THE JAIN TEMPLE AT RANAKPUR
(By Subbaram Danda)
We stood stunned, looking at the magnificent
façade of the Jain temple at Ranakpur.
It was a spectacle. The marble
edifice shimmered gorgeously in the mid-day sun. The long flight of steps leading to its main entrance,
the porches in three tiers, the rows of towers and the central dome at the top
provided a delectable treat to the eyes.
We had read a lot about this abode of worship but what we actually saw
surpassed all those accounts. We were
gazing at an exquisite sanctuary of spiritual art.
 |
| The front view of the temple |
We – my wife and I – were visiting
the Jain temple on our way from Jodhpur to Udaipur in the course of our
Rajasthan vacation in March 2015. It was
an important item on our itinerary.
Ranakpur is located at about 165 kilometres south of Jodhpur and about
90 kilometres north of Udaipur.
 |
| The temple seen from another angle |
A pious Jain businessman constructed
the temple in the 15th century following a vision he had. In this effort he received the patronage of
the liberal king of Mewar, Rana Kumbha.
It came up in a valley on the western side of the Aravalli range of
mountains. Renovated from time to time,
it stands on a basement of 48,000 sq.ft.
The temple is dedicated to
Rishabhadev, the first of the 24 Jain Tirthankaras. A
Tirthankara is a “liberated being”, who has severed all earthly bonds, crossed
the stream of rebirths and attained the status of the omniscient. He guides others on the path of renunciation
and emancipation. Rishabhadev, being the
first, is also known as Adhinath (the first Lord). The temple is one of the five major pilgrim
centres of the Jains.
The massive temple has four separate
entrances, one in each of the cardinal directions. All of them lead visitors, through columned
halls, to a central arena and finally to the sanctum. In it there is a four-faced marble image of
Lord Rishabhadev. The sanctum is
surrounded by several smaller shrines. One more line of cells with holy images encircles these
shrines. Towers and domes rise above
these shrines and cells.
As we walked up the steps and passed
through the main portal of the temple, a vista of architectural splendour
unfolded before us. We stood in a
spacious high hall, where pillars, pedestals, capitals, lintels and the domed
ceiling displayed intricately sculpted floral designs, animal motifs, celestial
figures, dancing nymphs and geometrical patterns. We saw many foreign visitors listening
intently to guides, who waxed eloquent on the special characteristics of the
temple. They looked at every piece of
artwork in awe.
 |
| The ornate pillars, pedestals, capitals and lintels as seen from the front high hall |
 |
| The intricately chiselled designs on pillar capitals and the ceiling |
 |
| The sculpted embellishments on a ceiling under a dome |
Far ahead of us was the sanctum,
where worship was going on for the principal idol of Rishabhadev amidst the
chanting of hymns. Many devotees
thronged the assembly hall in front of it.
We offered our prayers from a distance and moved on.
Hall after hall and corridor after
corridor presented a variety of creative carvings. In all, we were told, the temple has 29
halls, 80 domes and 1,444 pillars. What
is awe-inspiring is the fact that each pillar is unique in design and each
dome’s ceiling is different. This feature offered us plenty of photo opportunities
and we clicked liberally. Only the idols
of worship were not to be photographed.
 |
| Each of the 1,444 marble pillars in the temple is different in structure and design |
 |
| Animal motifs and geometrical patterns enliven the temple |
 |
| Celestial figures and dancing nymphs on pillars |
Within the temple complex we could
see several open courtyards, which would allow sun rays to penetrate the
temple, illuminating its interiors. A significant
effect of it is the wonderful play of
light and shade on the pillars. As the
rays shift through the day the pillars appear to change their colour from pale
yellow to light gold.
 |
| A tower as seen from a courtyard |
Among other noteworthy features were
two big bells placed near the sanctum.
Along a corridor a wall displayed an image of 23rd Tirthankar Parshwanath. It was enclosed
within an intricately carved band of flowers, mermaids, snakes and knots. Elsewhere we came across life-sized marble
elephants standing at the centre of small halls.
 |
| The circular image of 23rd Tirthankar Parshwanath |
 |
| An elephant in marble |
 |
| Posing with another elephant statue amidst sculpted pillars |
As we kept going, it was not hard to
realize that the entire temple is a treasure trove of spiritual art. An elderly woman from the US, who struck a
conversation with us, was exuberant in her praise of the temple. She did not mince words when she said, “I
have not seen such a wonder in my life so far.
Every element here is a masterpiece.”
We could not but be in agreement with her. What we were witnessing was poetry in
stone.
(Ends)
April 25, 2015
