Browsing: Jasahara-cariu (Beta 1471)

The caption in the upper margin says: mora vikṛyate – 'the peacock is sold'. Note that the language of this caption is meant to be Sanskrit, not Apabhraṃśa Prakrit like the text itself, but it is incorrect.

Two men dressed in frond-skirts and conical caps face each other while holding peacocks. Behind them stands a female who is dressed similarly but also has a frond-scarf and headdress. Her breasts are not covered because she is a tribal woman. All three wear large earrings but she wears bigger earrings. The couple raise their right hands. The curving white and blue bands along the top indicate that this scene is outside.

The painting shows a peacock being sold by one tribal man to a pair of other tribal people. They probably represent the village guards mentioned in the text.

This scene shows what happens after the tribal man has killed the peahen and taken the young peacock from the forest. His wife complains that they are too poor to feed another mouth. The tribal man sells the bird for one measure of grain to a village guard.

Although peacock flesh is considered edible, out of curiosity the guard decides not to eat the young bird. Instead, he takes it home and treats it as a pet. The bird enjoys life and everybody is charmed by its dance. Seeing its beauty and liveliness, the guard thinks that it would be a good idea to offer the bird to King Yaśomati, who is very fond of games and pastimes. He brings it to the palace, which is described in the text on folio 39 verso.

The tribal men who play a significant role in the story of Yaśodhara are always depicted in the same way in this manuscript. Their costume, which is rather crude, is made of tree-leaves while they wear large earrings and a kind of conical hat. They have a dark complexion. All these features are meant to underline their crudeness, closeness to nature and difference from 'cultivated' people.

The long protruding eye is a typical feature of western Indian painting. Its origin is unclear.

Other visual elements

This is a good example of an average manuscript. A red background is used for the painting but there is no use of gold, intricate design elements or elaborate script.

Script

The script used for the main text is the Jaina Devanāgarī script. It is used for writing numerous Indian languages, here Apabhraṃśa Prakrit.

The 15th-century Digambara poet Raidhū composed a version of one of the most important Jain tales – the Story of Yaśodhara. Called the Jasahara-cariu, which means 'the story of Yaśodhara' in Apabhraṃśa Prakrit, Raidhū’s version has the subtitle of 'having the characteristic of compassion' – daya-lakkhaṇa. This underlines the main teaching of the story, which is a manifesto against violence of all types and a defence of non-violence.

A story with several episodes, the tale of Yaśodhara is a good representative of religious teaching in narrative form – dharma-kathā. Its importance comes from the fact that it shows very clearly the working of karma and rebirth and refers to key concepts, such as:

• violence – hiṃsā – both factual and intentional
• desire or greediness.

Ultimately, all the protagonists become pious Jains and will be emancipated.

The text is divided into four sections called sandhi, which go into detail about all the rebirths that are recounted in the story within a story:

This version of the story has not yet been published. It is known from very few manuscripts, which are all illustrated and in India. However, not a single manuscript is complete. So this one, held in the Wellcome Trust in London, is a precious document, even though it is only the first half of the story. It is probable that the second half of the document is a manuscript originally kept in Delhi, dated 1454 CE. It is also very likely that a single folio in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is part of the same manuscript (see Balbir, forthcoming).

Like other versions of the tale of Yaśodhara, Raidhū's narrative poem is a major inspiration for illustrations in Digambara manuscripts.

Common Era

The period of time starting with the year when Jesus Christ was traditionally believed to have been born. Using CE is a more secular way of dating events in a multinational, multi-religious world.

Digambara

'Sky-clad' in Sanskrit, used for one of the two main divisions of Jainism, in which monks are naked. There are some differences of doctrine or belief between these two sects and to some extent their followers consider themselves as belonging to distinct branches. Divisions can be fierce in practical matters, for example, over the ownership of pilgrimage places, but all sects see themselves as Jains.

Hiṃsā

Violence, the fact of harming in any way.

Jain

Follower of the 24 Jinas or an adjective describing Jain teachings or practices. The term 'Jaina' is also used although 'Jain' is more common.

Kathā

Story, narrative literature.

Saṃsāra

Cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth caused by karma binding to the soul as a result of activities. Only by destroying all karma can this perpetual cycle finish in mokṣa – liberation. The karma gained in life affects the next life, and even future lives, for example:

• in which of the three worlds the life is lived out
• which of four conditions – gati – the body takes, namely human, divine, hellish or as a plant or animal.

Apabhraṃśa

Apabhraṃśa is an umbrella term for the dialects that were the forerunners of modern Indian languages. Taken from the Sanskrit term apabhraṃśa, which literally means 'corrupt' or 'non-grammatical language', Apabhraṃśa was used to write a large number of Jain texts. Though Apabhraṃśa developed over the 6th to 13th centuries, literary works date back to the 8th century.

Sanskrit

A classical language of India, originally used by priests and nobility. Sanskrit has a rich literary and religious tradition. With only a few thousand native speakers nowadays, it is predominantly used in Hindu religious ceremonies and by scholars.

Prākrit

A term for any of the dead vernacular languages of ancient and medieval India. It may be contrasted with classical Sanskrit, the language used by priests and the aristocracy. The Jains used a large variety of Prakrits, with the Jain canon written chiefly in Ardhamāgadhī Prākrit.

Jaina Devanāgarī

The distinctive version of the Devanāgarī script found in Jain manuscripts.

Folio

A single sheet of paper or parchment with a front and a back side. Manuscripts and books are written or printed on both sides of sheets of paper. A manuscript page is one side of a sheet of paper, parchment or other material. The recto page is the top side of a sheet of paper and the verso is the underside.