On the left, a lady is on her couch in her bedroom. It is the kṣatriya lady, Queen Triśalā, into whom Mahāvīra’s embryo was transferred. She is holding the newborn Mahāvīra in her arms and looking at him tenderly. On the right side is a female attendant, fanning the queen with a fly-whisk.
This is the standard scene of Mahāvīra’s birth, and, more generally, is used for the births of all Jinas.
The long protruding eye is a typical iconographic feature of western Indian painting. Its origin is not clearly known.
Note the painter’s care for details of the figures as well as of the furniture and decorative elements.
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 elaborate script used is the Jaina Devanāgarī script, which is here like calligraphy.
It is an old type in the way the sounds e and o are notated when used with a consonant, and is known as pṛṣṭhamātrā script.
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.
[In that night in which the Venerable Ascetic Mahāvīra was born,] there was light originated by [many] descending and ascending [gods and goddesses]. In that night in which the Venerable Ascetic Mahāvīra was born, there was noise and confusion originated by many ascending and descending gods and goddesses. In that night in which the Venerable Ascetic Mahāvīra was born, many demons in Vaiśramaṇa’s service belonging to the animal world rained down on the palace of [Mahāvīra's father] King Siddhārtha a great rain of gold, a rain of diamonds, a rain of clothes [, ornaments, leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds, garlands, perfumes, colours, powder, and riches]
Translation by Hermann Jacobi
1. //tehi ya / uppayaṃtehi ya / ujjovayā vi hotthā //
2. jaṁ rayaṇiṁ ca ṇaṁ samaṇe bhagavaṁ Mahāvīre jāe taṁ ra-
3. yaṇiṁ ca ṇaṁ bahūhiṁ devehiṁ devīhi ya uvayaṃtehi
4. uppayaṃtehiṁ uppiṁ-jalamāṇa-bhūyā kahakaha-bhū-
5. yā yāvi hotthā // jaṃ rayaṇiṃ ca ṇaṃ samaṇe bhagavaṃ Mahā-
6. vīre jāe taṃ rayaṇiṃ ca ṇaṃ bahave Vesamaṇa-kuṃḍa-
7. dhārī / tiria-jaṃbhagā devā Siddhattharāya-bhavaṇaṁsi
8. hiraṇṇa-vāsaṁ ca / vaira-vāsaṁ ca vattha-vāsaṁ ca ābhara///
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 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 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
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
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
British Library. Or. 12744. 1522. Unknown author.
British Library. Or. 13959. Unknown author. 1639
Wellcome Trust Library. Gamma 3. Unknown author. 1503
British Library. Or. 5149. Unknown author. 1464
Wellcome Trust Library. Gamma 3. Unknown author. 1503
Victoria and Albert Museum. IM 161-1914. Unknown author. 16th century
British Library. Or. 5149. Unknown author. 1464
British Library. Or. 12744. 1522. Unknown author.