Jinamanjari 1996 04 No 13

Author(s): Jinamanjari
Publisher: Canada Bramhi Jain Society Publication

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A few seals exist which depict a figure seated in what has been identified as a yogic posture and who does not seem to be wearing clothing apart from the previously mentioned jewellery. Interestingly, this enigmatic figure seems to have connections to later religious practices in that his nudity seems to imply an element of asceticism which suggests a link to the sramana traditions, and perhaps more patently to Digambara Jainism. Furthermore, the identification of his stance as a yogic posture seems to further this connection to later ascetic practice. However, before any firm conclusions can be drawn many problematic elements of this seal contradict such a direct assessment. Most notably the presence of other images in which this horned-being is shown engaging in violent actions such as fighting tiger or, as seen on incised copper tablets from Mohenjo-Daro, carrying a bow and arrow complicate any direct identification with the non-violent practices of Jainism (figs.4,9).
Even though the figure's erect phallus, connection to wild animals and meditative posture have been pointed out as demonstrating links to later Saivism, problems exist here as well.28 Most notably, the seals depicting a bull being presented to the horned-deity in a tree show a kneeling figure wearing horns identical to those worn by the figure in the tree (fig.3). This feature of the ritual being depicted makes it difficult to determine whether other seals depicting horned-figures are meant to be representing supernatural beings (like the figure in the tree), or priestly attendants dressed as the deity (like the kneeling figure), and presents us with a type of costuming that has no parallel in the ritual actions of any of the later major religions of India.
Also, some horned deities appear on seals found at Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro and Kalibangan in which the torso of the horned-being emerges from the body of a tiger or other large feline (fig. 10). This close association with large cats makes it tempting to identify the horned-being as female due to
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