Studies in Jaina Art

Author(s): Umakant P Shah
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

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STUDIES IN JAINA ART
Marshall to associate the Sirkap stūpa with Jaina faith but the total absence of any other Jaina relic in the whole site excavated hitherto cannot be disregarded. Jaina traditions only speak of a dharmacakra (Wheel of Law ) set up by Bāhubali, the son of Rşabhanātha, the first Tirthankara, at Taxila. 1
In the Kuşāņa period, the Jainas seem to have worshipped, besides the stūpa, the caitya-tree, the dharmacakra, āyāgapațas, dh vaja-pillars, auspicious
1 A Guide to Taxila by Sir John Marshall, pp. 88 ff and pl. xiii. Avaśyaka Niryukti with commentary of Haribhadra, I. 332 and pp. 144 ff.
It is said that when Rşabha went to Taxila, he reached after dusk; Bahubali (ruling at Takşaśilā ) thought of going to pay his homage next morning and pay due respects along with his big retinue. But the Lord went away and from here, travelled through Bahali.adambailla, Yonaka and preached to the people of Bahali, and to Yonakas and Pahlagas. Then he went to Astăpada and after several years came to Purimatāla near Vinitā, where he obtained Kevalajñāna. These verses show that Takşaśila was probably included in the province of Bahali (Balkh-Bactria) in the age of Avaśyaka Niryukti.
Next morning when Bahubali came to know of the Master's departure, he felt disappointed and satisfied himself only by worshipping the spot where the Lord stood and installing an emblem-The Dharma-Cakra-over it vide, Haribhadra's Avaśyaka Vytli, pp. 147-148 ). The Vasudevahindi and the Paumacariyam do not mention this account of origin of Dhamma-Cakka at Takşaśilā, installed and worshipped by Bahubali.
Other writers following Marshall regard this as a proof of the Jaina tradition that Bāhubali installed the Dharma-Cakra at Taxila. (Dr. Sukthankar in the Annual Report of the Archæological Survey of India for 1914 15, pp. 2 ff. and also Dr. Motichandra fa fa fa 3110 Tiara, Premi Abhinandana Grantha (Hindi), pp. 229 ff. But it will be seen that the earliest known text referring to this tradition is Avaśyaka Niryukti, whose traditional date is not acceptable and that early Digambara sources do not refer to this incident. The Byhal-Kalpa-Bhāsya, V. 5824 refers to Cakra which the commentator explains as Uttarapathe Dharma-cakram. (Vol. V, p. 1536 )
It would, therefore, be proper to differ any conclusions till some definitely early Jaina antiquities are excavated at Taksasilā, Sirkap or at a site nearby. It can only be said that sometime in the 3rd or 4th Centnry A.D., there probably was near Takşabilā, a Jaina site whose origin was attributed to Bahubali, but the Jainas do not seem to have been able to establish long standing strongholds in the North-West (Gandhāra) and Western Punjab and if at all anything existed, it was wiped out in the Hun and Muslim invasions. There did exist a sacred spot where Dharma-Cakra was worshipped, in Northern Indja (Uttarāpatha ), which was more popular with Svetāmbara Jainas, but whose identification with the Sirkap stūpa need not be regarded as final.