Description
Unusually, this painting takes up a full page of the manuscript. It shows a richly clad man in a howdah on the back of a decorated elephant, a mahout driving the beast. A royal umbrella shelters the rider from the hot sun while a servant fans him with a fly-whisk. He is accompanied by a retinue of soldiers on horseback, camel and foot, some of them beating drums.
This is King Śreṇika setting out for Śālibhadra's house in great pomp, as described in the caption: rājā rī asaśarī.
'All the turbaned lords went, their bodies clad in robes of honour', as the text says.
The yellow background of the painting shows off the naturalistic detail of the artwork.
Background
The ultimate purpose of Śālibhadra’s story – Śālibhadra-caupaī – is to illustrate the virtues of giving alms to Jain monks. But, like most Jain stories, it is eventful and full of lively characters. The Śālibhadra-caupaī is very popular in the Jain tradition. It is known from the many interpretations that have been written in Prakrit, Sanskrit and the vernacular languages.
This manuscript features the famous telling by Matisāra, written in Old Gujarati. Matisāra’s version of the story has often been illustrated in different styles.
The text is a narrative poem in verse, known as rāsa or caupa. This type of composition is popular in Gujarāti literature. The poem is divided into 29 sections called ḍhāla. Each section starts with a refrain verse and is associated with a specific musical mode – rāga. Such poems are meant to be read, but also performed, with recitation and musicians.
Resources
Reading
- ‘The Micro-Genre of Dāna-Stories in Jaina Literature: Problems of Interrelation and Diffusion’
Nalini Balbir
- Indologica Taurinensia
edited by Nalini Balbir and Colette Caillat
volume 11
International Association of Sanskrit Studies; 1983
- Drei Jaina-Gedichte in Alt-Gujarātī: Edition, Übersetzung, Grammatik und Glossar
George Baumann
- Beiträge zur Südasienforschung Südasien-Institut Universität Heidelberg series; volume 20
F. Steiner; Wiesbaden, Hesse, Germany; 1975
- ‘Illustrations in Jaina Manuscripts’
Ernest Bender dt>
- Indologica Taurinensia
edited by Nalini Balbir and Colette Caillat
volume 11
International Association of Sanskrit Studies; 1983
- The Śālibhadra-Dhanna Carita: The Tale of the Quest for Ultimate Release by Śālibhadra and Dhanna
Ernst Bender
- American Oriental series; volume 73
American Oriental Society; New Haven, Connecticut USA; 1992
- ‘The Trials and Tribulations of a Text’
Ernest Bender dt>
- Journal of the American Oriental Society
volume 115: 2
1995
- Realms of Wonder: Jain, Hindu and Islamic Art of India
James Bennett
- Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide; Adelaide, South Australia, Australia; October 2013
- Prācīna Gūrjara Kāvya Sañcaya
edited by H. C. Bhayani & Agarcand Nahta
- L. D. series; volume 40
L. D. Institute of Indology; Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India; 1975
- ‘The Śālibhadra Carita: A Story of Conversion to Jaina Monkhood’
Maurice Bloomfield
- Journal of the American Oriental Society
volume 43
1923
- ‘An Illustrated Salibhadra Manuscript’
Prithwi Singh Nahar dt>
- Jain Journal
volume XI: 1
1976
- Guṇavinaya-kṛta Dhannā-Śālibhdra Copāi
Guṇavinaya
- translated and edited by Ramaṇlāl C. Shah
R. R. Setha; Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India; 1983
- Shalibhadra
- Diwakar Chitra Katha series; volume 47
Mahavir Seva Trust; Federation of Jain Associations in North America; Shree Diwakar Prakashan; Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India
- Steps to Liberation: 2500 Years of Jain Art and Religion
Jan van Alphen
- Etnografisch Museum Antwerpen; Antwerp, Belgium; 2000
Links
- Śālibhadra story
-
The eJainism website provides a version of the tale of Śālibhadra for children.
http://ejainism.com/shalibhadra.html
- Śālibhadra play during Mahāvīr Jayantī
-
The Institute of Jainology reports on the celebrations of the 2009 Mahāvīr Jayantī festival in London. One of the highlights of the two-day celebration was the performance of Tyagveer Shalibhadra. Young people from the Shree Chandana Vidhyapeeth school performed this original play in Gujarati, which featured music and dancing, short dialogues and narrations.
http://www.jainology.org/235/jains-in-the-uk-join-hands-to-celebrate-mahavir-jayanti-2009/
- Play of Śālibhadra
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Children perform the story of Śālibhadra in this YouTube video from 2011. The play was organised by the Jain Vishwa Bharati of North America, which is based in New Jersey, USA.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAVFPWv5Tmw
- Scene featuring Śālibhadra and his wives
-
This amateur video on YouTube shows a scene from the Hindi-language play of Śālibhadra, which was performed in August 2010 to commemorate the opening of the Jain Vishwa Bharati centre in Houston, Texas, USA.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfdEpXpI4FE
- Children perform the Śālibhadra story
-
This YouTube video presents the tale of Śālibhadra performed by children from the Jain Center of Northern California. This play was part of the celebrations for the 2012 festival of Mahāvīr Jayantī, which took place on the 4th April.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOTtl6VU0nw
- Performance of Śālibhadra
-
This YouTube video films children from the Jain Center of Greater Phoenix, in Texas, USA performing an English version of part of the story of Śālibhadra. Children often perform a shortened version of the tale, which emphasises the duty of giving alms to monks and nuns.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFTjXXGiarQ
- Animation of Śālibhadra
-
The first part of the story of Śālibhadra is presented as an animation on YouTube, uploaded in 2012. In this part of the tale, the young boy Sangama offers alms to a Jain monk, which is one of the key episodes in the story. The story of Śālibhadra is a Jain favourite that underlines the importance of lay Jains giving alms to mendicants.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOkGsKM4EAE
Glossary
- 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.
- Rāga
- Literally 'colour' or 'hue' in Sanskrit, rāga has come to mean 'beauty', 'harmony' and 'melody'. Consisting of five or more musical notes from which a melody is created, the rāga is one of the melodic modes of Indian classical music. Traditionally, rāgas express the moods of different times of day or seasons to help create an emotional response in the listeners.
- 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.
- Carũrī
- Usually written as 'chowrie' in English, the Hindi carũrī is a fly-whisk or fan. It is probably descended from the Sanskrit term cāmara, which means a 'yak-tail fan'. Like the cāmara, the chowrie is used to fan royalty or priests and thus signifies high status in Indian art.
- Vernacular
- The everyday or common language spoken by people in a particular country or region, often contrasting with the literary form or the national or official language. Similarly, vernacular architecture reflects local conditions and conventions more than other considerations, such as national or international design trends, and may be built by non-professional architects.