Mahavira Jain Vidyalay Suvarna Mahotsav Granth Part 1

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

Page 843

344 : SHRI MAHAVIRA JAINA VIDYALAYA GOLDEN JUBILEE VOLUME
of the Jina images in the inside niches here is stylistically of the tenth century.
The largest Jaina temple at Nadol is that of Jina Padmaprabha which like the Neminātha temple, faces north. BHANDARKAR does not mention the former two Jaina temples though he does take notice of this latter one, and thus commented: "Of the Jaina temples in Nadol, there is only one that deserves to be noticed. It is the one dedicated to Padmaprabha, the sixth Tirthamkara.'71 The Mülaprāsāda as well as the Gūdhamandapa are fully decorated, of the Māru-Gurjara style of the third quarter of eleventh century with which we are familiar from a number of temples in north Gujarat?? and the Someśvara temple at Pali.73 In fact it is the largest extant temple of that age in all Western India. The Mülaprāsāda, about 12 M wide, is fully decorated and possesses all the mouldings except aśvathara in the pitha (Fig. 23). It is tri anga on plan and, following the tradition of the third quarter of eleventh century, is broken up into a large number of vertical chases. The mandovara is also fully decorated in confirmance with the architectural taste of the age. The jangha shows Jina figures in the bhadra niches, Dikpālas on the karnas, and apsarases on the pratirathas of the mandovara of the Mülaprāsāda. The bifacial karna of the Güdhamandapa possesses deep sunk niches (Fig. 24). Deep sunk niches appear for the first time in the third quarter of eleventh century as attested by Māru-Gurjara temples both in Gujarat as well as in Rajasthan. Such are found here in connection with the Mülaprāsāda. But to find it in association with the karņa of the Gūdhamandapa is certainly unusual but not an unappealing feature. Here they harbour Vidyadevis among whom Vajrānkuśā, Vajraśșnkhalā and a finely rendered figure of Rohiņi may be discerned. The Gūdhamandapa, save for its lateral porticos, is a little less than half meter wider than the Mūlaprāsāda.
71 Progress Report of the Archaeological Survey of India, Western
Circle', 1909, p. 46. 72 For example, the Nilakantheśvara temple at Sunak, and Dugdheśvara
Mahādeva temple at Mandropur.. 73 The red stone Someśvara temple at Pali is larger than the Gujarat
temples cited in the preceding footnote, though not as much ornate, and similar on plan. Its Mülaprāsāda is 7.11 M wide; Rangamandapa is 8.63 M, wide and the total length is 14.6 M. It is a pañcāyatana shrine,