<P> Temple pillars often have engravings of charging horses or hippogryphs (Yali)--horses standing on hind legs with their fore legs lifted and riders on their backs . The horses on some pillars stand seven to eight feet tall . On the other side of the pillar are usually carvings from Hindu mythology . Pillars that do not have such hippogryphs are generally rectangular with mythology themed decoration on all sides . Some pillars have a cluster of smaller pillars around a central pillar shaft . The bottom supports of these pillars have engravings of Gods and Goddesses . Carvings of hippogryphs clearly show the adroitness of the artists who created them . </P> <P> The Mantapas are built on square or polygonal plinths with carved friezes that are four to five feet high and have ornate stepped entrances on all four sides with miniature elephants or with Yali balustrades (parapets). The Mantapas are supported by ornate pillars . The 1,000 - pillared style with large halls supported by numerous pillars was popular . The 1,000 - pillared Jain basadi at Mudabidri is an example . Larger temples have a separate shrine for the female deity . Some examples of this are the Hazara Rama, Balakrishna and Vitthala temples at Hampi . </P> <P> Some shrines in the Vitthalapura area inside Vijayanagara were consecrated specifically for Tamil Alwar saints and for the great Vaishnava saint, Ramanujacharya . Architecturally they are different in that each shrine has an image depicting the saint for whose worship the temple was built . Each shrine has its own enclosure and a separate kitchen and pilgrim feeding hall . The water storage tank inside the royal center, the (stepwell stepped tank) called, "Pushkarni", is a recent archaeological discovery . The stepped tank is fashioned with finished chlorite schist slabs arranged in a symmetrical formation with steps and landings descending to the water on all four sides . This is clearly a Western Chalukya - Hoysala style tank and is seen in many parts of present - day Karnataka . The inscriptions on the slabs indicate the material was brought from outside the Vijayanagara area . </P> <P> Much of what is known today of Vijayanagara palaces is drawn from archaeological excavations at Hampi as no royal palace structures have survived . Most palaces stand in their own compound defined by high tapering walls made of stone or layered earth . Palaces are approached through a sequence of courts with passageways and doorways requiring multiple changes in direction . All palaces face east or north . The larger palaces have side extensions giving the complex a symmetrical shape . </P>

What are the architectural traditions that inspired the architecture of vijayanagara