Jinamanjari 1998 04 No 17

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

Page 28

natural rock, which contains seven entrances. The rectangular plinth of the mandapa in here measures 6 m. in length and 5 m. in width, and supported by 20 pillars. The back wall is carved into five shrines. The entrance to the central shrine is divided into șakhas as seen in the early caves of Ajanta. It is rectangular and measures 2.5 m in length and 1.5 m. in breadth. Pārşva figure in the central shrine appears as seated from near and away from it towards the mandapa, it appears as standing. A line of cleavage across below the thighs is more appreciated from a distance.
Cave number four lies left to the third one. Above the entrance to the verandah, there is a semicircular arch resembling the facades of Ajanta. The back of the wall of the cave has a central shrine in elongated chamber, containing a very faint image of Pārsva in natural rock. The hoods of the snake and the face of the figure are clearly visible, suggesting that the original figures were carved in natural rock.
Southwestern Caves
There are three caves, and their excavations and architectural features are similar to the northeastern type.
Cave one has three cells which are mostly covered with water.
Cave two contains 5 entrances to the interior. The mandapa inside is now indicated by only one pillar, and it could have been built over 20 pillars. The central shrine on the back wall contains a faint sculpture of Pārsva, and on either side of the mandapa, there are three niches.
Cave three has eleven entrances giving access into the mandapa. On one of the side walls, the figure of a dvārapāla with a bovine head is faintly seen.
Legend Associated with Osamnabad Jain Caves
Two ancient Jain works - the Brhat Kathakosa of Harisena and the Karakandu Cariyu in Prakrit - give an account of the association of the Osmanabad caves.
The narration is that long ago, there was a king named Dadhiwahana ruling the country of Angadesa with the capital Champanagara. The queen Padmāvati who was in the advanced pregnancy stage had dreamt that she took the tour of the capital garbed as a man over the royal elephant.
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