Shravanabelagola Gommateshwara

SRAVANABELAGOLA IN TRADITION AND HISTORY

According to the Ganga inscription on the rock to the south of Parsvanatha Basti in Chandragiri, Bhadrabahu, a leading Jaina Pontiff (Acãrya) migrated to the south from Ujjaini in the 5th century B.C. on account of a famine which he predicted. Tradition says that he came to Sravanabelagola and settled down along with his 12,000 disciples of Prabhachandra Sarvasangha and was followed by Emperor Chandragupta Maurya. Bhadrabahu is said to have died along with 300 disciples at Chandragiri. The legend is repeated in Harisena's Brihatkathakosa (A.D. 981), poet Chidananda's Munivamsabhyudaya, and in the inscriptions of Sravanabelagola, Eminent epigraphists, Dr. Fleet and R. Narasimhachar, hold the view that the migration of Bhadrabahu and his disciples must be a historical event. Another event known from history is that of Samprati, the grandson of Asoka, sending Acarya to spread Jainism in the south. Mention has been made earlier of the patronage given to Jainism by the Kadamba Kings of Banavasi, the Chalukyas of Badami, and the Rashtrakutas of Malkhed. But it is under the Gangas of Talakad that Jainism reached the zenith of its glory.

Gommateshwara

This world-famous statue is the very picture of majesty and concentrated power and an embodiment of exemplary renunciation for which Jain philosophy stands. Gommatesvara who has watched over India for a thousand years stands as a unique example of harmonisation of monumentality with plasticity, architecture with sculpture, and renunciation with firmness and grace. "The monolithic Indian saint is thousands of years younger than the prostrate Rameses or the guardians of Abu Simbel, but he is more impressive, both on account of his commanding position on the brow of the hill overlooking the wide stretch of plain and of his size (Workman:Through Town and Jungle).

Inscriptional and Literary references: An inscription from circa A.D. 1180 states that Chamunda Raja (Chavunda-Raya) got the statue of Gommata made. This statement is confirmed by the tenth-century inscriptions in Kannada, Tamil, and Marathi languages engraved on the sides of the image. According to another inscription of circa A.D. 1159 Chamunda-Raya was the minister of the Ganga King Rachamalla (Rajamalla A.D. 974-984). Further, the tradition says that the consecration of the image took place during the reign of Rajamalla. Chavunda Raya was himself a literary personage of repute. As there is no reference to the statue in his work Chavunda Rãya Purana, a prose work on Jaina traditions (A.D. 978) giving a graphic account of his achievements, it is reasonable to conclude that the statute must have been made after A.D. 978, and the date A.D. 983 assigned to its consecration may not be off the mark. The traditional date given in literary works is Sunday the fifth lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month of Chaitra in the cyclic year Vibhava corresponding to the year 600 of the Kaliyuga era. As stated earlier there is no reliable inscriptional evidence to determine the date or who the great sculptor of this unique statue was. But it is interesting to learn how Chavunda Raya himself conceived the idea of getting such a statue made. The Adi Purana of Pampa, the Jain poet, who is rightly called Adikavi of Kannada literature describes Bahubali standing in penance to renounce the world, but at the same time distressed at the fact that he had to stand on the land which belonged to his brother Bharata. The poet describes how the hot fumes coming out of his mouth mixed with the vapors of the poisonous snakes emerging from the anthills that had grown around his feet. Chavunda Raya, while ruminating over this idea, visualised the next stage of elevation of Bahubali's mind and meditated upon a gigantic figure, calm and graceful after overcoming the distress and devoid of all worldly attachment. It is this dream of Chavunda Raya which has been given a concrete expression in stone by an unknown sculptor. It is a tribute to the victory of peace over a perturbed mind and of nirvana over-attachment. It may not be out of place to state briefly the story behind the idea underlying the depiction of Bahubali in the erect and nude position in the midst of anthills and snakes.

Some particulars furnished by an inscription (A.D. 1180) which is in the form of a Kannada poem by the Jaina poet Bappana may be noted here. Gommata or Bahubali was the son of the first Tirthankara Adinatha. His brother Bharata who ruled at Ayodhya threw a challenge to Bahubali and other brothers to accept the former's suzerainty or fight. On the advice of the Jain saints they decided on a dharmayuddha (righteous fight) in which Bahubali won, but handed over the kingdom to his vanquished brother and stood for a whole year in pratimayoga like a statue unattached to any worldly pleasures. Even then he was worried in his mind that he had to stand on the land that belonged to Bharata. The latter understood Bahubali's mental agony and returned to the kingdom. This gesture at once brought enlightenment (Kevala-jnana) to Bahubali. The anthill, serpents and madhavi (Gaertnera racemosa Kau Gulaganji in Kannada) creeper are symbolic of the initial rage and mental agony of Bahubali. However, he rises above them and his face is shown beaming with a subdued smile and his eyes suggesting calmness and detachment.

Technical details: The colossal statue which can be seen from a distance of 10 km., but not from the foot of the hill, is conceived as the main image (mulanayaka) of an imaginary temple. Set against the sky this nude figure of Gommata is a visual representation of a Kevalin, and the term digambara conveying the sense of 'one having only the dik (sky or region) as ambara (cloth) is very appropriate here. Beginning from head and proceeding downward all unwanted rock is chiselled away and the sculpture is finished in the round upto knees, below which it retains on the rear and side a certain mass of rock and the base itself is part of the original rock. The finely polished surface of the figure not only enhances the aesthetic look but also safeguards it from damage due to sun, wind and rain. The smooth surface reflects away the heat and protects from vagaries of climate. A small crack noticed on the face and the pitted surface of the back have been suitably treated by the Archaeological Survey of India as per the recommendations of the Expert Committee. The statute has remarkably withstood the onslaught of wind, rain and heat for a thousand years although it is completely exposed to the elements. The sculptor has wisely chosen the light grey shade of hard granite rock for his master-piece. Standing in an erect position on a full-blown lotus Gommata has his feet firmly placed on it. He has all the emblems of a superhuman being (mahāpurusha lakshanas) such as long arms (ājānubāhu) long lobed ears, broad (8 m) shoulders and broad heaved up chest (3 m). The head, almost round, is 2.2 m. high. The broad face, the gently curving nape, the well-shaped chin and nose and the volute curls of hair enhance the charm of the Tirthankar beaming a subdued smile. The anatomical details of the hip, knee etc., are rounded off, but the pelvis is broad. Even from the back the sculpture has an aesthetic look on account of the curly hairs and serpentine channel of the middle line. The mastery of the sculptor over art becomes apparent from the care he has bestowed on delineating the finger- nails and toes, the crease lines of the neck, and the curls falling over the forehead. The idea of a sculpture-in-the-round is produced by the delineation of the Madhavi creeper entwining round his legs and arms; the ant hills and the serpents (kukkuta-sarpas).

The modeling of the figure is compact and vigorous. A balance is achieved between mass and linear quality that slowly begins to surge from the top to the bottom. Though gigantic in size, it does not appear heavy. Upon the solid shoulders the calm face beams with an inner radiance that does not dazzle, that does not create a feeling of devotion, but leads one back to self. The realisation of the self is the real way toward freedom (moksha). In this way, the statute has successfully conveyed the ideal of Jainism through form. Form is consummated by the idea. Form and idea are united in the Divine unknown power. The feeling of awe is not towards the spiritual power, but towards the majesty of human power-the ascetic's willpower It leads one to the inner world of pure spirit, the spirit of self- realization of the virtues of ahimsa, self-control, and truthfulness.

The head anointment or mahamastakabhisheka is performed at intervals of several years. The first reference to it as mahābhishekais contained in an inscription of circa A.D. 1398 which says that Panditarya performed it seven times.

On either side of Gommata, there is a beautifully carved chauri-bearer, the one on the right is a Yaksha and that on the left is a Yakshi. The pond referred to as Lalitasarovara in the inscription on the ant-hill receives the water used for the sacred bath (Mahã mastakabhisheka) which now takes place once in twelve years. The pillared hall (mantapa) in front of the statue contains some exquisite carvings in its ceilings. Eight panels depict guardian deities (ashtadikpälas), while the central one depicts Indra holding a sacred water pot (kalasa) for anointing Gommata. According to the inscrip- tion in the central bay of the ceiling, the hall was erected by one Baladeva in the twelfth century. The inscriptions in Kannada and Marathi engraved on either side of the statue and below the inscriptions of Chavunda Raya mention that the enclosure was by Desa Kaja, perhaps in A.D. 1117.

The cloisters of the enclosure contain 53 images mostly of Tirthankaras set up at different times. Two figures of the Yakshi Kushmandini and one of Bahubali can also be seen. Outside the enclosure is a pillar on the top of which is a pavilion in which the figure of Brahmadeva is placed. Below the pavilion is a figure of Gullakayajji holding Gulla-kay. According to legend the old woman got the statue cleaned with the fruit of a tree locally known as Gulla Kayi.