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Chapter 6.6 JAIN ART AND ARCHITECTURE
ainism has been a living faith in India for thousands of years, and it has contributed a J long and significant heritage to Indian art and culture. Jains love both literature and art,
and they believe them to be of a great aid in promoting the values of their faith. As a result of royal patronage and the patronage of wealthy Jains, in practically all parts of India, there are stone inscriptions; the remnants of stupas (sacred mounds), cave temples, freestanding temples and images. Jain sastra bhandaras (libraries) and temples have preserved the rich treasures of their art and culture. Some of these artefacts are very ancient: including, manuscripts on palm leaves and paper, covering a variety of subjects both unadorned and highly decorated with paintings; painted and embroidered wall hangings (patas) on cloth or paper, both for daily and tantric (using mystical formulas) worship. The artwork also includes diagrams and illustrations from Jain cosmology; scrolls with illustrations of artefacts, jyotisa (astrology, dreams and omens) and vijnapti patras (letters of invitation to ascetics) on painted or embroidered scrolls. Jains have also preserved fine pieces of artwork such as painted wooden boxes and book covers for manuscripts; the artwork of shrines, statues in stone, metal and semi-precious and precious stones; and sculptures and woodcarvings.
Jain art has been essentially religious and, it would appear, the Jains carried their spirit of acute enquiry and even asceticism into the sphere of art and architecture, so much so that in conventional Jain art, ethical subjects seem to predominate. There are minute details in texts, such as the Maanasaara (circa sixth-century CE), showing a conventional system of sculpture and architecture to which artisans were expected to conform without deviation (Ghosh A. 1974:1.37)
It should be noted that when we speak of 'Jain art' (or architecture) we mean art produced for Jains. Invariably, the artists themselves would not be Jains but specialists in the fields of painting, sculpture and so on, who could produce work conforming to the iconographic and other conventions demanded by the Jains commissioning their work.
The most distinctive contribution of Jainism to art is in the realm of iconography, as Jain teachings oblige the laity to contribute towards temples and icons, according to their means, at least once during a lifetime, as the merit earned by this helps the devotee to cross the ocean of worldly life'.
Jain images are serene and happy in expression and may be seated or standing in meditation. Some have their retinue (parikar) around them. Their gaze is focused on the tip of the nose and they wear a benign expression. The contribution of northern India to the development of Jain iconography is very significant. According to the Jain tradition, all twenty-four tirthankaras of the present era were born in this region, and it was in this region that most of the Jain deities first gained sculptural representation.
Iconography The Jain 'virtuous meditation (dharma dhyaana) describes the meditator, the objects of meditation, the technique of meditation and the result of meditation (liberation). Of these, the objects of meditation are of particular importance to Jain iconography. These are:
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