There are two related scenes depicted here. At the foot of the left-hand panel sit four naked men facing right. Above, a larger nude man sits on a dais, facing two white-swathed figures. Between them are water pots and a monastic broom, examples of which are also found in the lower level.
The panel on the right depicts extreme pain and violence. A blazing fire is ready to burn a body, in the flames at the bottom. A jug, probably full of burning oil, is shown about to pour itself on the fire. Jackals, crows and dogs are greedily devouring the bodies of the inhabitants of hell. Some of them have only heads without bodies.
The scene on the left shows a group of Digambara monks who are spiritually advanced enough to go without clothing. The larger monk on the dais is their head, Sudatta.
The white-clad people in front of him are two novices, Abhayaruci and Abhayamati. As novices they are not spiritually advanced enough to go naked. Sudatta welcomes them while their hands are folded in respect. They are asking permission to seek alms.
The scene on the right can be understood in two ways. It is a pictorial rendering of the description of the cemetery where Sudatta and his group have decided to stay. At the same time, it depicts tortures practised in hell.
Such violent scenes are meant to awaken disgust in the viewer or listener, encouraging them not to behave badly enough to be reborn in the lower world of the hells.
The long protruding eye is a typical feature of western Indian painting. Its origin is unclear.
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.
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:
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:
Section |
Events |
---|---|
1 |
|
2 |
|
3 |
|
4 |
|
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.
Wellcome Trust Library. Beta 1471. Raïdhū. Perhaps 15th century
Wellcome Trust Library. Beta 1471. Raïdhū. Perhaps 15th century
Wellcome Trust Library. Beta 1471. Raïdhū. Perhaps 15th century
Wellcome Trust Library. Beta 1471. Raïdhū. Perhaps 15th century