Jaina Rock Cut Caves In Western India Part 01

Author(s): Viraj Shah
Publisher: Agam Kala Prakashan

Page 48

Jaina Rock-cut Caves in Western India The verandah is supported on six pillars and two corresponding pilasters. But now only the left pilaster and stumps of all the pillars remain. The pilaster has a square shaft topped by a multi faceted portion and taranga potikā or rolled brackets. The upper portion of the shaft is carved with intricate designs of beaded festoons, diamonds with abstract design around and floral design, each in a row one above the other. The rolls of the bracket are also carved with designs (Plate 5). In the right corner of the verandah was a door leading to a small room containing a cistern. This door is now closed with blocks of stones and a semi-half circular shaped structure has been built in the front. It is difficult to fix the date of this alteration, which is definitely much later than the cave. The room with the cistern is now entered through a door on the south. This room measuring 5.1 m by 3.6 has two rough and square pillars and two openings in the floor leading down to the cistern Resting against the western wall of this room, are three loose icons, of which two are chaumukhas and one is a seated Jina. On the wall are carved two seated Jinas. Only the outlines of these icons can be made out at present. In the left corner of the verandah is a plain cell, which is somehow not mentioned by Burgess (Burgess 1878: Plate II). Above the door, are five square niches with a triangular top. In the back and front wall of the verandah and close to these niches, there are two other similar niches. Thus, in all seven niches have been carved, though their purpose cannot be determined. The plinth of the verandah is carved with gana figures, each in a separate compartment. The bars dividing the compartment are carved with intricate and stylised floral design. There are twelve ganas on the right side of the steps and thirteen on the left. Each gana is a fat, dwarfish figure with long hair falling over the ears. These gana figures are not very clear, as the rock here has weathered (Plate 6).
An architectural peculiarity, noticed also by Burgess, is a passage in the roof of the front aisle of the hall. (Burgess 1878: 7). The roof of the front aisle is not flat, but gable-shaped. In the western end is a big hole or a door, which leads to a passage. The passage first leads to outwards or southwards and then westwards and downwards. It comes over or behind the water cistern, about 3m beyond it. According to Burgess, it is possible that a passage also ran along over the verandah (Plate 7). It is difficult to conjecture the use of such passage. It is quite possible that this passage was used to reach the cistern from the hall, in case the hall had to be kept closed.
According to Burgess, five doors in the back wall of the verandah lead to the hall. (Burgess 1878: 5). But there are only three doors interspersed with windows. Since the front portion of the cave ceiling has fallen, the verandah and the front aisle of the hall are partially roofless. The central doorway is present only in the form of three sakhas seen on the floor, but the side doorways are extant, while the windows can be made out by traces of cutting on the top of the back wall. The side doors have two plain sakhās. The doors have rectangular grooves as door fittings.
The hall is quite large, around 24m by 24m. In the middle of the hall are thirtytwo pillars arranged in two squares. The inner square has twelve and the outer one has twenty pillars. One pillar in the northwestern corner of the outer square remains intact, while only the stumps of few pillars and the brackets of all the pillars are extant. The shafts of all the pillars have been are reconstructed by the state department of Archaeology and Museums. The line drawings of pillars made by Burgess testify that at least some of the pillars were extant when he visited the site. (Burgess 1878: Plate IV).