Studies in Jaina Art

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

Page 79

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STUDIES IN JAINA ART
'mothers' and 'goddesses,' and are invoked chiefly with waters and mountains,
"Caitya-vykşas are mentioned in the Atharva-Veda Parişişta LXXI, large trees are sometimes addressed as deities, they are connected with human fertility, and nymphs inhabiting them are asked to be propitious to passing wedding processions."
Souls or spirits were supposed to dwell in trees, to haunt them and were looked upon as gods. Offerings are made to these trees-spirits, even human sacrifices are offered. They were consulted as oracles, expected to give sons and wealth, and were pleased when garlands are hung upon the branches and lamps lighted on all sides, and 'bali'-offerings made at the foot of the trees. Manu refers to bali'-offerings to the tree spirits. Both Manu and Yajñavalkya ask a snātaka to circumambulate, on his way, sacred trees like the Aśvattha etc.
The Mahābhārata forbids even the falling of the leaves of trees that are known as Caityas. Mm. Kane here interprets Caitya as "trees like the Asvattha that have a platform (cailya) built for them. The Aśvattha was already a sacred tree in the Indus Valley civilization.?
Dr. Coomaraswamy cites a case, where, in explaining the Suciloma Sutta of Samyutta Nikāya, 11.5, a stone dias, throne or platform (lankite mañco) is stated to have been Yakkha's haunt (bhavanam).8 The Mahabhārata in the passage noted above, uses the world Caitya in the sense of a
1 V M., 154; RV. X. 97.4. = YV. XII. 78 = TS. iv. 2. 6.1.ओषधीरिति मातरस्तद्वो देवीरूप ब्रुवे।
2 Coomaraswamy, HIIA., p. 41. 3 Chandogya Upanişad, VI. II. Jätaka, IV, p. 154.
4 Jätaka, V. pp. 472, 474, 488; Jat., IV, 210, 353; III. 23, IV. 153. For the horrid and hideous practices connected with tree-worship, as evidenced trom the Jatakas, see Mehta, Ratilal, Pre-Buddhist India, pp. 326 f.
6 Manusmyti, 3.88 also see Věddha-Gautama, Jivānanda's collection, Part 2, p. 625. Kane, History of Dharma-sastra, II.2, p. 895.
& Mahābhārata, Sāntiparva 69.42 (mai aga FU TFT 917); Kane, History of Dharmaśāstra, II.2. p. 395. The aśvattha is already represented in the Indus Valley on a faience seal with animal heads attached to the stem. Coomaraswamy HITA.. fig. 6.
?. Dr. Coomaraswamy writes : The Bodhidruma (nyagrodha of most Buddhist texts, akşaya vata of the Epic, but pippala or aśvattha of the reliefs) was certainly a sacred tree, haunted by a Devațā, before the Bodhisattva took his seat beneath it. ..Ibid., p. 47.
8 Ibid., p. 47 n. 4. Also see, Odettee Viennot, loc. cit., pl, VIII, fig. D.