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IGNOU HISTORY NOTES : India History From 8th to 15th Century - Development of Regional Cultural Traditions

IGNOU HISTORY Study Notes for IAS, UPSC Exams

History India From 8th to 15th Century

Development of Regional Cultural Traditions

Structure

7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Temple Architecture
7.2.1 Major Styles
7.2.2 Presidink Deities
7.2.3 Shapes, Plans and Language of Temples
7.2.4 Ecdogiaal Setting, Raw Materials and Regionalisation
7.2.5 Rok of Decorative Elements
7.3 Organisation of Building Programme
7.4 Chronological and Geographical Spfead of Indian Temples
7.5 Temples and Ibdian Cultural Ethos
7.6 Sculptures: Stone and Metal Images
7.7 Paintings, Temcottas and the "Medieval Factor"
7.8 Education and Learning
7.9 Ld Chronicles and Eras
7.10 The New Religious Trends
7.11 Let Us Sum Up
7.12 Key Words
7.13 Answers To Check Your Progress Exercises

7.0 OBJECTIVES

This Unit aims at acquainting you with the development of regional cultural
traditions and after reading it, you should be able to understand the:
emergence of regional cultural units,
manifestations of re6onalisation in various spheres of peoples' activities in the
realms of arts, literature, education, learning and religion,
development of architectural styles and basis of classlfying various temples,
terminology used in the descriptions of architectural features,
relationship between the ecological setting and temple constructions.
impact of the availability of raw materials on the construction of temples,
role of temples in the overall cultural ethos,
emergence of localised schools of sculptures in stone and metal,
regionalisation of larlguages, scripts, chronicles and eras, and
linkages between the essence of the "medieval factor" - the spreaa of feudal ethos
and the cultural manifestations.

7.1 INTRODUCTION

The centuries between the eighth and the thirteenth stand out rather prominently
from the point of view of the making of cultural traditions in India. The most
arresting feature of thew traditions is regionalism, which gets reflected in every
sphere, whether it be the formation of political power or the development of arts or
the transformations in languages and literature or even religious manifestations. In
very general terms, the emergence of regional cultural units such as Andhra, Assam,
Bengal, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtm, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu,
etc. was the outcome of significant material changes. As already delineated (Block I),
the pace of agrarian chmges and the developments in the no!?-agrarian sector were
setting the tone of feud socio-economic formation (see also Unit 5 in this Block).