History of Indian and Eastern Architecture v2.c24.s8.9

v2.c24.s8.9

An illustration of one of the great Hindû temples will be given further on, another view of one of the smaller Jaina temples, that of Âdinâth (Woodcut No. 290), will suffice to illustrate the style of art here employed. Its porch either never was added or has been removed and replaced in modern times by a brick abomination with pointed arches. This, however, hardly interferes with the temple itself. There is nothing probably in Hindû architecture that surpasses the richness of its three-storeyed base combined with the extreme elegance of outline and delicate detail of the upper part. The sculptures on this temple, as Mr Cousens remarks, are chiefly *devîs*, and on the *âsana* or seat for the image in the shrine a figure of Garuda is carved, whilst a small loose image of a Jina is placed upon it, and no distinctly Jaina image appears on the walls. All this points to its having been built as a Vaishnava temple and afterwards appropriated by the Jains.¹