VIVEKANANDA KENDRA PATRIKA TEMPLE INDIA

of various catgories in the profession. The it is likely that Palhana crossed over to
specialists in art activity have been the realm of the former and started
variously designated in different inscriptions functioning there. Five years later, in V. S.
as: sailalaka, roopakara, roopadaksha, 1228, Palhana qualified as a silpi and two
karmika, navakarmika, sailavardhaki, years hence he came to be designated as
uparakhita, kadhichaka, mahakataka, a vijnanin. This process of acquiring
mithika, khadariki, auesanin etc. The recognition by Palhana continued further
stone-work had come to be known as and, in two more inscriptions of V. S. 1223
roopakarma and the practitioner-artists and V. S. 1236, he is mentioned as
were designed as roopadaksha or vaidagdhi Visvakarma, ‘expert in the craft
roopakara. The aesthetic significance of of the Visvakarma’, i. e., in the silpasastra
these words is self-explanatory in reference of the Visvakarma school.
to roopa, “form”. The dynamics of art These designations applied here to Palhana
activity changed considerably with the help in linking up the hierarchical order and
passage of time. The theistic cults are in drawing out the necessary conclusion
diversified and, as a result of localisation that professionally the rank of an artist
of centres of power, artists also got changed with his experience and expertise.
scattered to several centres of activity. That Palhana belonged to an illustrious
Ultimately, the institutional set-up of family of artists is indicated by an
artists-craftsmen that emerged in the inscription of the Kalachuri era 918/1167
ninth-tenth century, consisted of A.D. The epigraph refers to the toopakara
roopakara, silpi, vijnanika and sootra-dhara Talhana of Kokasa family, who was the son
indicating the hierarchy from roopakara of Palhana. References to Palhana in the
upwards in that order. While inscriptions Kalachuri and the Chandella territory and
refer to these categories separately in to his son in the Kalachuri territory define
reference to individual master-craftsman the wider geographical parameters within
in any number, the possibility of a link in which the artists of the family operated.
these categories is suggested by the case This family is mentioned again in an
of Palhana, a master-artist of twelfth inscription of the fifteenth century
century. He first finds mention in an discovered at Ratnapur (Bilaspur district
inscription of 1159 as working in the team of Madhyapradesh). The descendents of
of sootradhara Kamalasimha, along with the Kokassa family, as mentioned in the
other associates, namely, Some, Kokasa epigraph, were: Manmatha, Chitaku,
and Dalhana. No title has been accorded Mandana and Dityan. All of them were
to Palhana in this inscription of 1159; but- expert artists and they have been described
his association with the territory of the as such.
Kalachuri rulers is clearly indicated. Besides indicating the continuity of a single
However in a Chandella inscription of V. S. family from 1159 to the fifteenth century,
l223/A.D. 1165, Palhana is described as the Ratnapur inscription offers valuable
peetalakara, ‘ brazier’. Since the Chandellas information about the professional
were ruling continuously to the Kalachuris, accomplishment of sootradhara Chhitaku.

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The inscription is being quoted here almost one Vijnanika, one Roopakara and twelve
in full : “Among the sootradharas, Chhitaku, other classes of artisans. This adds up to
the light of the Kokassa family, is well- a total of thirty-five craftsmen for about
known for his proficiency in Silpasastras thirty-five temples and covers a period of
and he has virtue of compassion in his heart. about five centuries as indicated above.
By favour of the gods and preceptors, he The total picture thus obtained from the
is the ocean of five sciences, a veritable epigraphs and matched with the existing
Narayana in respect of draftsmanship, remains, explains the tempo of activity from
meritorious and truthful. The sootradhara region to region and reign to reign of the
Chhitaku can work on wood and stone and rulers within the ancient Dahala region. This
also on gold with case. He possesses helps in concluding that the unity or
knowledge of the great science-the science stylistic similarity in the art tradition of the
of yantra, (machinery). The sootradhara region arose out of experimentations of
Chhitaku knows how to play on vanka and master-artists and craftsmen who were
trivanka and to carve creepers and leaves. actively involved in such work. General
He knows also the tritala and saptatala variations in style may be similarly
(measures). Sootradhara Chhitaku is a explained.
perfect master of sciences and has fixed The foregoing analysis of inscriptions gives
his heart on Kesava. His younger brother a gist of the institutional background within
is Mandana, a reader of scriptures. All which ancient artists functioned.
merits together with knowledge of Epigraphic references indicate that the
astronomy will be found in Mandana by the institution of the family played a very
favour of Visvakarma. important role in the acculturation process
The inscriptions quoted above are typical of those artists. Skills were transmitted
of their sort. By chronologically from father to son and in certain families
approximating the relevant information all the members, including the womenfolk,
concerning artists with the monuments build participated in the creative process.
during the reigns of different rulers in Information, for instance, is available about
different regions, it should be possible to the family of the chitrakara Sri Satana
pair them and accordingly study the whose son Chhitanaka carved the famous
evolution of sculptures in reference to the Mahoba image of Bodhisattva; Chhitanaka’s
artists so approximated. For instance, the wife similarly carved an image of Tara. The
inscriptions of Dahala region refer to the inscription mentioning Chhitanaka describes
construction of 35 temples, besides at least him as: ‘well versed in the science of fine
five monasteries and a few other minor arts’ sometimes the crafts and skills got
works. The monuments cameup gradually transmitted to the disciples also. An image
in the course of more than five centuries of Surya from Bengal, now deposited in
from about the middle of the eighth to the the British Museum, contains the
first quarter of the thirteenth. For these information that it was carved by Amrita,
temples and related activities, we have with the disciple of a silpi Indranila-mani. Artists
us information about thirteen Sootradharas, were famous for their intense involvement

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