Shantinatha Charitra is a
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
text that describes the life of 16th
Jain
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
''
tirthankara
In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a 'ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the ''dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable passag ...
''
Shantinatha. It was written in 1397 CE. This text has been registered into
Memory of the World Programme by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
.
History
This text was written in 1397 C.E. by ''Ajita Prabhasuri'' on paper-palm leaves and was inherited by late ''Muni Punyavijayji'' through his family. He then donated it to
Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Institute of Indology
Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Museum, abbreviated L. D. Museum, is a museum of Indian sculptures, bronzes, manuscripts, paintings, drawings, miniature paintings, woodwork, bead work and ancient and contemporary coins in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.
Histor ...
in 1961.
Description
The manuscript talks about peace, non-violence and brotherhood and was composed and written in the late 14th century. This is the oldest example of miniature painting. These illustrations are beautifully drawn in multi-colour and are examples of a highly evolved style of painting. It contains 10 images of scenes from the life of Shantinatha in the style of Jain paintings from
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
. The text contains miniature paintings drawn in multi-colour. This is the oldest example of Jain miniature painting. The ink used in the manuscript is gum lampblack and white paint made from mineral silver. This heritage document is written in
Devanagari script.
See also
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Shantinatha
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Jain art
Jain art refers to religious works of art associated with Jainism. Even though Jainism has spread only in some parts of India, it has made a significant contribution to Indian art and architecture.
In general Jain art broadly follows the conte ...
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Jain literature
References
Citation
Source
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Further reading
Jain texts
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