rāmchandraji is situated

on the eastern side of Sireh Deorhi
Bazaar. The temple was built under
the patronage of Maiji Sahiba Sri
Chandrawatji, the mother of
Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II in
1854, the year in which the young
maharaja, who had succeeded the
throne as a minor, was invested with
ruling powers. The temple boasts of
a high resolution and rich design
and is representative of a historical
moment, just before the
introduction into Jaipur’s building
practice of the influence of 1: An artist's rendering of the facade of the complex in late 1800s. Credits: Gobindram Oodeyram.
European architectural ideas.
2: Location of the precinct on a conceptual plan of the walled city of Jaipur. 4: The facade of the complex in March 2009.

The temple complex has immense associative value as a vestige of Jaipur’s royal past and
is an important landmark of the city. Sensitive conservation and restoration practices and
a sound proposal for reuse will not only augment its historic and architectural value but
also increase its life span, public awareness and appreciation amongst its users and non-
users alike.

3: The street facade of the complex. Sireh Deohri bazar. December 2013.
MISNOMER
The temple has since its consecration been a Krishna temple, and not dedicated to Lord
Ram unlike popular belief. The temple was known as Mandir Sri RamChandrawatji, Ram
after the name of the ruling Maharaja, and Chandrawat after the Queen Regent’s paternal
House. It is recorded in various orders, carefully preserved in the Pothikhana of the Jaipur
City Palace that impressive and larger than life idols for Lord Krishna and his consort
Radha were commissioned by the Rajmata to be established in the temple upon
consecration. However, the untimely demise of the Queen mother only days prior to the
scheduled consecration led to the idols being deemed unlucky and they were never put
on their rightful place. Instead, the small brass idols that were a part of the Queen
mother’s temple in her Rawala in the city palace were established. Over the years, the
name has been corrupted in speech and writing and the temple has thus come to be known
as Mandir Ṣri Rāmchandraji.

MANAGEMENT
 The precinct falls within municipal ward no. 57, Hawa Mahal region and all
development is the responsibility of the Nagar Nigam, Jaipur.
 A separate set of bye-laws have been formulated and released by the Jaipur
Development Authority to be observed for any developmental activity within the
walled city of Jaipur.
 The temple precinct is under the ownership of the Devasthan Department of the state
government. Parts of the precinct are leased out on rent to different occupants.
 A trust fund by the name of Divya Jyoti Sansthan manages the daily affairs and
functioning of the temple including organizing weekly satsang and daily prayers.
GENERAL PLAN
The site rises steeply towards the East and measures 72 metre x 82 metre, with the shorter
side abutting the Sireh Deorhi bazaar. The complex faces west, towards the palace, for it
would be inappropriate for the deity to have its back to the palace. The initiating factors
of the design include the functional program of a religious-cum-educational institute, the
rectangular, sloping site, and the side adjacent to a main road lined with shops that form
its front, in accordance with one of the planning principles of the streets of Jaipur. The
shop modules are made of two square bays of five hasta each, which means that each
shop measures 5 x 10 hasta. (1 hasta = 45cm)
5: An artist's rendering of the temple complex's street facade. Credits: Gobindram Oodeyram.
The width of the plot is the defining factor in determining all dimensions, including but
not limited to the effective length of the plot, height of the structure, the height of the
door and the width of the courtyard. It is rationalised in terms of a set of normative
dimensions, and then used as a key dimension. The width is treated as one side of the
Mandala, and the length of the plot as its other side, with equal sub-divisions on both
sides. Every co-ordinate that subdivides the site into spatial units is generated first by
subdividing the width. In establishing the width, the building materials and design ideas
- such as the vastu purusha mandala need to be taken into account. The width may
influence the kind of design grid one uses to subdivide it.
A set of rules apply for construction of the typical haveli form. “Start at the center, keep
equal borders and stick to odd numbers in the design”. To calculate the precise point of
entry, a side is sub-divided into nine parts, and depending upon the direction it faces, the
corresponding peripheral deity mark the suitable and unsuitable entry points. For the
temple, the door is in alignment with its garbhagriha, and hence always in the centre,
irrespective of the direction it faces. The width, when divided into 9, must yield a viable
subdivision within the recommended range. These divisions along the façade are
potential co-ordinates that flow along the length of the plot and map out the skeletal walls
of the structure. The shop-lined front accommodates two shops per bay, with eight shop
fronts on either side of the entrance gateway, which uses two shop widths. The central
three divisions accommodate the string of main courtyards, and the next divisions, on
either side, accommodate the ranges that surround those courtyards. Together, this makes
the central spine of the complex, which occupies five divisions in all. The remaining two
divisions on either side house ancillary courtyards, which share the ranges of the central
courtyards.
7: The spatial division of the site along the longer side by means of nine bays, a result of treating the plot
as a Mandala. (Sachdev and Tilotson)
6: Schematic depiction of the various arrangements of Shalas.
A shala is a continuous range or a room under a single roof form. It must not be
constructed without an alind (veranda) and a dvar (door). The way in which the shala
combines with the alind and the dvar yields its various types (prastara).
 On an ideal square plot, an ekshala (a house containing a single range or room under
one roof) may occupy any side of the square, stretched along its entire length. The
remaining area of the plot is the angan or chowk (courtyard). This area, when covered
is called the garbha griha.
 Dvishala, is a house of two ranges, which may be positioned on any adjacent two of
the four sides, or any two opposite sides of the square or plot. Shalas on the southern
and western sides are preferred, with the karn or corner room in the south-west corner.
 An arrangement with only one side of the square plot without a shala is called a
trishala (types without an eastern or northern range are preferred).
 The chatuhshala has four ranges covering all four sides. Further combinations of
these four basic types yield models with five, six, seven, eight, nine or ten ranges, and
their combination with verandas, doors, windows, internal rooms and galleries
generates further types.
The texts classify shalas with a maximum of ten ranges: a dashshala. A classic
arrangement of a dashsshala house is structured around three courtyards in tandem with
each other, with ranges on all four sides, and where two opposing ranges of the central
courtyard open onto two courtyards each, but may or may not respond to the visual
vocabulary of the other three ranges in those courtyards.
The width recommended for a range is 17 hasta for large mansions, 10 hasta for medium
sized buildings and 5 hasta for small buildings. These suitable widths are related to the
available stone lengths used for spanning the roof, but not exclusively dependent on one
slab size. Materials other than stone slabs may be used, such as thatch, leaves, slabs of
timber or stone, bamboo, wattle, mud and stone blocks. A method to calculate the width
of a shala (range) is by adding 70 to the width of the plot and dividing the result by 14.
This building offers a maximum width of 10 hasta.
The constituent sets of a dashshala emerge from the way their architectural vocabulary
is articulated around the three courtyards. Surrounding ranges open into a courtyard
through the transitional space of an alind or veranda. This perforated space is
incorporated within the shala as a shatdaru; a gallery of columns facing the courtyard.
The squareness of the courtyard is established by its shape and by the visual
correspondence between the four facades. Elements such as plinths and chajjas, by
encircling the court- yard, tie the surrounding walls together by binding the four sides
with a continuous line, while openings do so by mirroring the proportion and shapes of
motifs an opposing walls.
In the three-courtyard arrangement of the temple the first common range supports the
entrance to the temple on its outer side, but is visually committed to the second courtyard
and the second common range responds to two courtyards - the second and the third; and
the third courtyard, covered and the garbha griha of the temple, has not a range, but a
pradakshina patha encasing its eastern side. There cannot be a shala behind the garbha
griha, as anyone using it would be in the unfortunate position of being on the wrong side
of the deity. Therefore, the overall arrangement is of a nav-shala or nine-range griha
mandir: 3+4+2.
violation: the college has to be in the front and on the sides, and the temple at the back
with the deity at the farthest point of the site, so that the entire building is under its
auspicious gaze. A temple has to be situated at the highest level of the site, with nothing
built on top or below its garbha griha and placing it in the front would position it on a
lower level.

The idea of corresponding arrangements is embodied in the concept of vedh (obstacle). Functional requirements and the features of the site demand a string of at least three
The Vishvakarma Prakash suggests that doors and windows are like the ears and eyes of courtyards: one at a lower level, another at a higher level, and the third that forms the
the house and emphasizes the alignment of elements. Samarangana Sutradhara garbha griha.
maintains that columns, doors and walls must not be opposites, so columns must face
columns and doors face doors and neither must face a blank wall. In order to avoid
violation, doors must not be placed above columns, columns above doors or two doors
above one door; an even number of divisions and an odd number of columns in a row
must not be employed. Two (forming the garbha griha, with the mukha mandapa and the
nat-mandir) out of the three courts in the temple have to be exactly aligned.

The courtyard is the central area, and whether covered or open, is ruled by the deity
Brahma and called the brahmasthan. According to Vishvakarma Prakash, if there is a
8: Northern range of the first courtyard. 12: Eastern range of the first courtyard.
column in the centre of the house, it is called a brahma-vedh: a violation. A wall must
never be constructed in the central part of the house. Every effort must be made to protect
this area. The central area of a vastu-purusha mandala where the diagonals intersect is
the most vulnerable paint, and any encroachment of the same must be avoided. In a 64-
square mandala, the area of the central four plots around the intersection of the diagonals
must be protected, and in an 81 square mandala the brahmasthana covers the central nine
squares.

The proportional relation between the central open space and the covered building is
crucial to massing. The size of the Brahmasthana changes with the size of the mandala.
As a rule of thumb, the open area of a courtyard is equivalent to that of the covered shalas
around it. The width of the courtyard is half the width of the site.
FIRST COURTYARD
The first court that the visitor encounters on entry to the complex is at a lower level than
the other two. This difference of level, apart from exploiting the slope of the site, provides
a separate and a more public courtyard for the college and the offices. The temple might
have been placed in front, to gain from the public access to the road, and the college at
the back, away from the noise and bustle of the street. But this would have been a
10: Southern range of the first courtyard. 9: :Southern
11 Western range of the first courtyard.
Grand, semi-octagonal steps in the first courtyard lead towards the temple - to the second
courtyard, through a range that encloses the first courtyard, but addresses the second in
terms of its openings and the articulation of its divisions. This second courtyard belongs
to the temple, serving as an open-air nat mandir, a space for music and dance
performances, and accommodates large congregations. This four-range courtyard has
opposing facades in dialogue with each other - echoing and mirroring divisions and
punctuation, within consistent vertical and horizontal bands.
THE CENTRAL COURTYARD On the lower floor of the western facade, all three main subdivisions have the same
The central courtyard is surrounded by two pattern - a bangaldar roof with domed chhatris on either side in relief but the central
pairs of opposite façades that echo each other opening, which is the main entrance to the courtyard, is significantly larger than the other
in design. The concept of vedh (violation) and two. The raised munavat (relief) work below the curve of the bangaldar of the main
takabandi (visual harmony) is pursued by opening is more intricate in decoration with peacocks, flowers and vases; the horizontal
maintaining the primary axes in the division of bands follow a rhythm to create a central box - a perfect place for an auspicious image of
the façades and ensuring that each element is Ganesh.
visually mirrored or complemented by a
feature directly opposite. Each side of the Together the four façades, with marked and enhanced central features, set the two central
courtyard is subdivided into an odd number of axes that intersect at the brahmasthana. A module of a pavilion, comprising a bangaldar
elements as an odd-numbered subdivision roof unit flanked on either side by a gumbaj or domed chhatri, sits over each of the central
places the emphasis on the central element. divisions of the four façades. The central bangaldar roof unit is further subdivided into
Each subdivision is also designed along its three arched sections, with the central arch marginally wider than the other two. This re-
own central axis. The central division, as a 14: Fold out depiction of the courtyard's four marks the central axis not only of the bangaldar unit, but also of the module and the
rule, is larger than the adjacent divisions, even sides, establishing axes that meet at the court's whole of the facade. Also at the roof level, in the corners of the courtyard, are further
centre. domed chhatris marking the ends of each side.
if only by an angula (c. 2 cm).
The centrality of the courtyard is established by its inherent function as an open space
and by the symmetry between the sides that enclose it. The odd number of divisions,
decorative features, enhancing of dimensions of the central division on the four façades
are all visual expressions of the concept of centrality. The two central axes intersect at
the centre point of the courtyard. This concept of centrality and axes is followed to the
micro level, for example in the definition of a niche. The frame that defines the niche is

15: Western range of the central courtyard. 13: Eastern range of the central courtyard.

The western and the eastern sides are divided into three main divisions, flanked on either
side by two smaller portions; the northern and the southern sides are subdivided into five
main divisions, flanked on either side by two smaller portions, thus also achieving a
resolution of the corners between the two planes.

17: Southern range of the central courtyard. 16: Northern range of the central courtyard. 18: Schematic depiction of the western side of the central court with peripheral details of some panels.
marked by a galat (border) of radiating leaves that change their inclination at the central All features follow a consistent proportioning system. The shafts of columns are twice
points of the sides of the frame. the height of their bases; the height of the openings is one and a half times or twice the
width; and the height of the upper floor is a twelfth shorter than the lower floor.
Beyond the sides that make the courtyard lie the covered parts of the building, such as an
arcade followed by another, or by a fully covered range of rooms. In the interior of a The eastern range of this courtyard has three lofty double-height arches that lead to the
room and on the courtyard walls we shall find a khat or dado panel that runs all along the third and final courtyard. This is a garbha griha, a covered courtyard, with a room for the
surface of the wall at a height of about 1m from the floor. The characteristic feature of deity, a pradakshina patha around it and an equally sized mukha mandapa in front of it -
the dado panel is its finish with an impervious plaster called araish, which makes it all the basic elements of a temple.
suitable for use with low furniture and to lean against. It is usually framed with bold black
borders, which may be floral and colourful or plain. The panel itself is in plain white
araish, but may also be decorated. In a traditional setting, the surface of the dado panel
is in contact with the human body and is considered the uppermost surface in the
rendering of the walls. All features immediately above the panel conceptually recede
behind it.

The building is united by motifs that remain consistent throughout. The uniformity in
design of architectural features such as columns is sustained even with a change of
materials. Whether they are structural, in relief, or partially depicted, they are fully 19: Panoramic view of the Mukha Mandap.
consistent in their design. It is common for a building to have an overriding framework
of motifs, particular to that building. In case of the Ramchandra Temple this is a variety
of chhatris or roof types: kamani (bow) and bangaldar roofs in relief and on pavilions on
the roof; gumbaj or domed roofs in relief and on the roof; and vedi chhatri or flattened
roofs in relief. A bangaldar roof, when not flanked on either side by domed chhatris, is
accompanied by a circular arch.

The cusped arch used throughout the building comprises three elements: a chugga
(central cusp), usually topped by a flower; bangri (intermediary cusps), usually odd in
number on either side of the chugga; and a goda (springing), where the arch meets the
top of the column.

The proportion of the individual elements is geometrically constructed within the

rectangle between the galat and the invisible line joining the tops of the columns. All
arches and their component parts, are geometrically derived from encasing rectangles.
The width is divided into five parts, of which two parts are horizontal on either side of
the centre, so that the length of the horizontal element of the arch is directly proportional
to the width of the opening. It is an architectural device to ensure that the line of columns
remains consistent through the elevation.