Encyclopaedia of Jaina Studies Vol 01 Jaina Art and Architecture

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

Page 24

Encyclopaedia of Jaina Studies
divine figures in Jaina shrines have always been kept in a subordinate position because they are regarded to be inferior to the Tirthankaras.
The stūpa is a visible symbol of the Great Beings like the Tīrthankaras who once existed and whose relics were enshrined in it. It is thus a sacred monument being worshipped by the Jainas. There is plenty of information about stūpa in the Jaina texts, but at present we know of only one Jaina stūpa, the others were probably destroyed during the course of time. The lone Jaina stūpa, that too in a very ruinous condition, is located at Kankāli Țīlá (Mathura); its architecture has been discussed in detail in the Chapter on Jaina Stupa Architecture of this Volume.
The rock-cut caves, which form the subject matter of Chapter IV, consist of both the monastery and the shrine and are represented by about 150 examples ranging in date from the 3rd century B.C. to the 15th century A.D. The caves were primarily excavated for the Jaina recluses to live in and do the penance as evident from the dwelling caves hewn at Rajgir, Udayagiri-Khandagiri, Junagadh etc., but later when the image-worship became popular and the construction of structural temples came in vogue, a good number of rock-cut shrines with Tirthankara images were executed at Udayagiri (M.P.), Ellora, Aihole, Badami, Sittannavasal, Ankai-Tankai etc. in the similar fashion as was being done in the contemporary structural temples. These caves fulfilled the requirement of both the monastery and the shrine.
Now, we come to the structural temples which are incorporated in Chapters V and VI and show the latest form of architectural development of the Jaina religious buildings. They are largest in number and are located at almost all the places where the Jaina community lives or has lived. The exigency of structural temples was primarily felt in the plains where the bulk of population lived, but owing to the absence of rocky hills the rock-cut temples could not be executed there.
From the architectural point of view also, the erection of structural temples was advantageous because they might be raised at any place of the choice of the builder, only that the latter had to compile the required building materials at the chosen site. Another advantage was that there was full scope for alteration and renovation. This is why the Jainas and the followers of other sects preferred to erect structural temples in durable materials like baked bricks and stone from the 6th century A.D. or even from the earlier time.
The Jaina shrine (Jinālaya) was, and now is, raised housing a Jina (Tirthankara) image for worship. In the actual monument a dark glooming chamber (garbhagsha) with Jina figure has been made for worshipping and a hall (mandapa) to perform the other religious works. While the interior of the garbhagrha is left quite plain, the exterior and the whole of attached mandapa or mandapas are usually embellished with divine figures and a variety of decorative patterns. The statuary and decorative elements, which bequeath us a plethora of information about the religious and material life of the contemporary period, are believed to have been displayed to protect the monument from the evil spirits because the plain surface is considered to be ugly and inauspicious in Indian tradition.
The Jaina shrines were not only a place of worship but also a place where the Jaina ascetics used to stay during the rainy season. After four months stay at a place during rainy season the Jaina ascetics have been enjoined to wander from place to place to preach Jaina tenets to the people and collect alms necessary for their sustenance. But about the 5h-6th century A.D. some Jaina monks used to stay for a longer duration of time in the Jaina monasteries and temples. In the beginning they stayed therein just to read and write Jaina texts, but later they made them their permanent abode. As a result, the Caityaväsa tradition belonging to both the Svetāmbara and Digambara sects came into existence. Owing to their permanent settlement the Jaina ascetics
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