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6 ANALYSIS
point is the social view, i.e. an attitude that concerns social relations, the relationship of non-human and human animals. The second aspect is the soteriological one. It refers to the ultimate reality or the "knowledge of the self". Our author follows the patterns of Dig. ethics, which have been outlined earlier, in manuals such as Samantabhadra's Rk. Those patterns have been thoroughly analysed in Williams 1963. The decision to instruct the reader might have been guided by the consideration that Jain dharma in the tradition (see Chapter 2.7 Anuyoga) is a valid means of knowledge. The authority becomes evident due to the repetition of sayings of the excellent teachers (āptas) and their pupils.282 By referring to the sacred doctrine Vasunandin's voice is bestowed with authority. Our author provides the readership with three means of purification: the essence of the Jain doctrine, the rules of conduct, and the topics meant for contemplation. With regard to the contents and stylistic elements of the poems in Sr (57-205), the key motif seems not to be originally Jain. Therefore, I will outline in brief some terms by means of which the key motif could be isolated and related to strings of thought in Asia.
The following definitions are based on considerations of Panofsky 1962, Wu 1987, and Seyfort Ruegg 2008. Let us understand "motif' in the strict sense in that it denotes the subject-matter of visual representations.283 "Motif is a pattern or an abstract idea which is developed and repeated in the work by the author. "Theme" denotes an abstraction from a motif, or, in an extended sense, a generalisation about related literary and artistic motifs. Although there are no comparable Jain representations of the theme of "transmigration" and "post-mortem purgation" in visual art, we find some in Buddhist Central Asian and South East Asian sculptures and wallpaintings.284 In the chosen section of Vasunandin's manual we find many examples of human wickedness determined by ideological sets, or - to say it
282 The Digs. possess patterns of virtues of the excellent Jain teachers who are called "liberated souls" (siddhas). Those virtues are mentioned in Śr (6-8). For the concept of āpta see Rk 1.6; Fujinaga 2006:107-111.
2831 employ the terms "motifs" and "themes" in the way defined by Panofsky 1962:5ff. and Wu 1987:86 with slight modifications. One should take into account that Vasunandin describes the suffering of the beings in the four destinies in an impressive, imaginative style. With his stylistic means he intends to exhort the reader. Therefore, I consider the term "motif to be adequate in this case.
284 In the Buddhist traditions there are texts concerning ethics and death rituals which consist of a "catalogue of crime" comparable to that of Vasunandin. The idea to describe (and depict) human faults and the corresponding punishments, human virtues and their rewards, was transferred into new social and psychological contexts. We find for instance in South East Asia and China medieval textual and visual representations. Texts such as the Karma-vibhanga served as the source of adaptions in visual art, for instance in the reliefs in the Borobudur ("Hidden foot"). I owe this reference to Prof. Dr. Willem Bollée and Dr. Monika Zin. See further Gonda 1970; Zin 2006; for Chinese representations cf. Kehren 1998/ 1999.
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