Slaczka Anna A. Temple Consecration Rituals in Ancient India: Text and Archaeology

Brill Academic Publishers, 2007. — 428 p.As in various other cultures, in the Hindu tradition of the Indian Subcontinent construction rituals accompany the construction of a temple, from the moment of choosing the suitable building site, right to the completion of the entire project. Numerous descriptions in Sanskrit texts on ritual and architecture describe in detail these building consecration ceremonies and reflect the importance attached to these rituals. Surprisingly, this topic has so far not received the attention it deserves given its essential role.Basing herself on both the Sanskrit texts, as well as the archaeological finds, Anna A. Ślączka in this thorough study provides readers with a comprehensive view of the three main temple construction rituals in the Hindu tradition of South and Southeast Asia.Anna Aleksandra Ślączka, Ph.D. (2006) in Indology, Leiden University, the Netherlands, was a research fellow at the Research School for Asian, African and Amerindian Studies (CNWS) and is an affiliated fellow at the International Institute of Asian Studies (IIAS) in Leiden. She presented several papers on consecration rituals of South and Southeast Asia.