Functional Adaptability Essence of Hindu Rituals and Architectural Elements of Traditional Domestic Buildings in Kerala: Excerpt from the Vedas

  • Authors

    • Kala Choyimanikandiyil
    • . .
    2018-09-01
    https://doi.org/10.14419/ijet.v7i3.34.19403
  • Ayurveda, Food Habits in Kerala, Vastusastra, Traditional Houses of Kerala, Thermal Comfort

  • The four knowledge texts of Hindu religion known as Vedas mainly include praises to God, daily rituals and other aspects such as Medicine, Architecture, food habits, personal duties etc.  The paper enumerates the various codified principles of food intake during various seasons and daily rituals adopted by a Hindu in ancient Kerala.  The author tries to find the importance of thermal balance of the human body that has been maintained through these codified living habits of a Hindu in Kerala which are based on the Vedas.  The paper also inevitably looks into the thermal properties of building and architectural elements described in the Vastusastra which are practised in the traditional Hindu domestic buildings in Kerala state in South India.  The paper concludes by stating that the food habits, rituals and building construction methods practised according to Hindu customs of Kerala closely link to the original Vedic texts.  Most importantly these sustainable practices were found to suit the adaptability of humans with the climate pattern of coastal Kerala towards attaining thermal comfort.

     

     

  • References

    1. [1] Thunchathu Ezhuthachan, Keralolpathi, 2nd ed., Pfleiderer &Riehm Bassel Mission Book & Tract Depository, Mangalore, 1868.

      [2] Available: www.censusindia.gov.in/2011 retrieved on 18 september 2017

      [3] Priyavrat Sharma (Translator), caraka-Samhita, vol. 1. Chaukhambha Orientalia, 2014.

      [4] Melinda A. Moore, “A New Look at the Nayar Tharavadâ€, Man New Series, vol.20, No. 3, pp.523-541, 1985.

      [5] Melinda A. Moore, “The Kerala House as a Hindu Cosmosâ€, Contributions to Indian Sociology, vol.23, issue 1, pp. 169-202, 1989.

      [6] Ruplal Chaudhari, Preetam Sarkar, Lohitkumar DH, Chanda Dhumal and Shubham Subrot Panigrahi, “Traditional and Ayurvedic Foods of Indian Originâ€, Journal of Ethnic Foods, pp.97-109, 2015.

      [7] Jyotiprakash Tamang, “Indian Dietary Cultureâ€, Journal of Ethnic Foods, pp. 243-245, 2016.

      [8] Narayanankutty Chef, “Traditional Cuisines of Indiaâ€, Indian Trust for Rural Heritage and Development Publications, pp. 39-41, 2014.

      [9] B. S. Narasingarao, Y.G. Deosthale and K. C. Pant, “Nutritive Value for Indian Foodsâ€, National Institute of Nutrition, Indian Council of Medical Research, 2012.

      [10] Ashalatha Thampuran, Traditional Architectural Forms of Malabar Coast, Vasthuvidyapratisthanam, Calicut, 2001.

      [11] Balagopal T. S. Prabhu, Vastuvidyadarsanam, 2nd ed., Vastuvidyapratisthanam, Calicut, 2012.

      [12] K. Thirumaran and R. Reshmi, “Analyzing Green Building Technologies in Indian Vernacular Architecture: A Case Study of Keralaâ€, International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, vol.6, issue 5, May 2017.

      [13] Kanippayur Krishnan Namboodiripad, Silparamam, Vastuvidyapratisthanam, Calicut, 2013.

      [14] Available:www.designclinicsmsme.org/spotreports/spotdesignclinic Report/pdf retrieved on 29 september 2017.

      [15] P. Ramakrishnan,â€Indian Mathematics related to Architecture and other Areas with Special Reference to Keralaâ€, PhD. Thesis, Cochin University of Science and Technology, 1998.

      [16] Indah Widiastuti, “The Living Culture and Typo-Morphology of Vernacular Houses in Keralaâ€, Journal of International Society for the Study of Vernacular Settlements, vol.2, No.4, pp. 41-53, 2013.

      [17] E. R. Aneena, P. S. Lakshmi, C.L. Sharon and Seeja Thomachan Panjikkaran, “Quality Attributes of Traditional Foods of Central Keralaâ€, International Journal of Applied and Pure Science and Agriculture, vol.1, Issue 10, pp. 33-36, Oct. 2015.

      [18] S. Srivastav and P.J. Jones, “Use of Traditional Passive Startegies to Reduce the Energy Use and Carbon Emissions in Modern Dwellingsâ€, International Journal of low carbon Technologies, vol.4, pp. 141-149, 2009.

      [19] S. Dili, M. A. Naseer and Zacharia Varghese, “Passive Control Methods for a Comfortable Indoor Environment: Comparative Investigation of Traditional and Modern Architecture of Kerala in Summerâ€, Energy and Buildings 43, pp. 653-664, 2011.

      [20] S. Dili, M. A. Naseer and Zacharia Varghese, “Passive Environment Control System of Kerala Vernacular Residential Architecture for a comfortable Indoor Environment: A Qualitative and Quantitative Analysesâ€, Energy and Buildings 42, pp. 917927, 2010.

      [21] Ashok Babu Puttaranga Setty Talangi and S. Saboor, “Study of Unsteady State Thermal Characteristics of Homogenous and Composite Walls of Building and insulating Materials for Passive Coolingâ€, International High performance buildings Conference, 2014.

      [22] Vijayalakshmi Akella,â€Thermal Performance of Traditional and Modern Buildings in Kerala, South Indiaâ€, The 2005 World Sustainable Building Conference.

      [23] C.V. Subramaniam, N. Ramachandran and S. Senthamilkumar, “Cmparative Investigation of Traditional, Modern and Designed Solar Passive Building for Thermal Comfort in Thanjavur Regionâ€, International Journal of Innovation in Engineering and Technology, Vol.7, Issue 2, Aug 2016.

      [24] Achyuthan and Balagopal T.S. Prabhu, An Engineering Commentary on Manushyalayacandrika, Vastuvidyapratisthanam, Calicut, 1998.

      [25] S. Dili, M. A. Naseer and Zacharia Varghese, “Thermal Comfort Study of Kerala Traditional Residential Buildings Based on Questionnaire Survey among Occupants of Traditional and Modern Buildingsâ€, Energy and Buildings 42, pp. 2139-2150, 2010.

  • Downloads

  • How to Cite

    Choyimanikandiyil, K., & ., . (2018). Functional Adaptability Essence of Hindu Rituals and Architectural Elements of Traditional Domestic Buildings in Kerala: Excerpt from the Vedas. International Journal of Engineering & Technology, 7(3.34), 624-630. https://doi.org/10.14419/ijet.v7i3.34.19403