<sod>Panchayatana puja has been attributed to [[Adi Shankara]], the 8th century [[Common Era|CE]] [[Hindu philosophy|Hindu philosopher]].<ref name="lexicon"/> It is a practice that became popular in medieval India.<ref name="Bühnemann2003p60"/> However, archaeological evidence suggests that this practice long predates the birth of Adi Shankara. Many Panchayatana mandalas and temples have been uncovered that are from the [[Gupta Empire]] period, and one Panchayatana set from the village of Nand (about 24 kilometers from [[Ajmer]]) has been dated to belong to the [[Kushan Empire]] era (pre-300 CE).<ref name="Williams1981p2">{{cite book|author=Frederick Asher|editor=Joanna Gottfried Williams|title=Kalādarśana: American Studies in the Art of India|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=-qoeAAAAIAAJ  |year=1981|publisher=BRILL Academic|isbn=90-04-06498-2|pages=1–4}}</ref><eod>
<sod>Panchayatana puja has been attributed to [[Adi Shankara]], the 8th century [[Common Era|CE]] [[Hindu philosophy|Hindu philosopher]].<ref name="lexicon"/> It is a practice that became popular in medieval India.<ref name="Bühnemann2003p60"/> However, archaeological evidence suggests that this practice long predates the birth of Adi Shankara. Many Panchayatana mandalas and temples have been uncovered that are from the [[Gupta Empire]] period, and one Panchayatana set from the village of Nand (about 24 kilometers from [[Ajmer]]) has been dated to belong to the [[Kushan Empire]] era (pre-300 CE).<ref name="Williams1981p2">{{cite book|author=Frederick Asher|editor=Joanna Gottfried Williams|title=Kalādarśana: American Studies in the Art of India|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=-qoeAAAAIAAJ  |year=1981|publisher=BRILL Academic|isbn=90-04-06498-2|pages=1–4}}</ref> The Kushan period set includes Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Brahma and one deity whose identity is unclear.<ref name="Williams1981p2"/><eod>