Pancharatha

Not to be confused with Pancharatna (architecture).

See also Pancha Rathas, religious buildings in Bhubaneswar

File:Plan of subsidiary shrines of Brahmeswara Temple.jpg

Drawing of a pancharatha building

A Hindu temple is a pancharatha when there are five ratha (on plan) or paga (on elevation) on the tower of the temple (generally a shikhara). The rathas are vertical offset projection or facets. The name comes from the sanskrit Pancha (=five) and Ratha (=chariot), but the link with the concept of chariot is not clear.

There are also temples with three rathas (triratha), seven rathas (saptaratha) and nine rathas (navaratha).

File:Triratha-Pancharatha-Saptaratha.jpg

Triratha, Pancharatha and Saptaratha

Examples of pancharatha temples

• Lingaraja Temple in Bhubaneswar
• Lakshmana Temple in Khajuraho
• Rajarani Temple in Bhubaneswar
• Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha
• Jagannath Temple in Baripada, Odisha
• Jagannath Temple in Nayagarh, Odisha
• Isanesvara Siva Temple in Bhubaneswar
• Mukteswar Temple in Bhubaneswar
• Brahmani temple in Baleswar, Odisha

Pancharatha temples

• Error creating thumbnail:
  Isanesvara Siva Temple in Bhubaneswar
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Jagannath Temple in Baripada
• Lingaraja Temple in Bhubaneswar
  Lingaraja Temple in Bhubaneswar

See also

• Ratha (architecture)