Sittannavasal Monuments
by Subramanian Swaminathan
e-mail: sswami99@gmail.com
February 2008
The Arivar-koil
On the western side of the hill,
in the northern side, is the celebrated Jaina rock-cut cave temple called,
Arivar-koil (temple-of-the-Arhat-s). It has relics of paintings of 9th
century AD.These paintings are second only in importance after Ajanta paintings
and have an important place in the Indian art history. It was a flourishing
centre of Jaina influence where Jainism flourished for over 1200 years
(3rd century BC to 10th century AD).
There is still some uncertainty
regarding the origin of this temple. The temple in its architectural style
resembles the cave temples built by the Pallava king, Mahendra-varman (600
- 630 AD). It is claimed that Mahendra-varman's territory did not extend
beyond Tiruchi, and Lalitankura-Pallavesvara-griha on the Rock Fort in
Tiruchi is the southern most temple he had excavated. It is also known that
there are cave temples of this period and of similar style in the Pandya
country where the Pallava power was unknown. One such cave temple, dedicated
to Siva, with relics of paintings, perhaps belonging to the same period
as that of Sittannavasal, is at Tirumalaipuram, near Tirunelveli. In the
absence of any foundation inscription it would not be possible to ascertain
the builder of this temple. From an inscription dated 9th century,
which refers to repair and extension on the temple, one can surmise that
this cave temple is anterior to this date.
THE DISCOVERY
This Jaina site and its paintings
were first noticed by S. Radhakrishna Iyer, a local historian, and were
recorded in his book 'General History of the Pudukkottai State' (1916).
The impact of Radhakrishna Iyer's reference to the Sittannavasal cave temple
and its murals was, however, inhibited by the comparatively regional character
of his book and its readership. He himself was not likely to have realised
the full importance of Sittannavasal while describing it. The publication
in 1920 of Jouveau-Dubreuil's monograph on Sittannavasal was, as a result,
accorded the status of a 'discovery'. While Iyer's notice predates the
Dubreuil's, it is the latter that received attention beyond the educated
and ruling circles of the erstwhile State. To Dubreuil and the renowned
iconographer Gopinatha Rao who collaborated with him in Sittannavasal during
the years 1918 to 1920 must be given the credit of placing Sittannavasal
before the archaeological world.
In 1942, Dr. S. Paramasivan and K.
R. Srinivasan were engaged in cleaning the paintings. They noticed a patch
of old painting representing conventional carpet design, over which a new
layer of painting was superimposed. This superimposed layer was probably
the work of Ilan-Gautaman, mentioned in the inscription. The new layer
spread into the garbha-griham and all over the ceiling of the ardha-mandapam,
the pillars, the corbels and the beams. This new layer is laid over a ground
of plaster over which the paintings that we see today and admire are put
up.
THE CAVE TEMPLE - A GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The cave temple lies on the west
face of the hillock. It stands beneath an enormous scarp, which seems likely
to fall down upon it. There is an air of somber forlornness about it, altogether
appropriate for the severe religion of ultimate mortification of which
it has been a centre from ancient times.
From the road, a walk of about hundred
feet over the sloping rock takes the visitor to the cave temple.
The plan and construction of the
temple is simple. It resembles other rock-cut cave temples of 7th century
in plan and style. Originally it consisted of only a garbha-griham and
an ardha-mandapam in front, facing west. Both of them are excavated from
living rock. According to an inscription dated 9th century, a mukha-mandapam
was added during the Pandya time. But it must have collapsed, due to neglect.
Presently, there is a pillared veranda in front of the cave. This structure has been added much latter, in 20th century.
THE PILLARED VERANDA
Visitors enter the cave temple through
a pillared veranda. This is the latter addition by the Maharaja of Pudukkottai
at the instance of Tottenham, the British administrator, in the 20th century.
The pillars were brought from the ruins of the Kudumiyamalai temple and
the roof-slabs from the quarry of adjoining place called Panangudi. The
moulded plinth here is original Pandya. It may be surmised that the mukhamandapam
built by the Pandya king must have collapsed. Some point out the debris
lying about to prove this.
pillared veranda, in front, a later construction
This veranda is bereft of any detail,
except for a famous inscription. This 17-line Tamil inscription on the
surface of the rock on the southern flank of this pillared veranda is of
great importance giving us some clue to the dating the cave temple. It
says that a Jaina acharya named Ilan-Gautaman, also called 'the acharya
from Madurai', repaired or renovated and embellished the ardhamandapam
and added a mukha-mandapam in front of the cave temple, which is called
in the inscription 'Arivar-koil' ('temple of the Arhat') in Annalvayil
village during the reign of the Pandya King Srimaran-srivallabhan (815-862
AD), also called Avanipasekhara.
THE ARDHA-MANDAPAM
Crossing the front veranda one enters
the rectangular ardhamandapam. It measures 22 ½ feet long, 7 ½
feet wide and 8 ½ feet high. It is slightly taller than the garbha-griham.
A 17-line Tamil inscription
on the rock-face of the original cave
Ardha-mandapam
The façade of this ardhamandapam
consists of two massive pillars in the middle and two pilasters, one at
either end. The pillars are squarish at the two ends and octagonal in the
middle. The pilasters are also of the same design. The rock above the pillars
and pilasters is carved in the form of a massive beam. All these pillars
and pilasters carry large corbels (potikai) with horizontal roll ornamentation
or flutings, with a plain band in the centre.
On either side of the doorway to
the garbha-griham are ornamented pilasters enclosing two niches, one on
either side. These pilasters are smaller but of the same type as the pillars.
They have, on the upper cubical parts, lotus medallions carved in bold
relief.
On the northern and southern walls
of the ardha-mandapam are niches. In the northern niche is a figure of
a Jaina acharya seated in the dhyana (meditative) pose, cross-legged, with
the hands placed one over the other, palms upwards, resting on the folded
legs. There is a single umbrella over the head of the image, which proves
that it is not that of a Tirthankara. A pillar of the ardha-mantapam. The
figure of the Jaina acharya on the northern niche.
Ardha-mandapam.
The niche on the southern wall contains
a figure of Parsvanatha, the twenty-third Tirthankara
Ardha-mandapam,
The niche on the northern wall
is a
figure of a Jaina Acharya
On the southern wall, placed in
a similar niche, is the figure of Parsvanatha, the twenty-third Tirthankara.
He is also seated in the same posture, but with a fiveheaded serpent spreading
its hood over his head instead of an umbrella.
An acharya is a religious teacher
and spiritual preceptor. He is the person who administers religious vows
for practice by the disciple initiated by him. Tirthankara-s are
those liberatedsouls who establish and organise the sangham and whom the
Jain-s worship as Devadi-deva-s (God of Gods). According to the Jaina tradition
there are 24 Tirthankara-s. The 23rd Tirthankara is called Parsvanatha
and he is supposed to have lived in the 8th century BC.
There is an inscription at the bottom
(east face) of the pillar near northern figure. It contains the word 'thiruvasiriyan',
denoting that the figure represented is an 'asiriya' that is acharya.
 Garbha-griham
three images carved in relief on the back wall
It is on the ceiling, the walls,
the beams, the cornice and the pillars of this ardha-mandapam that the
best known of the Sittannavasal paintings are found. Those on the walls
have completely perished and parts of those on the ceilings, the beams
and the upper parts of the pillars alone survive.
THE PAINTING TRADITION
The Sittannavasal paintings carry
on the tradition of the well known Ajanta frescoes (2nd century BC-6th
century AD), Srilanka's Sigiriya (Srigiri) frescoes of the fifth century
AD and the Bagh frescoes in Madhya Pradesh of the sixth and seventh centuries
AD. Sittannavasal is, therefore, an early example of the post- Ajanta period,
and in merit it compares well with Ajanta and Sigiriya. We may safely say
that Sittannavasal is one among the earliest frescoes so far known in South
India, and that they are the only example of early Jaina frescoes.
The technique employed is what is
known as fresco-secco, that is, the painting is done on a dry wall. (In
the Europe mural paintings are done on a moist wall and are called fresco-bueno).
In this process the surface to be painted is first covered with lime plaster,
then coated with lime-wash and the painting done on it.
According to Dr. S. Paramasivan,
who had made thorough analysis of the techniques of Sittannavasal paintings,
the following pigments have been employed: lime for white, lamp black for
black, ochres for yellow and red, terre verte for green, etc. Thus mineral
colours, which are of a permanent nature, have been employed. But the information-board
put up by the ASI states that vegetable dyes have been employed for the
paintings.
In 1937-39, Maharaja of Pudukkottai
had the paintings cleaned. After cleaning the paintings, they applied a
preservative coating, and strengthened the painted plaster wherever it
was loose, by injecting suitable cementing material without retouching
any part of the paintings.
THE SITTANNAVASAL PAINTINGS
This Jaina cave temple is world
famous primarily for its mural paintings. The ceiling of the sanctum and
ardha-mandapam of this cave temple contain beautiful paintings. These paintings
are of the classical or Ajanta style with variations in the handling of
the materials by the artists. They furnish a connected link between the
Ajanta paintings (4th – 6th century AD) and the Chozha paintings of 11th
century at Thanjavur. The sculpture and the matchless paintings of the
cave are worth studying in detail.
Originally the entire cave temple,
including the sculptures was covered with plaster and painted. The paintings
are now found on the ceiling, top part of the pillars and the beam above
the pillars. All these paintings, which would rank among the great paintings
of India, are barely visible now, mainly due to vandalism with in the last
50-60 years.
These paintings include, as its subject
matter, the Jaina Samavasarana, and in it the khatika-bhumi including a
lotus tank, flowers, animals, bhavya-s and dancing Apsara-s, a royal couple
and hamsa-s.
THE SAMAVA-SARANA IN JAINA TRADITION
Jainism is one of the oldest living
religions of the world. The ultimate goal of every Jain is the attainment
of nirvana or liberation of soul from the bondage of karma-s.
Even though there is no emphasis
on worship of Gods in Jainism, it teaches the worship of all liberated
souls, which have advanced in their spiritual journey irrespective of the
level of their achievement. So the worship of the great souls or heroes
occupies an important place in the life of Jain-s.
According to the Jaina tradition
there are 63 Salaka-purusha- s ('Great-Souls'). It includes 24 Tirthankara-s,
12 emperors (Chakravarti) and 27 other heroes. Of these the Tirthankara-s
occupy the most prominent place and are venerated as Devadi-deva- s ('God-of-Gods').
They are in a sense the religious prophets of the Jain-s.
A soul attains the position of a
Tirthankara after doing good actions. Every Tirthankara, before getting
his enlightenment had to go through numerous births in different forms.
Five important events in the life
of a Tirthankara are important, and are depicted in the temples and narrated
in Puranam works. They are the birth, the renunciation, the realisation
(attaining kevala-gnana), the first sermon and nirvana (liberation of soul).
The Tirthankara after obtaining Kevala-gnana delivers a sermon in a specially
designed audience hall called Samava-sarana. Gods and goddesses, human
beings, birds and beasts come to witness the grand scene of the Lord's
discourse. The parallel in Saivism to this hall is called as devasiriya-mandapam
as can be seen in the Thiruvarur temple.
Samava-sarana, the most attractive
heavenly pavilion, is a favourite motif for representation in the Jaina
temples. Bhavya-s are those fortunate people who become entitled to attend
the divine discourse in the Samava-sarana structure. They have to pass
through -17- seven bhumi-s or regions before they occupy their seat to
hear the divine discourse. Among these, the second bhumi is called the
khatika-bhumi (region-of-the-tank). It is a delightful tank with fishes,
birds, animals and men frolicking in it or playing in it. The bhavya-s
are said to get down into the tank, wash their feet and please themselves
by gathering lotus flowers, while animals such as elephants, buffaloes
and birds and fishes are frolicking about and pleasing themselves too as
best as they can. This tank is the one painted on the ceilings of the cave
temple.
The paintings on the ceiling
Canopies of different floral patterns
are painted on the ceiling over the two images in the ardha-mandapam. That
over Parsvanatha has both natural and conventional lotus flowers, the former
in full blossom against a lotus-leaf background. That over the acharya
has only a conventional lotus-pattern.
On the ceiling of ardha-mandapam,
canopies of floral pattern
are painted
over the two relief images
The samava-sarana composition
This painting shows
bhavya-s
enjoying themselves in a pool, full of flowering lotuses
In the centre up to the borders
of the carpet canopy is painted an exquisite composition, 'The Samava-sarana',
a lotus tank with the Bhvya-s collecting flowers and animals and fish frolicking.
The 'Samava-sarana' composition
The scenes of this composition are
from the Samava-sarana, one of the delightful heavens of the Jain-s, explained
before. The painting shows bhavya-s diverting themselves in a pool, full
of flowering lotuses, called khatika-bhumi. The flowers with their stalks
and leaves, and the birds, fishes, makara-s, bulls and elephants are shown
with a perfect simplicity, charm and naturalness.
The samava-sarana composition
Two figures, one in a deep red
colour and the other in orange
The samava-sarana
composition
The samava-sarana composition.
The third bhavya
The samava-sarana composition.
The third bhavya
Pillars of ardha-mandapam
Pillars of ardha-mandapam
Pillars of ardha-mandapam
Pillars of ardha-mandapam
Pillars of ardha-mandapam.
There is also remnant of a painting
of a royal couple,
on the southern pillar
Cornice & beam of ardha-mandapam.
Painted lotuses in different stages of flowering
Cornice & beam of ardha-mandapam.
In front of each of the two pillars
are
painted hamsa (mythical swan)
Ceiling of garbha-griham.
The painting above the three relief sculptures suggests
a carpet,
with striped borders and
irregular squares and circles interlinked
Ceiling of garbha-griham
Inside the circles is a cross, with two human figures
on upper side and two lion figures on the lower side
of the horizontal arm.
The pose and expression of the bhavya-s
shown in the picture have a charm and beauty, which compel attention. Two
of them are shown together in one part of the tank. One is picking lotus
flowers with his right hand and has a basket of flowers slung on the other.
He is represented in a deep red colour. His companion carries a lotus in
one had, the other is bent gracefully, the fingers forming the mrigi-mudra
('deer-gesture'). His colour is orange, showing the merit of the soul.
The third bhavya, an extremely beautiful figure, also orange in colour,
is apart from the others. He carries a bunch of lotus over his left shoulder
and lily over his right. The three figures are naked except for their loincloths.
The hair is neatly arranged and the lobes of the ears are pendant.
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