Panel Organizer:

Dr. Rana P. B. Singh - Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India

Abstract

South Asians in the ancient past ordered the natural world on cosmological principles. Mountains and springs, plains and rivers, were sites and channels of sacred power from historical events and timeless sacred forces. And, geographical features were inscribed by human hands to mark their sacredness. Throughout the region, natural and constructed places commonly became centres of pilgrimage, mostly maintained even today by integrating age-old traditions and modernity.
This Panel will explore sacred landscapes, sacred cities, and planning the heritage cities, drawing upon the perspectives of multi-disciplinary, cross-cultural (e.g. Hindus, Islam, Buddhist, Christian, Sikh, Tribal), and examine wider issues for understanding these issues beyond the world of South Asia, especially between heritage cities of Europe and South Asia. The guidelines and cooperation of the OWHC, Organisation of World Heritage Cities, that maintains its programmes with UNESCO's World Heritage Cities, will also be taken care of. The heritage cities from South Asia include Polonnaruwa, Anuradhapur, Kandy, Sigiriya and Galle (Sri Lanka), Sanchi, Thanjavur, Konark, Pattadakal, Agra, Dehi monuments, Khajuraho, riverfront Varanasi, and Gaya (India), Lumbini and Kathmandu valley (Nepal), Thatta, Rohtas Fort, Taxila, Lahore (Pakistan), Bagerhat and Paharpur (Bangladesh), and also Shikakawa-go (Japan). European heritage cities that can be compared with South Asian cities in terms of management and operation plans include Santiago de Compostela and Toledo (Spain), Budapest (Hungary), Gratz (Austria), Rome, Florence and Venice (Italy), Paris (France), Wies, Bamberg and Aachen (Germany), Nessebar (Bulgaria), etc.

(A) Pilgrimage Landscape: Evolution of pilgrimage system, textual base and contextual reality, growth of sacred environment and feminine divine association, pilgrimage archetype and mandala, sacredscape and cosmological principles, spatiality of time and temporality of space in the context of sacrality, sacredscape and symbolism, relevance and rationality today, and re-evaluating the theories by Turner, Eliade, Bhardwaj, Morinis, Llewellyn and Smith.

(B) Ritual Landscape and Cosmogram: Ritualisation process, ritual landscape, cosmogram and complexity, cosmic geometry and cultural astronomy, geometry of time, travel genre and circulation network, hierarchy and patterns, sacred functionaries & sacred systems of network, sacred city and cosmic order, phenomenological vs. empirical perspectives, written vs. folk traditions, representation and identity between cultural landscape and ritual landscape.

(C) Planning the Heritage Cities: ‘interfaces' and cultural interaction, sharing the experiences of different groups, role of NGOs in mass awakening, deep ecology, cultural heritage management, cultural heritage and urban renewal, planning for sacred places, heritage preservation and conservation, dynamics of change and ethical issues, social implications and public participation; issues of location, distribution and scale in spatial dimension of heritage cities; heritage as an economic instrument for regional and urban development and regeneration.

Erik Reenberg Sand, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Rituals and Sacred Space of Pandharpur, India
 
The small town Pandharpur, situated about two hundred kilometres south east of Pune, is one of the most popular sacred places in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is dedicated to the god Vithoba who is considered to be an incarnation of Vishnu in the form of Krishna. Pandharpur and Vithoba plays a very important role in the religious life of the so-called Varakari Sampradaya which goes back to at least the time of Jnanadev or Jnaneshvar in the second half of the 13th century. In fact the religious life of the town is to a greqat extent dominated by the presence of this Sampradaya, and the great yearly pilgrimage in the bright half of Ashadha (June-July), at which processions from all over Maharashtra join in Pandharpur is one of the most spectacular religious events in the region. Until comparatively recent the knowledge of the history and concept of Pandharpur as a sacred town has been completely dominated by the literature of Varakari Sampradaya. In this paper I shall, however, be dealing with two Sanskrit mahatmyas, both called Pandurangamahatmya, and the ideas found therein with regard to the rituals and sacred space of Pandharpur.
 
Devi Prasad Dubey, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India
Pilgrimage in a Promised Space: The Brahmanical and Non-Brahmanical Cults at Prayaga
 
Narrated as a reference model for sacredscape Prayaga. Prayaga/Allahabad, has been the place of pilgrimage for well over three millennia where the holy rivers Ganga, Yamuna and the invisible Sarasvati meet in the heart of the Ganga plain. Called as Tirtharaja (King of the Hindu holy places) Prayaga is believed to be the holiest place in the three worlds existing in space and in time. During the annual month long fair of Magha hundreds of thousands of pilgrims assemble there for ritual camping and bathing, and every twelfth year they come by millions to the biggest religious fair in the world, the Kumbha Mela. Herein culture, geography and cosmos interact with each other creating a faithscape infused with meaning and transcendent power. At Prayaga there are no grand and grandiose temples. No specific deity presides over Prayaga. Unlike Varanasi, Ayodhya or any tirtha, Prayaga is of non-sectrarian nature. All Brahmanical and non-Brahmanical cult deities are fused together there. Does true sanctity lie in the unseen eternal energy associated with the holy ground itself exemplified by waters? This paper discusses the forces shaping the age-old cultural heritage of the place and addresses the textual and field sources, illustrated with slides and transparencies, for constructing the faithscape of Prayaga in historical perspective to discern what makes it special in Hindu eyes. The study of various cultic traditions there will show how a macrocosm can be transformed into a mesocosm reflected into the microcosm, a process called sacralisation.
 
Fausto Pugnaloni, Giovanni Issini, and Dang Minh NAM, Marche Technical University, Survey, Draw, Ancona, Italy
Technologic and cultural development for the defence of the architectural heritage in Vietnam: the case of Hué.
 
At present, lots of South Eastern countries are definitely going through a period of growth which is not only economic, but also cultural and social.
Therefore, in the field of the cultural heritage restoration, it's very important to develop means and technologies able to speed up the cataloguing and the knowledge of "heritage cities" and architectural goods, which are often unknown or abandoned.
One of the method our Dept is adopting in Vietnam - but which could be applied also in other countries through co-operation agreements - consists in the creation of digital files of the existing architectural and monumental goods.
 
These files, whose content is both graphic and descriptive, aim to:
 
-         re-launch and enforce the cultural tourism and, consequently, the economy of South East thanks to multimedia instruments which allow a deeper knowledge of its historical and artistic heritage abroad;
-         start instructive activities to elaborate a work of analysis/reading/survey of "heritage cities" and to develop the necessary technologies to communicate the quality of their historical heritage.
-         propose some direction lines for the development of cities and the restoration of monuments which aim at appreciating the architectural goods not only from the scientific point of view but also from the cultural and tourist one.
 
The files are created through several steps:
 
-           Collection of the existing graphic and descriptive material;
-           Representation of reality through virtual and tridimensional models:
-           Creation of tridimensional models of the evolution hypothesis in relation to the original;
-           Creation of digital libraries and museums for the diffusion of the cultural heritage of South Eastern countries.
 
Rana P.B. Singh, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, UP, India
Where Divinity meets Humanity. Pilgrimage Landscape and Cosmogram at Gaya, India &Varanasi (India) as Heritage City on the scale the UNESCO World Heritage List: From Contestation to Conservation
 
(Paper 1)
Mythologically described as the last among the three pillars in "the Holy Bridge to the Heaven" and eulogised as the most sacred place for ancestral rituals, the city of Gaya and its territory records continuity of tradition since at least the 8th century CE as narrated in the Vayu Purana. The VyP mentions 324 holy sites and spots related to ancestral rites, of which 84 are identifiable at present and concentrated in the vicinity of nine sacred clusters.  At present sacrificers most commonly visit only 12 sacred centres. The cosmogonic hierarchy is marked by the three territorial layers - Gaya Mandala, Gaya Kshetra, and Gaya Puri, within which there is a complex interweaving of themes of birth, fertility, sun, and death. In the symbolic realm of the cosmic triad the Vishnu's footprints in Vishnupad temple serves as the axis mundi, and the cardinal and solstitial points are marked by the hills and other sites of the mandala. The multiple forms of the axis mundi include the Mahabodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, Akshayavata, the eternal Banyan, and right hand of Dasharatha at Sita Kunda. The primordial solar symbolism of Vishnupad and its radial solstitial alignments suggest an initial importance of the sun at the site. The most common ritual period is the 7-days, a week, each day of that is prescribed for particular rituals and ancestral rites, combining sacrality with space, time and function.  The distinct locational affinity phenomenon of holy spots in Gaya is interpreted with reference to the landscape view and the ritual system as described in the mythology and tradition. It is obvious that there works a complex interacting system which in itself converges into an order; the wholeness is transformed into holiness. On these results, in current Master Plan heritage areas and their spatio-structural plan must be added.
 
Paper (2)
It has been realised that the cultural and natural heritages are increasingly threatened by destruction not only due to the traditional causes of decay, but also by changing social and economic conditions. It is decided to adopt a general policy, which aims to give the heritage a function in the life of the community, and maintaining it in a sustainable way. India has recently become a member of the general council. From India 24 properties are enlisted, however Varanasi has not yet been proposed for inclusion. This paper attempts to critically examine the rationales for proposing Varanasi as a heritage city in the WH List. In this context the status of Varanasi on the scale of UNESCO-WH List, the implications of the present Master Plan, and governance strategies are described. It is suggested that the City (District) Administration: (1) Draft and ratify a Manifesto committing itself to the conservation and protection of the city, (2) All built heritage assets of the city must be documented through a survey, listing, mapping, architectural plans of individual buildings,  (3) A specific conservation plan must be drafted as an integral part of the development plan of the city, (4) A Conservation Cell must be created within the local Development Authority, consisting of various experts and institutions, and (5) Specific by-laws must be formulated for the development and preservation of heritage sites and areas. A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the site as living organism.
 
Alexandra van der Geer, Michael Dermitzakis, and John de Vos, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Museum of Geology, Athens, Greece
Fossils and myths in North India: is there a connection between the Siwalik Hills and the Mahâbhârata?
 
All over the world, from the past till nowadays, people have explained fossil findings as the proof for the historical value of legends, stories, myths, or used them as a basis for a new legend. The major part of fossils is explained as bones and teeth of giant humans, dragons and monsters, saints and heroes. A much smaller part is explained as an object (sacred, medicinal, or protective) based upon a certain similarity in morphology, shape, colour.
North India does not differ in this respect. In Nepal and northernmost India, fossil ammonites (śâlagrâmas) are worshipped as cakra's, either as Visnu's disc or as the Buddhist wheel. They are also regarded as links to the divine snake Kundalini. Offered to the mountain gods, they yield protection. Fossil sea urchins were found in neolithical graves in Pakistan's Salt Range; most likely they had some magical function, as elsewhere in the world. In Kashmir, Jurassic fossil brachiopods were copied in wood and painted. They most probably were worshipped as the sacred tortoises known in Buddhism.
In this contribution, we investigate the possibility of a link between the famous fossil bone beds of the Siwaliks and Kurukshetra's plain, the historical stage for the legendary battle as described in the epic Mahâbhârata, during which hundreds of mighty and sometimes gigantic heroes, horses and elephants died. Their remains, added with those of their huge, wrecked chariots, and thousands of javelins and spears, may very well be seen in the fossil bones, skulls, jaws and tusks of long extinct hippopotamuses (Hexaprotodon), proboscideans (Stegodon, Archidiskodon), giant giraffs (Sivatherium, Giraffokeryx), giant tortoises (Geochelone), sabre-toothed tigers (Paramachairodus), camels (Camelus), and so on.
 
Mohammad Sazzad Hossain, Institute of Design Theme,  Dhaka, Bangladesh
Lalbagh to Chota Katra. A Concept Paper to Develop A Route to Revitalize the Mughal Heritage of Dhaka City.

 The paper attempts to propose a route for heritage-walk, parallel to the river Buriganga, which starts from Lalbagh and ends at ChotaKatra.The route is erected to permit easy access to different Mughal structures that are scattered along two Muhgal edifices in old Dhaka., where oldroad-network and organic growth creates hindrance of public access to these historic artefacts. The historic structures are in poor condition and hidden within dense settlements. Conservation of these historic buildings should be carried out to protect the monuments from decay and damages and to ensure proper restoration. The route will permit the historic artefacts to be integrated with the urban fabric, open up to the moving people and allow easy access from the inner city as well as from the river approach. The Mughal building on the route can be categorized under two groups: Lalbag goup of monuments and Chauk goup of monuments.The route can play a significant role for the Urban renewal of the more than 400years old city to focus on its cultural values and identity .Moreover easy access and visual exposure for the heritage buildings during the usual movement can promote tourism at the area.