The partly damaged caption in the upper-right corner says: Astikagrāmi Śūlapāṇiyakṣa – 'the yakṣa Śūlapāṇi in the village [of] Astikagrāma'.
A man injures the ear of Mahāvīra while he is motionless in a posture of meditation called kāyotsarga. They are inside a temple. In the top-right corner, a figure sits on a bolster.
This episode is not in the Kalpa-sūtra itself but is known from other narrative sources relating to the lives of the Jinas, both oral and literary. The clue is the place-name Astikagrāma – 'the village of bones'. The name comes from the heaps of bones found there. They were all that was left of villagers killed by the noxious yakṣa Śūlapāṇi. He agreed to stop killing people if a temple dedicated to him were built on the site of the village. This was done.
During the first rainy season after Mahāvīra has reached omniscience, he decides to stay in this temple, despite being advised against it. He stands in meditation posture, without a movement, as the picture shows. The yakṣa, here shown on his right, creates various tortures to shake the ascetic's concentration. In particular, he inflicts seven wounds on Mahāvīra, injuring his head, eye, ear, nose, tooth, back and nail.
When he realises that he will never succeed, he admits failure and bows down respectfully to the Jina. This is what could be depicted on the upper level, if the figure is the yakṣa.
The two figures with Mahāvīra probably both represent the yakṣa Śūlapāṇi at different times in the story. The larger Śūlapāṇi is injuring the ascetic while the figure on the top right, sitting on the bolster, may represent Śūlapāṇi's acknowledging Mahāvīra's unshakeable spiritual focus.
As with many Kalpa-sūtra manuscripts, there is a clear intention to make the manuscript a valuable and remarkable object in itself. This aim is signalled by the:
The diamond in the centre is a symbolic reminder of the way in which manuscripts were bound when they were on palm leaf. Strings through holes in the paper were used to thread together the loose folios so the reader could turn them over easily. The diamond is in the place where one of the holes would once have been.
The Kalpa-sūtra is the most frequently illustrated Jain text of the Śvetāmbara sect. It is read and recited by monks in the Śvetāmbara festival of Paryuṣaṇ, which takes place in August to September each year.
The first part of the Kalpa-sūtra deals with the lives of the Jinas, especially Mahāvīra, Pārśva, Nemi and Ṛṣabha. It features almost identical stories of their births, lives as princes, renunciation, enlightenment and final emancipation. The second part – Sthavirāvali – is a praise of the early teachers of Jainism. The third part – Sāmācārī – deals with particular monastic rules to be followed during the rainy season.
Lines 1 to 2 of the text beside the picture say:
Mahāvīra spent the first rainy season near Astikagrāma.
Lines 1 to 2 of the text beside the picture say:
1. Mahāvīre Aṭṭhiyaggāmaṃ nīsāe paḍhamaṃ antarā-
2. vāsaṃ vāsaṃ uvāgae
This manuscript of the Kalpa-sūtra is fully digitised on the Gallica Bibliothèque numérique website, part of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (National Library of France) in Paris. Though the website is available in English, the information about the artefact is in French.
This rare palm-leaf page in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art comes from an early 14th-century manuscript of the Śvetāmbara scripture of the Kalpa-sūtra. The picture illustrates the episode where the antelope-headed god Hariṇaigameṣin transfers the embryo of the Jina-to-be Mahāvīra from the brahmin lady Devānandā to the kṣatriya queen Triśalā.
http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/131608.html?mulR=656|4
This highly decorated page from a 15th-century manuscript of the Kalpa-sūtra is provided by the National Gallery of Australia. A young man performs the rite of keśa-loca – ‘pulling out of the hair’ – which indicates indifference to the body. It is part of the initiation ceremony of dīkṣā, in which an initiate renounces the world and becomes a mendicant. He is watched by Śakra, king of the gods who takes an active role in the lives of the 24 Jinas.
http://artsearch.nga.gov.au/Detail-LRG.cfm?IRN=177852&View=LRG
This illustrated page from a 15th-century manuscript of the Kalpa-sūtra is provided by the National Gallery of Australia. At the beginning of the section dealing with the 22nd Jina, Ariṣṭanemi, also called Nemi, the painting shows the famous episode of Prince Nemi's decision to renounce worldly life just before his wedding. He is so appalled by the distress of the animals due to be killed for his wedding feast that he decides to become a monk.
http://artsearch.nga.gov.au/Detail-LRG.cfm?View=LRG&IRN=147981&PICTAUS=TRUE
The National Gallery of Australia offers an elaborately illustrated page from a 15th-century manuscript of the Kalpa-sūtra. The 23rd Jina Pārśva sits in the lotus posture of meditation. He is easily identifiable from his seven-headed snake headdress.
http://artsearch.nga.gov.au/Detail-LRG.cfm?IRN=177853&View=LRG
This illustration is from a page of the Śvetāmbara scripture of the Kalpa-sūtra in the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. It shows the last Jina, Mahāvīra, performing the rite of keśa-loca – ‘pulling out of the hair’ – which indicates indifference to the body. It is part of the initiation ceremony of dīkṣā, in which an initiate renounces the world and becomes a mendicant. He is watched by Śakra, king of the gods, who takes an active role in the lives of the 24 Jinas.
http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/105108.html?mulR=656|9
British Library. Or. 14262. Unknown author. Perhaps 15th century
Victoria and Albert Museum. IS 84-1963. Unknown author. Early 16th century
British Library. Or. 13341. Unknown author
Wellcome Trust Library. Gamma 3. Unknown author. 1503