What is a shikhara?
A shikhara (also spelled sikhara) is the tower-like superstructure above the sanctum of a Hindu or Jain temple in North India. The word comes from Sanskrit and means roughly mountain peak. The tower rises directly above the garbhagriha, the small, dark chamber that houses the image of the deity, marking the holiest point of the temple from afar.
Form and structure
In the North Indian Nagara style, the shikhara usually has a curved, beehive-like profile: the sides rise almost vertically at first and then curve inwards towards the top. The tower is built up from horizontal courses of stone and richly carved.
At the top sits the crowning:
- Amalaka: a large, flat, ribbed stone disc that closes off the summit.
- Kalasha: a pot-shaped finial above the amalaka.
There are several types. A simple shikhara consists of a single curved tower. On more elaborate temples, smaller turrets cluster against the main tower, creating a composite, mountain-like mass. The temples of Khajuraho, such as the 11th-century Kandariya Mahadeva temple, are well-known examples.
Difference from the vimana in South India
In the South Indian Dravida style, the tower over the sanctum is called a vimana. It is usually pyramidal and stepped, with clearly separate tiers. In that tradition the word shikhara refers only to the dome-shaped crowning element on top of the vimana, so it is worth checking which tradition a text is describing.
| North Indian Nagara style: shikhara | The tower over the sanctum. Usually a curved, beehive-like profile: the sides rise almost vertically at first, then curve inwards towards the top. |
|---|---|
| South Indian Dravida style: vimana | The tower over the sanctum is called a vimana: usually pyramidal and stepped, with clearly separate tiers. Here shikhara refers only to the dome-shaped crowning element on top. |
Application of the term
In architectural history, the shikhara is the feature by which a North Indian temple is most quickly recognised. The comparison with a Western church tower only goes so far: a shikhara is not a bell tower and cannot be entered, but a solid mass that symbolises the sacred mountain and emphasises the sanctum below.
Related terms
- Dome
- Finial
- Pinnacle
- Ornament
- Anta temple
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