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Aparigraha as Reflected in Jaina Art : 83 It is in this light that the very interesting concept of Jivantaswāmi and its expression in stone, is worth contemplating. Such a person, Jivantaswāmi, is totally oblivious to the conditions of life around him. According to the Śvetāmbara tradition, Mahāvīra, on the request of his elder brother, desisted from formally renouncing the world
tained the dispassionate state at heart. He turned averse to material possessions and performed rigorous meditation, standing in the kāyotsarga-mudrā, within the palace itself. Images showing his as Jivantaswāmi were carved from the Gupta period onwards, mainly at the Western Indian Svetāmbara Jain sites. Mahāvīra is shown robed in a dhoti and crowned in mukuta and decked in jewels as befits royalty, while in the posture of absolute renunciation (kāyotsarga-mudrā). Such images of Mahāvīra known as Jivantaswāmī, truly represent a portrait statue. They are found across the region, from Akota (Vadodara, Gujarat), Osian (Jodhpur, Rajasthan), to Khimsavara (Nagaur, Rajasthan) and a number of other places. The Jivantaswāmi Mahāvīra images, showing the state of complete mental aparigraha even while bearing ornaments, is a wonderful example of the transformative principle in the concept of aparigraha successfully expounded in art. The concept of Jivantaswāmībecame an aspiration model for a human being and was subsequently applied to creating the images of some other Jinas also, namely Sāntināth, Neminātha and Pārsvanātha. Bāhubali- He is also known as Gommațeśvara in the Southern tradition, occupies a singularly venerated position in the Jaina tradition and worship and hence in visual art. It is particualrly important to note that Bahubali was neither a Jina (or Tīrtharkara- highest in Jaina worship) nor does he figure in the list of the sixtythree Salākāpuruṣas or great men, named in the Jaina texts. Bāhubalī was the younger son of the first Jina, Rşabhanātha. In a fierce fight with his elder brother Bharat Cakravarti, Bāhubalī emerged as victor but in the final moment of triumph, the futility of the worldly power and possessions dawned on him. He handed back the reins of power to his brother, renounced worldly possessions and went on to attain
