Jain Journal 1980 04

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 80

APRIL, 1980
185
In the course of this paper it has become evident that the branch-bending woman and tree motif can be fully and satisfactorily enough explained from Indian sources. The history of this motif in sculpture corroborated by literary evidences permits to see a truly indigenous Indian decorative and a mythological motif in it. We therefore also could put Smith's concluding remarks in the following way ; 'There is no difficulty in believing in the transference of Indian ideas to Alexandria and Asia Minor before and after the Christian era.' This is confirmed by the sensational discovery of an Indian ivory statuette in Pompeii by Professor Maiuri in October 1938, published in Annual Bibliography of Indian Archeology, Volume XIII, for the year 1938, Kern Institute, Leiden, 1940, Plate I, with J. Ph. Vogel's Note on an ivory statuette from Pompeii, pages 1-5. An Indian female figure (height 24 centimeters) is shown nude and standing with her legs crossed. The right arm is raised with a particular purpose turned behind the neck in order to support a festoon of the rich necklace on her back. It is a unique piece of ivory dated A.D.79 as terminus ante quem when the eruption of Vesuvius took place and buried this precious work of art. This early appearance clearly shows that Indian images cannot have remained unknown during the Hallenistic period and the Roman era in the West, Vogel however rejects Smith's suggestion with the concluding remark : 'The resemblance in postures between the “Bacchus" of Aachen and the salabhanjika of Indian art seems to us to be merely accidental.' (The Woman and Tree...
p. 231) 44 Dr. Jitendranath Banerjea was good enough to draw my attention to K, R.
Pisharoti's article "Dohada or the Woman and Tree Motif' for which I would
like to thank him heartily here. 45 The relief contains-Top right : The dream of Queen Maya ; Top left : Its
interpretation; Bottom right : The Nativity ; Bottom left : Presentation
before the Yaksa Sakyavardhana. 46 With regard to the Bharhut images of Culakoka Devata and Canda Yaksi
Zimmer's book also follows Pisharoti's interpretation verbally. In description of Plates, 1st Vol., p. 401, on Fig. 33b we read : 'Culakoka Devata standing on an elephant and executing the latavestika ("creeper vine") type of tree embrance, c. first half first century B.C.' The same interpretation is given with regard to Canda Yaksi which he sees on a fish-tailed horse as Pisharoti does. (cf, my Note 36) These notes in Zimmer's book reproduce Pisharoti's views and interpretations
without any critic and without mentioning his name. 47 At the end of this article let me express my gratitute to Dr. J. N. Banerjea,
General Secretary, Asiatic Society, who kindly encouraged me to write this article, to my friend Prof. Debidas Chatterjee, Science College, Patna, who, read the first proofs of a portion of this article and made valuable suggestions, to prof. Saraswati, Publication Officer, Asiatic Society, and to Mr. B. G. Ellis, Manager of the Baptist Mission Press, Calcutta, who personally went through the whole article and saw to it that the photos were well printed. I thank him
heartily for that. * 'Das Mahaparinirvanasutra', Text in Sanskrit and Tibetisch, verglichen mit dem
Pali, nebst einer Uebersetzung der chinesischen Entsprechung im Vinaya der Mulasarvasti-vadins, auf Grund von Turfan-Handschriften herausgegeben und bear-beitet von Ernst Waldschmidt, Teil III, 1951, Akademie-Verlag Berlin.