________________
૧૮૨ હસ્તપ્રતવિદ્યા અને આગ સાહિત્ય: સંશોધન અને સંપાદન fuse use of gold and silver ink against deep crimson, violet or light blue ground became a matter of dignity and pride. The known specimens of these, such as, the Mandu Kalpasutra of A.D. 1439, the Jaunpur Kalpasutra of A.D. 1465, and the most opulant of the MSS. in India, the Deva Sano pado Kalpasutra of Ca. 14758 from Ahmedabad, exhibit an extraordinary skill not only of painting but of the calligraphy as well. The entire folio is treated graphically as one, in which both text the pictorial illustration and in certain cases, the marginal decorations play a significant role. The style and quality of writing and painting however goes on changing in the subsequent periods. The folios grow shorter and broader with lines of text, increasing on each folio.
The Jain calligraphers are popularly known as Lahiyās, Bhojaks, Nāyakas or Brahmans. This institution of Lahiyās or the writers may have come into existence as an occupational caste living on writing of MSS. for the donors. It also appears from several inscriptions that they belonged to the Kayastha caste and their jurisdiction extended from Western India right upto Delhi-Jampur area in U.P. In the later period we come across various other agencies who wrote the Mss., among them the Jain Sadhus and Sadhvis or monks who, apart from being well read, were skilled calligraphers. Some of the monks of lesser religious integrity later came to be recognised as Gorjis who performed socio-religious functions of Astrologers, Vaids, Joshis, and Yatis dealing in mantra and tantra.
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
