Jain Miniature Paintings from Western India c12.3

c12.3

Turning to the art of Western India from the 11th to 15th century, we are struck with certain features which are peculiarly its own. It reflects the interfusion of the monastic and the guild life; it does not err towards mysticism, but is practical to the extent that it reflects the great wealth of the merchants who were its chief patrons. Medieval Gujarāt was the land of great merchants, their coffers overflowing with money, a part of which they spent on building temples and ordering illustrated manuscripts for the twin purpose of glorification among their co-religionists and attainment of heaven after death. The merchants as a community are thoroughly practical people everywhere in the world, and even if they build, it is on a grand scale, as money is no consideration. But one thing which money is unable to buy is aesthetic taste, and, therefore, the art of the period with its faultless carvings, rising tier upon tier, and the illustrated manuscripts resplendent with gold and ultramarine, leave us amazed at the great riches spent over them, but our aesthetic reactions are rather cold. In the maze of the confusing decorative values, our mind is unable to grasp the fundamentals of the artistic form which alone is capable of giving permanent value to art.