Notes on the Vijayanagara Ruins and Vittala Temple

Overview of Vijayanagara

• Location: Ancient ruins in India, constructed between the 14th and 16th centuries AD.
• Significance: Home to the Vidala Temple Complex, the largest and most revered temple in the city.

Vittala Temple

• Purpose: Designed as a celestial palace on earth.
• Construction: Involved skilled architects, engineers, and craftsmen.
• Acoustic Design: Crafted to produce sounds that please the divine.

Key Architectural Features

Rangamandapa (Stage Pavilion)

• Structure: Attached directly to the Vittala Temple.
• Pillars: Numerous pillars, some nearly 12 feet high.
• Compound Pillars: Central pillar surrounded by smaller colonnettes.

Sound Characteristics

• Tuned Pillars: 56 pillars are individually tuned to the seven notes of the Sarigama scale (ancient Sanskrit musical scale).
• Instruments Representation:
  • Crafted to represent different musical instruments (e.g., woodwinds, percussion).

Historical Context

• British Investigation: The British were intrigued by the sound and cut one pillar, discovering it was granite with careful workmanship.

Scientific Mystery

• Geopolymer Theory: Recent analyses suggest advanced materials in pillars.
  • Possible blend of granite with silicate particles and metallic alloys.
• Time Discrepancy: Basic geopolymers were invented in the 1950s in the Soviet Union, yet pillars date hundreds of years earlier.
• Modern Attempts: Attempts to replicate the pillars have been unsuccessful.

Cultural and Spiritual Significance

• Harmonic Tuning: Each pillar was harmonically tuned to communicate with the gods.
• Extraterrestrial Speculation: Curiosity about potential extraterrestrial influence on the technology and construction methods.