ime of Asoka (272-236 B.C.), that
are pillars bearing inscriptions and surmounted by a symbolic animal
such as an elephant or a lion, of which there is a good specimen at
Allahabad, and the Stupas or Topes, mounds encased in masonry, crowned
by a reliquary containing memorials of Buddha or of his chief disciples,
and enclosed within a stone railing elaborately carved with scenes from
the life of the founder of Buddhism, with an even more ornate gateway at
each of the four corners, of which the finest is the larger of two at
Sanchi in Central India. Even more interesting than the Lats and Stupas
are the Viharas or Buddhist monasteries, of which there is a specially
good example at Nigope near Behar, and the Chaityas or temples, of which
those at Karli, Ellora, Ajunta, and Elephanta are amongst the finest.
All alike hewn out of the living rock, the former consist of a square
central hall with or without columns, surrounded by cells for the
monks, whilst the latter, of more complicated design, resemble in
general plan a Roman basilica. A wide nave with rows of massive pillars
upholding a slightly domed roof is flanked by lateral aisles, and at the
eastern end rises a semicircular sanctuary containing a seated figure of
Buddha.

[Illustration: Section of Cave at Karli]

Out of the Buddhist religion grew that known as the Jaina, and many fine
temples, of which the most remarkable are that at Sadri and the Dilwana
Temple on Mount Abu, remain that were erected for the use of its
professors. It was usual to group a number on some hill-top, and the
plan of each was generally that of a Greek cross, a columned portico
giving access to a complex collection of shrines, each approached by
avenues of pillars and roofed in with a separate dome, whilst the
exterior was adorned with rounded towers finished off with pointed
finials suggestive of a spire, the whole both inside and out being
richly decorated with carvings.

[Illustration: View of Temple at Sadri]

Hindu architecture, or that of those who hold the Brahmanic faith,
differs very greatly from Buddhist, its chief characteristic being a
lofty pyramidal tower of several stories, as a general rule covered with
ornament, that reached its fullest development in the so-called pagodas,
of which there are fine specimens at Jaggernaut, Mahavellipore, and
Palitana. In different parts of India various modifications of this
general style occur to which distinctive names have been given,