Editing Architecture of India (section)

=== Dzong Architecture ===
{{Main|Dzong architecture}}
Dzongs are a type of fortified monastery with a distinctive architecture that are found mainly in Tibet, Bhutan and North and Northeastern part of India. The architecture is massive in style with towering exterior walls surrounding a complex of courtyards, temples, administrative offices, and monks' accommodation.[[File:Kee monastery.jpg|thumb|[[Key Monastery|Kee monastery]], [[Spiti Valley|Spiti]]|left]]'''Distinctive features include:'''
* High inward sloping walls of brick and stone painted white with few or no windows in the lower sections of the wall
* Use of a surrounding red ochre stripe near the top of the walls, sometimes punctuated by large gold circles
* Use of unique style flared roofs atop interior temples
* Massive entry doors made of wood and iron
* Interior courtyards and temples brightly colored in Buddhist-themed art [[Motif (visual arts)|motifs]] such as the [[ashtamangala]] or [[swastika]]
By tradition, dzongs are constructed without the use of architectural plans. Instead construction proceeds under the direction of a high lama who establishes each dimension by means of spiritual inspiration. Dzongs comprise heavy masonry walls surrounding one or more courtyards. The main functional spaces are usually arranged in two separate areas: the administrative offices; and the religious functions – including temples and monks' accommodation. This division between administrative and religious functions reflects the idealized [[Dual system of government|duality of power]] between the religious and administrative branches of government.

This accommodation is arranged along the inside of the outer walls and often as a separate stone tower located centrally within the courtyard, housing the main temple, that can be used as an inner defensible citadel. The roofs are massively constructed in hardwood and bamboo, highly decorated at the eaves, and are constructed traditionally without the use of nails. They are open at the eaves to provide a ventilated storage area. They were traditionally finished with timber shingles weighted down with stones
<gallery widths="180" heights="140" class="center">
File:The 9 Stupas.jpg|Stupas in Thikse Monastery
File:Ralong Monastry (36).jpg|[[Ralang Monastery]], Sikkim
File:Tawang Monastery3.JPG|[[Tawang Monastery]], [[Arunachal Pradesh]]
File:Tawang Monastery assembly hall.jpg|Tawang Monastery assembly hall
File:Devoting oneself to the path of god.jpg|Prayer hall at the [[Bylakuppe|Golden Temple in Bylakuppe]], a Tibetan settlement in Karnataka 
</gallery>