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men, have caused to be built the Jain temples which are an important feature of Indian religious architecture. In this they follow the example of Bharata, son of the first Tirthankara, Rsabha, who is traditionally said to have erected the first temple. dedicate to his father. Not only individuals but also a whole community may take the initiative in the construction of a temple. Jain temple come within the wider tradition of Indian temple building and their architecture follows the style of the region and era in which they are built. The finest temples are found in those areas where the nagara or northern style of temple architecture was dominant. The Jain temples of the areas of the Dravidian style in the south are generally less splendid and simpler in concept than the most magnificent examples of more northern parts. The focus of the temple is the shrine or garbha griha in which the Jina image is placed. There will normally be space around the garbha griha for the circumambulation of the image in the rituals of worship. Above this the dome or spire (sikhara) will rise. Before the shrine there may be a vestibule and then the main hall. The exact layout may vary but basically the temple needs a hall where the worshippers may assemble and the shrine at one end. One variant found in some Jain temples is the caumukha or caturmukha layout. An especially splendid example is the temple at Ranakpur dating from the fifteenth century AD. The shrine holds a grouping of four images (at
THE JAIN TEMPLES OF INDIA
In the middle world of Jain cosmography is the continent of Nandisvaradvipa, the island of the gods. Here, according to Jain tradition, are situated the fifty-two eternal temples which figure frequently in Jain art as stylised buildings on a plaque or conventionally represented by fifty-two Jina images around a stone or metal pyramid. The temple is central to Jainism and these representations indicate its importance as the building which houses the image of the Jina Meditation on the Jina and reverence to the Jina image is a fundamental part of the religious life of the Jain: this may be before a small shrine in the home, or it may be in the temple. The building of temples is highly meritorious act. In past times ruless, and more recently wealthy merchants and business. FPV P
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