Encyclopaedia of Jaina Studies Vol 01 Jaina Art and Architecture

Author(s): Sagarmal Jain, Others
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 139

Jaina Temple Architecture : North India
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small kola, eight-foil kola, large circular kola and a smaller circular kola. In the centre of the last one is inserted a small pendant of flower. A somewhat similar ceiling may be seen in the Mālädevī temple at Gyaraspur.
The ceiling in the central bay of the mukhamandapa is square and flat and displays three concentric circular bands in a square frame bordered by rectangular panels. The outer circular band depicts vyālas with riders, the middle shows the figures of dancers, and the central is damaged. The square frame is decorated with creepers; a kirttimukha appears at each of the four corners. The rectangular panels are decorated with lotus scrolls of big and small sizes, bearing figures of dancers, musicians and acrobats.
The two ceilings in the flanking bays of the mukhamandapa are rectangular and alike, each having a grid of three lenticular flowers in diagonal framework. Each of the two lateral flowers consists of three receding tiers of eight-foil, quatrefoil and circular kolas with flower bud in the centre. The central flower is similar to the lateral ones but has an additional tier comprising twelve-foil kola. What is remarkable here is that the first tier on the soffit forms a continuous chain of cusps.
Inside the mukhamandapa, on either side of the gūdhamandapa doorway, is an ornamental khattaka- niche supported by bhāraputrakas and crowned by deeply cut udgama-pediment
The rangamandapa is of no interest. The devakulikäs are featureless, except for those in northeastern wing as they carry figures of Vidyadevis, Dikpālas and vyālas on the walls.
On stylistic grounds the temple is datable to the mid-10h century A.D. PALI
Pali, a district town in Rajasthan, was the native place of the Pallivāla-gaccha of the Svetāmbara sect. It has four extant temples in the town of which the Navalakhā Pārsvanātha is a Jaina shrine originally dedicated to Mahāvīra since it has been referred to as "Viranätha Mahacaitya" and "Mahāvīra-caitya" in
the inscriptions of A.D. 1122 and 1145. The originality of the temple has been heavily marred by stucco coating and gaudy paints during recent years.
Navalakhā Pārsvanātha Temple - The temple (Fig. 68) consists of a sanctum, gūdhamandapa, and a rangamaņdapa surrounded by a series of devakulikās. The rangamaņdapa, the sikhara of the sanctum and the surrounding devakulikās were added or replaced in A.D. 1629 when the originally enshrined image of Mahāvīra was replaced by that of Pārsvanātha.
The sanctum (Fig. 69) is tri-anga with a broad bhadra, thin pratiratha, and a karna half the size of bhadra. Between the angas are saliläntaras. The pitha consists of a bhitta, jādyakumbha, kumuda, antarapatta and pattikā, all plain and recently replaced by a modern version of old mouldings. The vedibandha of the wall has only four members, viz. khura, kumbha, kalasa and kapota. The kumbha bears interesting decorations of half lotus on the karņas, pair of geese or Kinnaras on the pratirathas and two-tiered plain sūrasenaka on the bhadras. The kapota has enrichment of caitya-gavākşa and half diamond on the karņas and bhadras and of only caitya-gavākṣa on the pratirathas. The janghā of the wall carries emptied niches on the bhadras, standing Jina with a pair of Mālādharas above and Surasundari on the outer flank of the pratirathas, and Dikpālas on the karmas. The salilāntaras contain figures of simhavyālas and gajavyālas, above each vyāla is a large grasamukha. Above the janghā is a simple varandikā with two usual kapotas and a curved awning. The bhadra-niche is crowned by a pediment with seated Jina.
The doorframe of the sanctum, though painted, is old. It is of the saptaśäkhā variety consisting of patra, vyāla, Gandharva, stambha with Jina-mothers in panels, Gandharva, vyāla and Mālādhara respectively.
The güdhamandapa has a straight and featureless exterior. Inside, it shows an octagonal arrangement of eight large, fluted ghatapallava pillars supporting a later built large domical ceiling. The rangamandapa is
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