Mahavira Jain Vidyalay Suvarna Mahotsav Granth Part 1

Author(s): Mahavir Jain Vidyalaya Mumbai
Publisher: Mahavir Jain Vidyalay

Page 684

GLIMPSES OF JAINISM THROUGH ARCHAEOLOGY IN U.P. : 215
The
Architecture :
The earliest architectural remains pertaining to Jainism have been brought to light from various sites around Mathura. The architectural fragments such as the Toranas (gateways), pillars and railings, which were unearthed by Dr. Fuhrer, certainly belonged to an ancient Jaina stūpa which existed at Mathura prior to the Christian era. The existence of such a stūpa is further evidenced by an epigraphic record dated in the year 79 (A.D. 157) which is inscribed on the base of an image once supposed to be of the Arhat Nandyāvarta, but now shown as that of Munisuvrata by K. D. Bajpai who corrected the old reading (Fig. 2). The stūpa mentioned therein is recorded as a work of gods which itself is a great proof of its hoary antiquity. V. A. Smith aptly remarks, “Considering the significance of the phrase in the inscription, built by the gods', as indicating that the building at about the beginning of the Christian era was believed to date from a period of mythical antiquity, the date B.C. 600 for its first erection is not too early." The other types of Jaina architecture in Uttar Pradesh are the monastic establishments and temples which mostly belong to the early medieval period of Indian history. The earliest Jaina temples belonging to this group have been found in the Lalitpur Tahsil of the Jhansi district, in U. P. There are numerous Jaina architectural remains scattered around at several places such as Deogarh, Dudhai, Madanpur etc. The Jaina temples at Deogarh belong to different dates. The main shrine consists of an open pillared hall with six rows of six pillars each. There is a huge collection of images of naked Jaina Tirthankaras carved on a wall in the centre. In front of the hall there is a detached portico supported on four massive pillars which contain important inscriptions. On one of the pillars we find an important epigraph of King Bhoja Deva, the Gurjara-Pratihāra ruler. There are many other Jaina shrines, belonging to later period. We also find an inscription in one of these temples, stating that it was built in Samvat 1493 (A.D. 1436), which clearly shows that Jainism continued to flourish in this region at least upto the 15th cent. A.D.
At Dudhai, another historical centre in the Lalitpur Tahsil of Jhansi District, we find a group of Jaina temples lying half a mile to the south-west and collectively known as the Bania Ka Barat. The
3 Smith, V. A.,“ The Jaina Stūpa and other Antiquities of Mathura",
see introduction.