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A Hindu mandir (Sanskrit: मन्दिर ''mandir'', प्रासाद ''prāsāda'') is a house of god(s).〔George Michell (1988), The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms, University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226532301, Chapter 4, pp. 61-65.〕 It is a space and structure designed to bring human beings and gods together, infused with symbolism to express the ideas and beliefs of Hinduism.〔 A Hindu temple, states George Michell, functions as a place of transcendence, where man may cross over (do ''tirtha'') from the world of illusion to one of knowledge and truth.〔Mundeshwari Temple in Kaimur District of Bihar is considered to be the oldest temple in India. The symbolism and structure of a Hindu temple, states Stella Kramrisch,〔Stella Kramrisch, The Hindu Temple, Vol 1, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-81-208-0222-3〕 are rooted in Vedic traditions. A temple incorporates all elements of Hindu cosmos - presenting the good, the evil and the human, as well as the elements of Hindu sense of cyclic time and the essence of life - symbolically presenting dharma, kama, artha, moksa and karma.〔Stella Kramrisch, ''The Hindu Temple'', Vol 2, Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-81-208-0222-3, pp. 346-357 and 423-424〕〔Klaus Klostermaier, The Divine Presence in Space and Time - Murti, Tirtha, Kala; in A Survey of Hinduism, ISBN 978-0-7914-7082-4, State University of New York Press, pp. 268-277.〕 The spiritual principles symbolically represented in Hindu temples are given in the ancient Sanskrit texts of India (for example, Vedas, Upanishads), while their structural rules are described in various ancient Sanskrit treatises on architecture (Brhat Samhita, Vastu Sastras).〔〔MR Bhat (1996), Brhat Samhita of Varahamihira, ISBN 978-8120810600, Motilal Banarsidass〕 The layout, the motifs, the plan and the building process recite ancient rituals, geometric symbolisms, and reflect beliefs and values innate within various schools of Hinduism.〔 A Hindu temple is a spiritual destination for many Hindus (not all), as well as landmarks around which ancient arts, community celebrations and economy flourished.〔〔George Michell (1988), ''The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms'', University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226532301, pp. 58-65.〕 Hindu temples come in many styles, diverse locations, deploy different construction methods and are adapted to different deities and regional beliefs.〔Alice Boner (1990), ''Principles of Composition in Hindu Sculpture: Cave Temple Period'', ISBN 978-8120807051, see Introduction and pp. 36-37.〕 Yet, almost all Hindu temples share certain core ideas, symbolism and themes. They are found in South Asia particularly India and Nepal, in southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam and islands of Indonesia and Malaysia〔Francis Ching et al., ''A Global History of Architecture'', Wiley, ISBN 978-0470402573, pp. 227-302.〕〔Brad Olsen (2004), ''Sacred Places Around the World: 108 Destinations'', ISBN 978-1888729108, pp. 117-119.〕 and countries such as Fiji, Mauritius, Guyana, Suriname, South Africa, Europe and North America with a significant Hindu community.〔Paul Younger, ''New Homelands: Hindu Communities'', ISBN 978-0195391640, Oxford University Press〕 The current state and outer appearance of Hindu temples reflect arts, materials and designs as they evolved over several millennia; they also reflect the effect of conflicts between Hinduism and Islam since the 12th century.〔For the effect on Hindu temples of Islam’s arrival in South Asia and Southeast Asia, see: *Marc Gaborieau (1985), From Al-Beruni to Jinnah: idiom, ritual and ideology of the Hindu-Muslim confrontation in South Asia, Anthropology Today, 1(3), pp. 7-14; *Richard Eaton (2000), "Temple Desecration and Indo-Muslim States", ''Journal of Islamic Studies'', 11(3), pp. 283-319. *Annemarie Schimmel, ''Islam in the Indian Subcontinent'', ISBN 978-9004061170, Brill Academic, Chapter 1 *Robert W. Hefner, ''Civil Islam: Muslims and Democratization in Indonesia'', Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0691050461, pp. 28-29.〕 ==The significance and meaning of a Hindu Temple== Hindu temple reflects a synthesis of arts, the ideals of dharma, beliefs, values and the way of life cherished under Hinduism. It is a link between man, deities, and the Universal ''Purusa'' in a sacred space.〔George Michell (1988), The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms, University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226532301, Chapter 1〕 In ancient Indian texts, a temple is a place for ''Tirtha'' - pilgrimage.〔 It is a sacred site whose ambience and design attempts to symbolically condense the ideal tenets of Hindu way of life.〔 All the cosmic elements that create and sustain life are present in a Hindu temple - from fire to water, from images of nature to deities, from the feminine to the masculine, from the fleeting sounds and incense smells to the eternal nothingness yet universality at the core of the temple.〔 Susan Lewandowski states〔Susan Lewandowski, The Hindu Temple in South India, in Buildings and Society: Essays on the Social Development of the Built Environment, Anthony D. King (Editor), ISBN 978-0710202345, Routledge, Chapter 4〕 that the underlying principle in a Hindu temple is built around the belief that all things are one, everything is connected. The pilgrim is welcomed through 64-grid or 81-grid mathematically structured spaces, a network of art, pillars with carvings and statues that display and celebrate the four important and necessary principles of human life - the pursuit of artha (prosperity, wealth), the pursuit of kama (pleasure, sex), the pursuit of dharma (virtues, ethical life) and the pursuit of moksha (release, self-knowledge).〔Alain Daniélou (2001), The Hindu Temple: Deification of Eroticism, Translated from French to English by Ken Hurry, ISBN 0-89281-854-9, pp. 101-127.〕〔Samuel Parker (2010), Ritual as a Mode of Production: Ethnoarchaeology and Creative Practice in Hindu Temple Arts, South Asian Studies, 26(1), pp. 31-57; Michael Rabe, Secret Yantras and Erotic Display for Hindu Temples, (Editor: David White), ISBN 978-8120817784, Princeton University Readings in Religion (Motilal Banarsidass Publishers), Chapter 25, pp. 435-446.〕 At the center of the temple, typically below and sometimes above or next to the deity, is mere hollow space with no decoration, symbolically representing ''Purusa'', the Supreme Principle, the sacred Universal, one without form, which is present everywhere, connects everything, and is the essence of everyone. A Hindu temple is meant to encourage reflection, facilitate purification of one’s mind, and trigger the process of inner realization within the devotee.〔 The specific process is left to the devotee’s school of belief. The primary deity of different Hindu temples varies to reflect this spiritual spectrum. It is a place for Hindus to free their minds and focus on the spiritual being in the temple. In Hindu tradition, there is no dividing line between the secular and the sacred.〔 In the same spirit, Hindu temples are not just sacred spaces, they are also secular spaces. Their meaning and purpose have extended beyond spiritual life to social rituals and daily life, offering thus a social meaning. Some temples have served as a venue to mark festivals, to celebrate arts through dance and music, to get married or commemorate marriages,〔Pyong Gap Min, Religion and Maintenance of Ethnicity among Immigrants - A Comparison of Indian Hindus and Korean Protestants, Editor: Karen Leonard (Immigrant Faiths), ISBN 978-0759108165, Chapter 6, pp. 102-103.〕 commemorate the birth of a child, other significant life events, or mark the death of a loved one. In political and economic life, Hindu temples have served as a venue for the succession within dynasties and landmarks around which economic activity thrived.〔Susan Lewandowski, The Hindu Temple in South India, in Buildings and Society: Essays on the Social Development of the Built Environment, Anthony D. King (Editor), ISBN 978-0710202345, Routledge, pp. 71-73.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Hindu temple」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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