Somapura Mahavihara - Knowledge (XXG)

498: 342: 808: 844: 832: 374: 735: 159: 820: 536:. The mahaviharas formed a network; "all of them were under state supervision" and there existed "a system of co-ordination among them ... it seems from the evidence that the different seats of Buddhist learning that functioned in eastern India under the Pāla were regarded together as forming a network, an interlinked group of institutions," and it was common for great scholars to move easily from position to position among them. 856: 868: 36: 751:(1938). Dikhsit was concerned with documentation of the archaeological findings and concentrated on their interpretation and analysis. He attempted to suggest a probable architectural treatment of the missing parts of the structure through studying the archaeological remains. Till today, this study is considered as the most authentic record of the Sompur Mahavihara. 381: 349: 670: 754:

Prudence R. Myer published the first of such studies in 1969 as a journal paper, in which she proposed the missing superstructure as a stupa and illustrated the possible three-dimensional articulations. Myer embarked on her proposal through a diachronic study of the stupa and stupa shrines in India.

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temples of Burma, Java and Cambodia, reproducing the cruciform basement, terraced structure with inset chambers and gradually dwindling pyramid form ... during the age of the Palas some sort of intercourse between eastern India and south-east Asia existed." Another commented, "there can be no doubt

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led by Mohammed Ali Naqi has proposed another theoretical reconstruction of the central structure as well as some parts of the peripheral block (mainly the entrance hall) in 1999. This work was also presented in the "International Seminar on Elaboration of an Archaeological Research Strategy for

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The purpose of this central structure at the midst of the courtyard remains unsolved since its discovery. Hence, most of the debates generated hitherto on the architecture of Sompur Mahavihara are centered on the identification its missing superstructure. The reason may be manifold, but the most

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in the second half of the 12th century the vihara started to decline for the last time. One scholar writes, "The ruins of the temple and monasteries at Pāhāpur do not bear any evident marks of large-scale destruction. The downfall of the establishment, by desertion or destruction, must have been

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Alam, A. K. M. Masud; Xie, Shucheng; Saha, Dilip Kumar; Chowdhury, Sifatul Quader (2007). "Clay mineralogy of archaeological soil: an approach to paleoclimatic and environmental reconstruction of the archaeological sites of the Paharpur area, Badalgacchi upazila, Naogaon district, Bangladesh".

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Paharpur World Heritage Site and Its Environment" jointly organised by UNESCO and Department of Archaeology of Bangladesh in 2004. Muhammad Ali Naqi proposed a temple-like spire at the top by considering the central mound as a 'Stupa-Shrine' with a 'Shikhara' type stupa in his reconstruction.

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important one is the non-availability of substantial amount of first-hand resource including a comprehensive architectural documentation at the disposal of the researchers. There are different arguments regarding the terminating top of the central structure of Sompur Mahavihara.

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Consequently, most of the works done so far are mainly based on the findings of the archaeological excavation and studying the artefacts from the archaeological perspective. The first study on this monument with documentation was by archaeologist K. N. Dikhist in his

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of the vihara, Mahapanditacharya Bodhibhadra served as a resident monk, and other scholars spent part of their lives at the monastery, including Kalamahapada, Viryendra and Karunashrimitra. Many Tibetan monks visited the Somapura between the 9th and 12th centuries.

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the core of Pahāŗpur vihāra was similar to pañcharatna temple crown and with four more crowns over the maņdapas it should have looked like the Ānanda temple of Pagan; however, due to its earlier construction period its appearance was more flat than the Ānanda

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in the centre. The rooms were used by the monks for accommodation and meditation. In addition to the large number of stupas and shrines of various sizes and shapes, terracotta plaques, stone sculptures, inscriptions, coins, ceramics etc. have been discovered.

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alike. The 8.5-hectare (21-acre) complex has 177 cells, viharas, numerous stupas, temples and a number of other ancillary buildings. The outside walls with ornamental terracotta plaques still display the influence of these three religions.

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that this style of architecture has most profoundly influenced that of Burma, Java and Cambodia. The nearest approximation to the plan and the superstructure of the Paharpur temple is afforded by the temples known as

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artworks in the site have suffered from serious damage as a result of "lack of proper maintenance, shortage of manpower, fund constraint and heavy rainfall And the major problem is the corruption of

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in 1985. Since then, a series of UNESCO missions has regularly visited the site and helped with the project. Moreover, the UN body prepared a master plan, involving US$ 5.6 million.

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A copperplate dated to 159 Gupta Era (479 AD) discovered in 1927 in the northeast corner of the monastery, mentions donation of a Brahmin couple to Jain Acharya Guhanandi of

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The site houses the architectural remains of a vast Buddhist monastery, Somapura Mahavihara, covering 11 hectares (27 acres). It was an important intellectual centre for

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She took Sompura Mahavihara as an example to elaborate her study and produced a conjectural restoration of the central structure in support of her analysis.

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In acreage, Somapura was the largest of the mahaviharas. According to Sukumar Dutt, the complex was dominated by a temple, which was strongly reminiscent of

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and Buddhism. Though the Kaivarta regime did not seem to suffer any loss, a part of the Mahavihara was destroyed by fire set by Jatvarma's army.

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In 2012 Mohammad Habib Reza through a contextual analysis of the early Buddhist architecture of Bengal in his doctoral thesis proposes:

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Naqi, Md. Ali; Islam, Ziaul; Bhuyan, Md. Shoeb; Gomes, Catherine Daisy (1999), "The virtual reconstruction of Paharpur vihara",

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The second work was published around thirty years after Myer's proposition. A team of architects from

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Early Buddhist Architecture of Bengal: Morphological study on the vihāras of c. 3rd to 8th centuries

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and is one of the most important archaeological sites in the country. It was designated as a UNESCO

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