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An Unique Jaina Image from Sankarpur,
Burdwan
AMAL ROY
An image of Santinatha, the sixteenth Jaina Tirthankara has been found in the so-called Nyantesvara temple at Sankarpur under Mangalkote thana in Burdwan district of West Bengal.
According to local tradition, this exquisite specimen of sculpture was found in the river-bed of Ajaya by one of the fore-fathers of the present Brahmin custodians of the deity. From there it was brought in the village Sankarpur, located about 15 kms. away from Mangalkote. It being a nude image belonging to the Digambara Jaina sect, it is now worshipped inside the temple as Nyantesvara Siva.
The image is curved out of fine-grained black-basalt or kaşti-pāthar, probably quarried from the neighbouring hills of Rajmahal of Bihar State.
The figure (height 41 feet, width 3 feet, thickness 6 inches approx.) is standing in kayotsarga mudrā on a double-petalled lotus. On the centre of the pedestal, just under the lotus a deer, the conventional lāñchana of Santinatha is depicted. On both sides of the deer, panels of Navagrahas are also depicted. Two cauri-bearers stand in graceful pose, one on either side of the lower part of the figure. The ornamentations and physical features of the cauri-bearers show a high degree of artistic skill. The head is covered with the usual trilinear umbrella or chatra. Caityavrkşa, the tree associated with the kevala-knowledge and heavenly musician-couple playing drums alongwith flying Gandharvas with garlands are also depicted at the top of the oval-shaped halo. Other characteristic features of the image are four miniature Jinas depicted on either side of the central figure. Among these the two depicted on the lower part, standing besides of the cauri-bearers, are without their usual lāñchanas. So, they are not identifiable. The other two standing on either side of the upper part of the image are Sambhavanatha
1 A. Ghosh, Jaina Art & Architecture, p. 26;
R. P. Mohapatra, Jaina Monuments of Orissa, p. 11. • B. C. Bhattacharya, The Jaina Iconography, p. 7.
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