Treasures of Jaina Bhandaras

Author(s): Umakant P Shah, Dalsukh Malvania, Nagin J Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

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Treasures of Jaina Bhandāras
mainly through the generous cooperation of the late Agama-Prabhākara Muni Śri Punyavijayaji.3 This resulted in a wider and deeper interest in Jaina Art and culture and, with the main help and cooperation of the late Muni, Sarabhai Nawab published Jaina Citrakalpadruma, Vol, I (in 1935 A.D.). Moti Chandra's monumental work on Jaina Miniature Paintings from Western India (1949 A.D.) is still a standard scientific work on the art and technique of Western Indian miniature paintings. But even then, the Svetāmbara Jaina collections in Gujarat and Rajasthan were not fully explored, and fresh material has been steadily coming to light in the last quarter-century or so. With this new material, a new approach or rather emphasis in exploitation of Jaina sources is started by Moti Chandra and U. P. Shah in their New Documents of Jaina Paintings (Bombay, 1962) and in U. P. Shah's More Documents of Jaina Paintings (Ahmedabad, 1975) by trying to find out and publish especially those documents which bear a date and/or the name of the place of copying. With the help of the material so far published, and with several new documents discussed in the present work, one can now form a better idea of several centres of painting and styles in Gujarat and Rajasthan, especially from fourteenth to the twentieth centuries A.D. The present work aims more at presenting new material and pointing out their relevance in Indian art studies, rather than giving detailed discussions on every document and its illustrations.
brought to light, only a few years ago several Digambara Jaina illustrated manuscripts, mainly of Yaíodhra-Carita and Adi-purana from Dig. Jaina Bhandaras or temple collections at Karanja, Jaipur, Amber, Beawar, Delhi, Gwalior, Idar, Karamsad, Surat etc. Unfortunately, in her recent article in Jaina Art and Architecture, Vol. III pp 411-427, she has not given details of her sources and has usually referred to them as merely "private collections." Before Mrs. Doshi's new finds, Pramod Chandra, Moti Chandra and Karl Khandalawala discussed and published Mahāpurāņa from Digambara Jaina Naya Mandir collections at Delhi and from Dig. Jaina Bhandara at Jaipur, vide, Khandalawala and Moti Chandra, New Documents of Indian Painting : a reappraisal, pp. 69-78, colour pls. 17-19 & Figs. 141-145, 147, 148, 150-151 etc.; Moti Chandra, An Illustrated Ms. of Mahāpurāna in the collection of Digambara Jaina Nayā Mandir, Delhi, Lalit Kala no. 5, pp. 68-81.
Muni Sri Punyavijayaji was the main source of inspiration in the founding of The L. D. Institute of Indology, Ahmedabad, and was till death, the chief architect and guide of all projects of this Institute which was started with the precious gift of over ten thousand manuscripts etc. from his collections and with the very generous Trust founded by Sheth Kasturbhai Lalbhai. Later Sarabhai Nawab published, from Ahmedabad, Oldest Rajasthani Paintings from Jaina Bhandāras (1959 A.D.), Pavitra Kalpa-sutra ed. by Muni Punyavijaya (1952), Jesalmere Citrāvali, ed. by Muni Punyavijaya (1951), Jaina Citrakalpadruma, Vol. II (1958).