Siddhakshetra Mangi-Tungi: A Jaina Tirtha in Maharashtra, India (original) (raw)
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Pratna Samiksha, 2019
The eastern fringe areas of the Chotanagpur plateau are well known as archaeologically very potential and numerous archaeological studies on the region have been carried out. The present survey is an attempt at an analytical study of some new sculptural remains from a micro-region within the larger geographical orbit of the Chotanagpur plateau. The study emphasizes on the Jaina connection with the Radha region and its own art style which gradually developed in this zone and further underlines the stylistic development by essentially local schools of art, as revealed from a thorough scrutiny of the iconography of available sculptural assemblages from a cluster of sites. Keywords : Chotanagpur plateau, sculptures, contexts, sites, Tirthankara.
Stūpa as Tīrtha: Jaina Monastic Funerary Monuments
2012
One of the principal findings of recent research at SOAS on Jaina rituals of death is that in addition to temples relic stūpas serve as alternative destinations for pilgrimage across almost the entire Jaina sectarian spectrum. The report points out some of the characteristics of these pilgrimages and offers two maps of the geographical distribution of Jaina stūpas in India.
REVISITING A LOST JAINA TEMPLE SITE IN THE CHHOTANAGPUR PLATEAU REGION
Journal of Bengal Art, 2019
Deultand is a modest village situated in the Seraikela Kharaswan district of Jharkhand. The potential of this village as an archaeological site was first reported by J. D. Beglar. More than a century later, the site of Deultand was again discussed by Dilip K. Chakrabarti in the last decade of the preceding century. Chakrabarti mentioned the find of four figures of Tīrthaṅkara Ādinatha, the first Jaina Tīrthaṅkara, which were found from this site and housed in a modern temple probably built over the foundations of an old temple at Deultand. The temple of Deultand was thereafter discussed by D. R. Das. The present study has attempted to discuss the iconographic details of some Jaina images from Deultand. Though this site was reported by some earlier scholars, but none of them studied the details of the iconographic style of these Jaina images. These Jaina images exhibit some new aesthetic elements which reflect an essentially regional variation among the Jaina art styles of this part of the Chhotanagpur plateau region.
The Buddhist Caves at Aurangabad: the Impact of the Laity
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Jaina Forest Monk in Meditation: A Rare Jaina Image of Balarāma at Mt. Māṅgī-Tuṅgī
2013
The article investigates an intriguing, tangible link that was created between the Balabhadra legend of the Śvetāmbara Jaina Universal History and the ancient Digambara Jaina pilgrimage site of Mt. Māṅgī-Tuṅgī in northern Mahārāṣṭṛa: a rare and possibly unique image of a naked Digambara Jaina monk, Balabhadra, turning his back to his devotees. The narrative basis of this image is explored and placed in the wider context of this religious site and Jaina sacred geography. The article is a slightly revised and expanded version of the article 'A Rare Jaina Image of Balarāma at Mt. Māṅgī-Tuṅgī' (2013)
The idea of pilgrimage to sacred places in Buddhism was established by the Buddha himself. Before he passed into Mahapari-nibbana, the Buddha advised his close disciples to visit four places that may be for their inspiration after he was gone. They are Lumbini, where he was born; Bodh Gaya, where he attained supreme enlightenment; Deer Park in Sarnath, where he preached the First Sermon; and Kushinagar, where he passed into Mahaparinibbana. The literary sources refer that the follower should certainly visit these places having feelings of reverence, as these places reflect the four special events of the Buddha’s life. In passage of time these four sacred places and associated shrines have become the focal points of inspiration and revelation for any follower. By the time of King Ashoka, four more places, viz. Sravasthi, Sankisa, Rajagir and Vaishali, that were closely associated with the Buddha and scenes of his principal miracles, were added to the list of sacred places. Together they make the Eight Great Places of pilgrimage in Buddhism. Of course, Buddhism had disappeared by the 13th century, however under the guidance of Anagarika Dharmapala (1865-1933), Mahabodhi Society get established and took the leading role in re-establishing and maintaining the tradition of pilgrimages to all the major Buddhist sites. Keywords: Bodh Gaya, Buddhism, Kushinagar, Lumbini, pilgrimage, Rajagir, spirit of place, Sankisa, Sarnath, Sravasthi, Vaishali.
South Asian History and Culture, 2020
This paper examines the programme of installing icons and inscriptions by members of the Jain religious community in the fifteenth century at the site of Gopālagiri, the prominent mountain occupying central Gwalior. I look at how this project provided opportunities for Jain patrons to literally inscribe themselves into the natural, social, and sacred landscape as benefactors to the community. In this way, I look at forms of memory construction and the ways in which they are encoded in the local landscape through the archaeological and epigraphic record. An analysis of the data obtained from this project further reveals that it was mobilized by a socio-religious network consisting of merchants, monastics, scholastics, and religious clerics. In this context of patronage, I also present a case study of one of the sculptures found here and provide an updated analysis of its inscription in order to reconstruct the circumstances of its production.
• “Old Tool for New Times: The Discovery of an Ancient Holy Site in Contemporary India”
Journal of the British Association for the Study of Religions, v. 20, 2018
This paper aims to show how different typologies of narration can be involved in the place-making process of a religious centre in India based on the claim of a yogi to have discovered in a jungle an ancient holy place, Garh Dhām, through his powers. As recorded by a devotee-run website, it was claimed to be the same place where King Surath met the sage Medha – as narrated in the Devī Māhātmya, a famous section of the Markaṇḍeya Purāṇa – and where the first ever Durgā Pūjā (worship) was ‘historically’ celebrated. The ‘discoverer’ is a yogi, Brahmānand Girī, who living in jungle was able to find hidden temples thanks to his austerity (tapasyā) and yogic powers (siddhis). The narration of his life story and of his powers recalls those appearing in Indian hagiographies and texts that describe siddhis. The discovery of a holy place by a yogi does not represent an isolated case since similar discoveries dot the history of Hindu religious orders. As in these latter cases, the place-making process of Garh Dhām aims to give authority and legitimacy to the foundation of a new religious centre and so to further spread the Durgā cult in the area and to attract pilgrims.