Article: Emblems of the 24 Jinas

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Jinas in art – fact file

The Victoria and Albert Museum provides an illustrated summary of iconography associated with images of Jinas. The information is also available to download in a PDF. 

You will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader on your computer to open PDF files.

http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/j/jina-fact-file/

A Jina sits in meditation

The National Gallery of Australia provides this 12th-century image of a seated Jina. Under an ornate arch, the Jina takes the lotus pose of meditation. He is hard to identify without his emblem – lāñchana – but his closed eyes, unadorned figure and nudity indicate the statue was produced by the Digambara sect.

http://artsearch.nga.gov.au/Detail-LRG.cfm?IRN=128702&View=LRG

Svetāmbara Jina emblems

This picture from the Jeevraksha blog gives the emblems – lāñchana – of the 24 Jinas according to the Svetāmbara sect.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_xHZFB-N3uug/TNNW_DqmmeI/AAAAAAAAAzw/v43mxT0R1RY/s1600/jain_symbols2.jpg

Sankeshwar Parshvanath hymn

This YouTube video features the Sankeshwar Parshvanath, a hymn dedicated to the 23rd Jina Pārśvanātha or Lord Pārśva. The picture shows Pārśva with all his characteristic identifying signs:

• snakehoods in a fan shape over his head
• green skin
• snake emblem on his pedestal
• divine attendants – yakṣa and yakṣī – who are half-snake.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45ENpfKutcQ

Historical images of Jinas

Look through historical photographs and drawings of Jinas in the JAINpedia image gallery, chosen from the online collection of the British Library.

http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/showgallery.html?id=6467

Jina images and temples at Gwalior

The pilgrimage centre of Gwalior in central India is famous for its carvings of Jinas. Both freestanding and relief sculptures, the Jinas are found in the temples as well as in panels cut into walls of rock. This collection of drawings and photographs is presented by Professor Frances W. Pritchett of Columbia University in New York.

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00routesdata/1000_1099/jaintemples/gwalior/gwalior.html

Statue of a meditating Jina

This idol of a Jina shows him in the characteristic lotus position of meditation. He has a serene half-smile on his face, elongated earlobes and curly hair. The severe style and lack of clothing indicates that the 11th-century statue belongs to the sect of the Digambaras. It may depict the 24th Jina, Mahāvīra. The photograph provided by the Philadelphia Museum of Art is accompanied by a brief audio commentary on the statue.

http://www.philamuseum.org/collections/permanent/64704.html?mulR=10908|7

The 24 Jinas at the 'Victorious Ones' exhibition

This page from the Rubin Museum of Art website gives brief information for each of the Jinas. The page was produced to accompany the New York museum's exhibition called 'Victorious Ones: Jain Images of Perfection', which ran from 18 September 2009 to 15 February 2010

You will need Flash on your computer to view these images.

http://www.rmanyc.org/images/flash/24Jinas.swf

Anointing a Jina statue

A statue of a Jina is ceremonially anointed during the festival of Dīvālī, the 'Festival of Lights' which marks the new year. For Jains the main celebration at Dīvālī is the commemoration of the liberation of the 24th Jina, Mahāvīra. A ‘head-anointing ceremony’ – mastakābhiṣeka – is a rite performed for any Jain image. Sanctified fluids are poured over the head of the statue, accompanied by a mantra or hymn. The sacred bath is at the centre of all Jain image rituals and can be performed daily in the morning ceremony or during festivals and pilgrimages. This photo on Flickr was taken in Jodhpur, Rajasthan in October 2009.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vecchio3000/4245166837/

Pārśva meditating

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

Images of Jinas

A few photographs of Jina images in various styles, ranging from tenth-century sculptures to a contemporary depiction, provided by Professor Frances W. Pritchett of Columbia University in New York.

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00routesdata/1000_1099/jaintemples/tirthankars/tirthankars.html