Dilwara Temples are one of the finest
Jain temples & many even consider them
architecturally superior to the Taj
Mahal.
*Built between 11th & 13th century, the
most outstanding feature are its
exquisite carvings in marble.
The two temples Vimala Vasahi & Luna
Vasahi are singled out by experts as
superb examples of architecture.
¤ Dilwara Temples - An Architectural
Marvel
Mount Abu's chief claims to fame are the
Jain temples architecture at Dilwara,
about 5km from Nakki lake. The Dilwara
temples were built during the age of
Jain supremacy and are one of the finest
Jain temples India has to offer. Many
experts consider them architecturally
superior to the Taj Mahal. The
architecture is marked by carvings that
are not just ethereally beautiful in
form but are often presented in a highly
poetic context. For instance, one of the
marble nayikas (maidens) is depicted as
having just emerged from her bath.
Droplets falling from her long hair are
shown being drunk by a swan sitting by
her feet.
¤ Exquisite Temple Carvings
Perhaps the most outstanding feature of
Jain temple architecture is its
carvings. and that is an understatement.
Wherever one looks, be it pillars,
ceilings, walls and floors, Jain temples
go to the extreme – and beyond it – when
it comes to adorning their temples with
the very stone they work with. Jain
mythology, saints, gods and goddesses,
monks, devotees or just good old
religious motifs all find their way in a
spectacular rendezvous in marble and
rock. Each nook and corner of Jain
temples are so diligently carved that
it’s a wonder that the edifice was
created out of plain stone. Carving is
perhaps not the right word for Jain
temples – chiselling would be more
appropriate. Their fragile delicacy
merged with an architectural lexicon is
what constitues the basis of these
amazing temples. Simply put, there is
not an inch where one can place his hand
and not encounter a spectacular frieze.
¤ The Methodology of Carving
In the temples in Mount Abu even
chiseling was put aside, and artisans
adopted the sedulous task of thinning
the marble into carved images, a worth
noticing architectural splendor. This
was done by gently scraping away the
surface till a figure eventually
emerged, so intricate and fine that it
was intelligibly magnificent. This is
the reason why the temples in Mount Abu
and Ranakpur are said to be the finest
Jain temples in the world.
¤ Marvelous Architecture Splendor
The architectural vocabulary of the
region included ornamental rendering of
flowers and creepers. The portrayal of
Yakshini Chakreshwari, the attendant
deity of Adinatha (first Jain saint) is
an integral part of the temple. Keeping
with the prevailing aesthetic norms the
figures have sharp facial features set
in broad faces and narrow waists. The
intricately sculpted arches here are of
two types; one with regular wavy
undulations and the other, which is seen
in the Vimala Vasahi, with exaggerated
curves. Two of these temples have been
singled out by many experts as
outstanding. These are the Vimala Vasahi
built in 1031-32AD and Luna Vasahi built
in 1230.
¤ Vimala Vasahi Temple
This Jain temple was built by Vimala
Shah (variously described as a merchant
and a minister of the Solanki ruler of
Gujarat) to atone for his sins. This
temple, dedicated to the first Jain
tirthankar (fordmaker) Adinatha,
involved a work force of 2,700 men and
took a total of 14 years to complete at
an exuberant cost, a worth noticing
specimen of architectural splendor.
Prithvipala, a descendant of Vimala, is
also known to have added to the
magnificent temple in 1150AD. The temple
of Vimala is supposed to the oldest and
the most `complete’ example of Jain
temple architecture. The rather simple
façade hides an amazingly beautiful
interior.
¤ The Gateway
The entrance to the temple is from the
east through a domed porch which leads
to a six-pillared pavilion with a
three-tiered smosan (a conventional
representation of the holy mountain of
the Jains) in the center. The smosan is
surrounded by 10 statues including that
of the founder Vimala and his family,
each seated on a beautiful elephant
chiseled out of a single block of white
marble, about four feet high. These
representations are now badly defaced,
having been destroyed by plundering
zealots.
¤ The Shrine of Jina Adinatha
From the pavilion one passes into a
secluded courtyard. Here the temple
resolves itself into a colonnade which
forms an open arcade containing the
shrine. Seated in the center of this
shrine is the cross-legged seated figure
Jina Adinatha, to whom the temple is
dedicated. The entire interior
architecture is leniently covered with
elaborate carvings, but the splendour of
the domed ceiling of this hall is what
sets it apart from all others. Percy
Brown, in his book Indian Architecture:
Buddhist and Hindu Period, details the
profusion of imagery that went into this
ornate ceiling: "This dome is built up
of 11 concentric rings, five of which,
interposed at regular intervals, depict
patterns of figures and animals…The
lowest contain the forefronts of
elephants, their trunks intertwined, as
many as a 150 of these in close ranks. A
few mouldings above is another border
representing images in nichés, also
repeated many times, and again over that
a similar course of dancing figures.
This is followed higher up in the
concavity by a series of horsemen,
finishing in the topmost storey with
more figures engaged in an endless
dance. Between these various figured
courses are ornamental repeats,
gradually becoming more pronounced until
towards the apex they culminate in a
grouping of pendants not like festoons
of foliage suspended from the high trees
of a forest." Superimposed upon all
this, athwart the outer concentric
rings, are 16 brackets that easily catch
the eye. Each of these is a female
figure, representing a Vidyadevi, or
goddess of knowledge.
¤ Luna Vasahi Temple
The temple of Luna Vasahi dedicated to
the 22nd Jain saint Neminath, was built
two centuries later by two brothers,
Tejpala and Vasupala. The inscription in
this temple, however, ascribes its
erection and endowment to Tejpalaa in
memory of his brother. The inscription
records that it was consecrated in
1230AD. This temple, though slightly
smaller than Vimala Vasahi, illustrates
further efflorescence of the style,
accompanied by a richer elaboration of
decorations. The doorways are framed by
ornate bases, and the eight pillars of
the assembly hall are loftier and of
different types. In some places the
marble is so finely carved that it seems
translucent. The highlight is again the
ceiling with magnificently carved
figures of dancers, animals,
mythological figures and processions of
horsemen. From the center of the ceiling
hangs a clustered and finely carved
marble pendant. It is said that its
artisans were told to make the pendant
the only one of its kind, and were
offered the weight of their marble
shavings in gold. The more intricately
they chiseled out the marble the more
weight the scales got, making the
artisans richer with each shaving.
¤ Other Temple Attractions
There are two other temples in the
complex, dedicated to Parshavantha and
Adinatha. The Chaumukha temple, built in
1459, is the tallest and is notable for
its pillared mandapa (hall). The Sri
Risha Deoji temple is unfinished and has
a huge 4.3 ton brass statue of a saint
made of panchadhatu (five metals – gold,
silver, brass, copper and zinc).
