Archives Glossary of special terms

alamkara

(also alankara) ornament and embellishment, without which images are seen as incomplete

alankara-shastra

science of poetics

alidha

the pose of a warrior, with his right leg bent forward and left drawn back (cf. pratyalidha)

alpa-vimana

Small, one-storeyed vimana. The parts are adhishthana, bhitti or pada prastara, griva, sikhara and stupi. It is usually without a hara.

alpanasika

Projected front end of an apsidal shrine resembling a kudu arch over pilasters, originally in kuta’s, koshtha’s and panjara’s.

alvar

saintly devotee of Vishnu; ‘immersed [in god]’ – South Indian Vaishnava poet saints, active between six and tenth centuries; their images are worshipped in temples and processions

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