Jain Spirit 2003 03 No 14

Author(s): Jain Spirit UK
Publisher: UK Young Jains

Page 34

SCULPTORS REVEAL INNER BEAUTY
embellished with sculptures and decorations. They were placed in the sanctum-sanctorum of the shrines together with the image of the Tirthankara, the one who would show them the path to salvation.
Ranakpur and Abu the decorations in marble are like filigree lace. Creepers, animal motifs, narrative panels, ceilings with a hanging lotus surrounded by musicians and dancers all capture the attention of the viewers. The halls (mandapas) are profusely decorated and each of them lead to the inner sanctum where the seated Tirthankara invites you to tread the right path.
In most cases, the artists or architects cannot be identified as they have left no record of who they were or what work they did. Sometimes, like in Karnataka, there are inscriptions that include the names of the engraver of the inscription as also that of the sculptor. For example, on a nishidhi at Shravana Belgola
Sudha Shesadri writes for the eminent journal of Indian art 'Marg! She is a freelance writer based in India.
V&A/LA COUNTY MUSEUM
TARUN CHOPRA
V&A LA COUNTY MUSEUM
TARUN CHOPRA
Gupta Period Digambara Jina
Sculpture and pillar decoration, Ranakpur
Celestial dancer, Ranakpur
Filigree work, Dilwara, Mt. Abu
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the inscription reads: "The writer of the inscription was pargade Chavaraja, a lay disciple of Prabhachandrasiddhantadeva and the sculptor Hoysalachari's son, Vardhamanachari, an ornament on the forehead of titled sculptors.' Sometimes the inscriptions listed the varied abilities of the artist, like an inscription from 1116: 'Expert in craftsmanship in gold work, metal work, stone work, jewel work, wood work, painting, palm-leaf work and iconographic art.' At Ranakpur, the architect Depaka is not only mentioned in an inscription but portrayed on a pillar in the meghanada mandapa. Thus, importance was given not just to the donor but to the religious preceptor, the local rulers, as also the artist and architect
In many monuments in India, one will observe images of donors with hands folded in the anjali mudra, placed in the hallways or entrances to the shrines. At Abu, Ranakpur and other shrines one sees donor figures - these are of course not portraits of the donors themselves but representations. The earliest mention occurs in a legend which mentions that: 'Bharata, the son of Rshabha built a temple at Mount Shatrunjaya enshrining an image of his father. In this shrine he is said to have placed a portrait figure of himself standing with hands folded, in front of the image of Rshabha.
Just as in the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, the Jains also built shrines, caves as well as structural temples, that were
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March - May 2003. Jain Spirit
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Jain Education Intemational