THE publication of this Part, and the completion of the book, are a source of no small gratification to me, since I have been engaged on the work for nearly a quarter of a century, during which period many interruptions occurred, notably those caused by World War II and the economic upheavals resulting therefrom, which at times completely unnerved me. Thanks, however, to the enlightened policy of the Hyderabad State, and the active support of Mr. Sajjad Mirza, Secretary, Education Department, and his distinguished successor, Shree L. N. Gupta, the importance of the work, both under the previous governments and the present régime, was fully realized and generous grants were made towards it, notwithstanding urgent financial stringency and other difficulties.

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I am also grateful to art-critics and connoisseurs for the encouragement extended to me through press-reviews or private letters, emphasizing the unique position of the Ajanta frescoes in the history of the art of the East. I further owe a debt of gratitude to the general public for the large number of copies so eagerly purchased by them, although the price of the publication is quite high, and also for their keen interest in visiting these magnificent monuments of Indian art without regard to distance or cost of travel. Among the happy group of visitors may be seen people of many countries, but the largest number consists of the countryfolk whose looks of wonder and joy indicate a new spiritual experience based upon their age-old religious faith.

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The general arrangement of this Part is the same as that of the previous Parts, but the number of monochrome and litho plates has been considerably increased with a view to making the publication more comprehensive in its scope and more instructive to the student. The Appendix dealing with inscriptions has some additional illustrative plates which have been arranged by Dr. N. P. Chakravarti, Archaeological Adviser to the Government of India, and Dr. B. Ch. Chhabra, Deputy Director-General of Archaeology in India, who have jointly edited the inscriptions published in this Part, and whose expert assistance I acknowledge with grateful thanks.

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The proofs of the colour-plates of the first three Parts of the book were corrected by Mr. Sayed Ahmad, but as he has now retired from the Curatorship of the Ajanta Caves, the proofs of the colour-plates included in this Part have been corrected on the spot, after comparison with the original frescoes, by Mr. Jalal-ud-Din, the artist attached to the Office of the Director of Archaeology of Hyderabad. I therefore thank Dr. P. Sreenivasachar, the Director of Archaeology of Hyderabad, for his courtesy in permitting Mr. Jalal-ud-Din to do the work, and also the artist himself for performing the task with such great care and ability.

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The printing of the text, the preparation of the collotype and litho plates, and the binding of the text as well as of the Plates portfolio have been done by the Oxford University Press,

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Oxford, and I am grateful to Mr. Charles Batey, the Printer, and to his expert staff for executing the work in an artistic manner. I am also under obligation to Messrs. Henry Stone & Son, of Banbury, and to their able Managing Director, Mr. J. A. Milne, C.B.E., for their care in printing the colour-plates of this Part.

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I should also acknowledge with grateful thanks the scholarly help which I have received from the beginning in the compilation of the Ajanta Volumes from Dr. L. D. Barnett, C.B., Hon. Librarian Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. I am also indebted to Professor A. Sharma, Head of the Sanskrit Department, Osmania University, Hyderabad (Dn.), for assistance so readily given in regard to the transliteration of Sanskritic proper names and religious terms, and the furnishing of references to early Buddhist and Brahmanic literature. Lastly, I must express my thanks to Mr. F. J. Fielden, formerly Professor of English, Aligarh University, for suggesting some valuable improvements in the language of the original draft of the book.

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G. YAZDANI

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ORANGE GROVE HYDERABAD (DECCAN) 6th October, 1952

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*Plates I-III and LXXV-LXXXII*

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IN Part III the paintings of the back wall of the veranda, Cave XVII, have been described; the present Part (IV) deals with the paintings on the remaining walls and window-sills of the veranda and the entire surface of the interior of the *vihāra*, including its rock-walls, ceiling, and the pedestals of some pillars. The style indicates the high-water mark of the art of Ajanta; and as the *vihāra* has an inscription carved on a wall adjoining the south-west corner of the veranda, the date of this climax can be fixed with certainty. Verses 21-26 of the inscription mention that during the reign of Hariṣeṇa, of the Vākāṭaka dynasty, ‘on a spur of the Sahya (hill) . . . excavated this excellent monolithic hall, containing within a *chaitya* of the King of ascetics (the Buddha). . . . He (also) caused to be dug (near it) a large cistern pleasing to the eyes. . . .’ King Hariṣeṇa, according to eminent historians, flourished in the period *c.* A.D. 475-500.² This inscription and another carved in Cave XVI are important, because they fix with precision the period during which Ajanta painting developed its highest artistic and intellectual qualities; after this period there set in a gradual decline in the standard of art, the outlook becoming narrow, and the forms and patterns soulless and imitative. The figures of the Buddha seated on a throne with attendants on either side, painted and carved so lavishly in the *chaityas*—Caves XIX and XXVI, and the floral designs and geometric patterns of the ceilings of the entire group to the left of Cave XVII—show that the originality and force previously evident in the art of the cave-paintings have vanished, and the painter in his conception of beauty seems to have been satisfied with mere semblance, without making any effort to capture reality.

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² *Ibid.*

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In the fourth and fifth centuries A.D. Ajanta, under the enlightened patronage of the Vākāṭaka kings, became an important centre of Buddhist religion and art, and votaries from distant climes visited the place to be initiated into the religious orders, and also to acquire proficiency in the art of painting. This view is confirmed by the paintings at Sigiri (Sigiriya) in Ceylon, at Bāmiyān in Afghanistan, at Turfān in Central Asia, and at some places in China, which all exhibit clear influence of the Buddhist art of Ajanta. The support given by the Vākāṭaka kings to the propagation of the Buddhist faith and art may have been secured through the religious zeal of Hastibhoja and his son Varāhadeva, the ministers of the last two kings of the dynasty, Devasena and Hariṣeṇa, who apparently had embraced the Buddhist religion, and whose names are preserved in the inscriptions of Cave XVI at Ajanta and of the *vihāra* at Ghatotkacha in the vicinity.³

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¹ The inscription was cut at the instance of a prince whose name, through the abrasion of the rock, is now lost, but who probably ruled over Khandesh as a feudatory of the Vākāṭaka king Hariṣeṇa. *Hyderabad Archaeological Series*, Monograph No. 15, p. 3, edited by V. V. Mirashi.

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³ *Ibid.*, Monograph No. 14, p. 2, and *The Ghatotkacha Inscription*, pp. 8-17, edited by V. V. Mirashi.

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The Chālukyas who succeeded the Vākāṭakas in the sovereignty of the Deccan during the first half of the sixth century A.D. were perhaps not as favourable to the Buddhist religion as their predecessors, although the shrines which the Chālukyas built at their capital in Bādāmi are largely copied from the Buddhist *vihāras*. Through lack of royal patronage, art at Ajanta began to decline rapidly in the latter half of the sixth century A.D., and there is no *vihāra* or *chaitya* at Ajanta which can be assigned with certainty to the seventh century A.D. The Buddhist shrines of Ellora excavated during the seventh century A.D. show clear influence of the Brahmanic architecture of South India; and in regard to painting, the art shown in the specimens preserved there is not only conventional but actually effete and etiolated. The apparent cause of the decline was the fact that master-painters professing the Buddhist faith were for theological reasons not employed on the adornment of the Brahmanic shrines, and the art of painting, which had reached its climax through local Deccan genius, stimulated of course by the rich tradition and glorious visions of the Buddhist religion, fell to the position of a decorative craft when practised by Brahman artisans, notably those of South India. This view may startle those academicians who consider the paintings of Ajanta to be representative of Gupta art, and date them between the sixth and seventh centuries A.D., although there are in fact specimens of painting in Cave X at Ajanta with inscriptions which, according to expert epigraphists, have been unanimously assigned to the middle of the second century B.C. The art of painting even in these early examples is fairly well developed, and indicates practice and a continuity of tradition over hundreds of years. There are specimens in Caves IX and X which tell a continuous story of the development of technique from the second century B.C. to the fifth century A.D. For instance, the subject painted on the wall of the left aisle of Cave IX, in which a group of votaries is shown approaching a *stūpa* bedecked with umbrellas, is not far removed in period from the group of votaries painted on the left wall of Cave X, since the same colours—red ochre, yellow ochre, terra-verde, lamp-black, and the white of lime—have been used in both subjects. There is a complete absence of blue, which does not appear at Ajanta until the fourth or fifth century A.D. The surface had been prepared by first placing on the rock-wall a layer of clay,¹ which was subsequently covered with a coat of fine lime. On this ground the outlines of figures were drawn in black or red tints, and afterwards colours were filled in. The colours in the early painting are flat, with no washes to indicate depth or volume such as are to be noticed in later paintings.

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¹ In preparing the clay plaster special care seems to have been observed. First the clay was taken from the slimy beds of water-pools, apparently following the practice of contemporary potters, who selected fine earth for their ware from such places. Afterwards the earth was made into a paste and mixed with molasses, bdellium (*gūgal*), rice-husk, and the leaves of some herbs, with a view to ensuring that the plaster should stick well on the wall and not peel off when dried. The clay plaster so cleverly prepared, however, ultimately led to the ruin of a large number of paintings at Ajanta, because it became a hotbed for the development of insects during the monsoons. The insects not only bored holes in the paintings but ate up the earth mixed with vegetable and sticky matter and created hollows behind the painted surface, which, for lack of support, has either fallen down or is hanging loose. The Archaeological Department of Hyderabad, under the guidance of expert archaeological chemists, has recently succeeded in fixing back on the rock-wall many of these loose paintings.

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In Cave IX there is another painting representing a herdsman controlling fabulous animals through his herculean strength by holding their necks, hind-legs, or tails. The subject has evidently some mythical significance, because it is represented in the early sculpture of the Deccan at several places, notably at Kuda, Nāsik, and Amarāvatī. The representations at the latter three places belong either to the first century B.C. or to the first century A.D., and the painting at Ajanta also appears to belong to the same period, when the subject was popular with both sculptors and painters. The drawing of this painting shows distinct progress both in indicating movement and in showing a realistic effect in the form of animals.¹ The advance of art may further be noticed in the delineation of the *Shad-danta Jātaka* on the right wall of Cave X, where the portrayal of the animals, the beauty of trees and flowers, and the expression of human feelings are represented in a very effective manner. The colours are the same, the human figures represented are still non-Aryan, and there is no deepening or lightening of colour-washes such as are to be noticed in later paintings; yet the grandeur of trees, the grace of human forms, and the beauty of animal figures are admirably depicted. This painting probably belongs to the third century A.D., to which period belong some of the sculptures of Amarāvatī, which have a close affinity to the paintings of Ajanta in regard to the pose and plasticity of the female figures. In this subject the painter has also shown a well-developed conception of ideas in the arrangement of the various episodes of the *Jātaka* and a certain dramatic effect in the scene in which the rānī faints at the sight of the tusks of the *Shad-danta* elephant who had been her husband in a previous birth.²

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¹ *Ajanta*, iii, Plate XVII.

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² *Ibid.*, pp. 32-37 (text), Plate XXX; see also Cowell, *Jātaka*, No. 514, v, 20-31.

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Dramatic effect and the emotional feeling are still better shown in another scene painted on the same wall representing the *Syāma (Sāma) Jātaka*, in which the remorse of the rājā who unwittingly killed Syāma with an arrow shot by him, the wailing of his blind parents, and ultimately, by an act of providence, the restoration to life of Syāma and the bestowal of vision upon his parents, are very graphically delineated. The drawing of the figure of Syāma possesses the grace of the classical sculpture of Europe, while the head of the father of Syāma indicates the 'pathos' which is to be noticed in the Italian paintings of the Renaissance period, notably in the portraits of Jesus Christ. The figures of deer are also admirably drawn in this scene.³ This painting is not labelled with any inscription which might indicate its date, but as the *dramatis personae* delineated therein, both by their dress and features, are seen to be early inhabitants of the Deccan, it may be assigned to a period extending from the last quarter of the third century A.D. to the first quarter of the fourth, that is, to a time immediately preceding the sovereignty of the Vākāṭakas; for the extent of their dominions and their matrimonial relations with the Guptas and the Nāga kings of Padmāvatī (Gwalior State) would have led a large number of people from the North to enter the Deccan and settle there.⁴

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³ *Ibid.*, Plate XXIX.

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⁴ Prabhāvatī-guptā, daughter of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II (*c.* 375-414) was married to the Vākāṭaka king Rudra-sena II (*c.* 385-90(?)). Earlier, Gautamīputra, son of the Vākāṭaka king Pravara-sena (*c.* 275-335(?)), was married to the daughter of Bhava-nāga, the Nāga king of Padmāvatī; and although Gautamīputra predeceased his father and did not succeed to the throne, yet his son Rudra-sena I, who ruled after Pravara-sena, was much helped by his maternal grandfather Bhava-nāga in maintaining his authority against his foes. The name of Bhava-nāga is included in the genealogy of Vākāṭaka kings noticed in contemporary inscriptions. As a general rule

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In Cave X on the back wall of the *chaitya* there are some paintings representing a few scenes from the life of the Buddha which may be assigned to the fourth or fifth century A.D., but for the art of this period it will be best to study the paintings of Caves I, II, XVI, and XVII. The latter two caves contain inscriptions of the Vākāṭaka king Hariṣeṇa, of the Basim branch, and Cave I is a replica of the *vihāra* at Ghaṭotkacha, both in plan and in the identity of certain sculptures, notably the one representing four deer with a common head, which subject is not to be found in any other Buddhist *vihāra*. According to a contemporary inscription, the *vihāra* at Ghaṭotkacha was cut in the rock by Varāhadeva, the minister of Devasena (*c.* A.D. 455-75). The interest of these kings and their ministers and feudatory chiefs in the Buddhist faith and the art of painting, as it then flourished at Ajanta, would have familiarized the painters of Ajanta with court life, because such royal personages and their entourage would have frequently visited Ajanta to pay their homage to the sacred shrines and the holy persons who resided there. It is also likely that some of the holy monks may have been invited to the royal courts to teach the Law, and they may have been accompanied by artists belonging to the Order for the purpose of embellishing with paintings the shrines which existed at the capital towns. This surmise gains support from the fact that the paintings at Bāgh appear to have been copied from the paintings at Ajanta, since not only is there similarity in technique and in poses and dresses, but the dance-scene of the *Mahājanaka Jātaka* painted on the left wall of Cave I at Ajanta is reproduced with almost identical figures on the rock-wall at Bāgh.¹ The influence of the Gupta kings, according to eminent historians, did not penetrate as far as the Deccan in the fourth century A.D., but the art of Ajanta during this century and the fifth made tremendous progress and its fame reached distant countries. Votaries from Ceylon, Afghanistan, Central Asia, and China visited Ajanta, and, after learning the art practised there, adorned the walls of the shrines in their motherlands with similar paintings when they returned to their own countries. The frescoes of Sigiri in Ceylon,² Bāmiyān in Afghanistan,³ Turfān in Central Asia,⁴ and Tun Huang in China,⁵ show unmistakably the influence of the art of Ajanta. Some of these paintings are assigned to the fifth century A.D., so that their painters must have visited Ajanta in that century or even earlier (fourth century A.D.). Kālidāsa mentions ‘the hall of painting’ in the *Mālavikāgnimitra*, and it is not unlikely that he may have visited Ajanta, familiar as he was with the court of the Vākāṭaka kings.⁶ The *Viṣṇudharmottara* was compiled in the seventh or eighth century A.D., but its

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¹ *Bāgh Caves*, published by the India Society, London, Plates D and E.

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² A. K. Coomaraswamy, *History of Indian and Indonesian Art*, pp. 162-3.

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³ *Ibid.*, p. 52.

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⁴ A. V. Le Coq, *Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien*. This work contains many plates showing the influence of the Buddhist art of the Deccan in Middle Asian countries.

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⁵ Paul Pelliot, *Les Grottes de Touen Houang* (Paris, 1914-24), and Arthur Waley, *A Catalogue of Paintings recovered from Tun-huang by Sir Aurel Stein* (London, 1931).

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⁶ Dr. A. S. Altekar writes: ‘It is very likely that Kālidāsa lived for some time at the Vākāṭaka court and we may well presume that a part of his *Meghadūta* was composed at Rāmtek. His only work that can be definitely ascribed to the Deccan of the Vākāṭaka age is the Prakrit poem *Setubandha*, written by King Pravarasena II (*c.* A.D. 410-40) and revised by Kālidāsa.’ *History of the Deccan*,

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maternal grandfathers are mentioned in royal genealogies when they have rendered conspicuous help to their daughters' sons. Cf. *A New History of the Indian People*, vol. vi, edited by R. C. Majumdar and A. S. Altekar, pp. 95 and 103.

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author writes that his work is based on older treatises, which were probably compiled during the fourth and fifth centuries A.D., when the art of Ajanta was at its zenith.¹ The technical details given in the *Viṣṇudharmottara* regarding the preparation of the surface before the laying on of the colours are identical with those to be seen at Ajanta; even the ingredients of the *rinzaffo* (clay-plaster) are the same as those found by chemical analysis of the clay-plaster of the Ajanta paintings.²

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¹ Stella Kramrisch, *Viṣṇudharmottara*, p. 5 (revised edition).

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² The five prime colours (minerals) are also the same as those to be found at Ajanta, and the practice of first drawing the outline of the subject in red, black, or white is in conformity with the technique of Ajanta. *Viṣṇudharmottara* (pp. 50-51) mentions other colours as well, such as vermilion, copper-sulphate, silver, and gold, but these were apparently used for illuminating manuscripts, an art which may have originated independently in Northern India and which is still practised there. The latter art is calligraphic in technique and differs altogether from the art of the mural paintings of Ajanta. The earliest paintings of Gujarāt exhibit a calligraphic form in their outlines.

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The familiarity of the Ajanta artists with court life is amply illustrated in the four caves (I-II and XVI-XVII) referred to above (p. 4). The royal pavilions containing richly decorated thrones and curtains and awnings with pearl tassels, the princes and princesses wearing gorgeous jewels and draped in expensive silks or gold and silver brocades of exquisite designs, the musical entertainments, the animal-fights, the hunting excursions, the stately cavalcades, comprising elephant-riders and horsemen as well as infantry, and the march of armies and the violence and turmoil of the battlefield, are all depicted by the hand of one who has observed these scenes at close quarters.

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Religious zeal and ardour, and noble qualities of the heart such as sympathy for the oppressed, charity towards the indigent, mercy even involving personal sacrifice by the bestower, love for the entire creation, human beings as well as animals, even reptiles, are most effectively delineated in the art of this period. Royal pomp and splendour are regarded with indifference as compared with the higher glory of enlightened being or spirit. The influence of the priestly class at the royal courts is shown with respect, but in certain cases also with a touch of irony. On the right wall of Cave XVII, the head of the Brahman who warns the rājā not to be lured by the charm of the disguised ogress, in the *Siṃhala Avadāna*, exhibits the artistic skill of Rembrandt in character-painting.³ In another subject painted in Cave I on the wall of the back corridor, in which two princesses are bringing trays of offerings to the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, the head of the elderly minister accompanying the rājā is a masterpiece of art both for expression and realistic treatment of features.⁴ And who would not be impressed by the ugly features and the devilish grin of Jūjaka, the avaricious Brahman in the *Viśvantara Jātaka*, when he receives the ransom-money for restoring to the father of Viśvantara his two children, who, having been given to the wily Brahman as a gift, had been maltreated by him in order to extort a large sum as ransom from the rājā? This scene is painted on the wall of the left aisle in Cave XVII.⁵ In the representations of the priestly class we notice people from all parts of India: those with a tuft of hair on the crown of the

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³ *Ajanta*, iv, Plates L *d* and LVI *b*.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, i, Plate XXXI.

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⁵ *Ibid.*, iv, Plate XX *b*.

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vol. i, Pt. III, p. 200, and *A New History of the Indian People*, p. 112, footnote 2, and p. 114.

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head and twisted moustaches, hailing from Benares and Prayāg; the long-haired Oriyā Brahman naked down to his waist, with only a striped scarf (*angochhā*) round his shoulders, such as he wears to this day;¹ and the wrinkled face of the Madras priest with horizontal lines of paint drawn across his forehead as a religious symbol.²

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¹ *Ajanta*, i, Plate XXXVI *a*.

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² *Ibid.*, iv, Plates XX and XLV.

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In addition to people from various parts of India, the inhabitants of Afghanistan, Bactria, and China are also represented in the paintings of this period (fourth to fifth centuries A.D.). For instance, the group of rulers and chiefs who are shown coming riding on horses and elephants to listen to the First Sermon of the Buddha, painted on the left wall of the ante-chamber of Cave XVII, includes figures whose features, headgear—the fur-brimmed conical caps—and embroidered coats resemble those of the people of the Frontier Province and Afghanistan today.³ These districts constituted the province of Gandhāra, the people of which embraced Buddhism from a very early period, and the reputation of the sacred shrines of Ajanta will have prompted the votaries of the Buddhist faith in the former province to visit this shrine as pilgrims. Further, the Malwa and the entire zone of Western India, comprising Kathiawar, Surāshṭra, and the Konkan, had been governed by Śaka princes, styled the Western Satraps in history, from the first century B.C. or A.D. to the end of the fourth century A.D.; and as several of these princes were ardent supporters of the Buddhist faith, the familiarity of the Ajanta artists with Śakas or people of Western Asiatic countries is not surprising. The Bacchanalian scene painted in several places on the ceiling of Cave I, and the quaint figure in the veranda of Cave II,⁴ with sunken cheeks and a tuft of hair on his chin, wearing a skull-cap and a striped pair of socks and drinking wine with his boon companion, probably an Indian as his physiognomy shows, confirm the above view.

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³ *Ibid.*, Plates XXXVIII–XXXIX.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, i, Plate XXIX *a*; and ii, Plate XI *a*.

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In the first decade of the fifth century A.D. Fa-Hian visited the Buddhist shrines and monasteries of Bihar and Tirhut, the towns on the banks of the Ganges and Jumna, and also travelled down the country along the eastern coast, whence he took a boat for Ceylon and stayed in that island for nearly two years. It is not known from his work whether he visited Ajanta, but a monastery of the *Dakshiṇa-deśa* described by him resembles in certain physical features the group of sacred shrines at Ajanta.⁵ He however mentions that artists were deputed by kings to copy the paintings executed on the rock-walls of certain Buddhist shrines.⁶ The representation of a holy mendicant in the *Viśvantara Jātaka*, painted on the left wall of Cave XVII, shows a person with characteristic Chinese features,⁷ which suggests that the artists of Ajanta were not unfamiliar with Chinese pilgrims who from time to time visited Ajanta with a view to acquiring religious lore; and those among such visitors who possessed the artistic capacity to learn painting may well have been initiated into the technique of the style which was prevalent there at that time.⁸

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⁵ This monastery is described by Hiuen Tsang as well (Book X). Some annotators have suggested that it was situated in the Chanda District; see Beal, *Buddhist Records*, vol. i, p. lxviii, footnote 83, and vol. ii, p. 214, footnote 80.

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⁶ *Ibid.*, vol. i, p. xxxv.

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⁷ *Ajanta*, iv, Plate XXIII.

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⁸ Some art-experts, notable among them being Fergusson, have noticed resemblance to Chinese art, and in this connexion Griffiths has observed as follows: "The reference to Chinese work in the above extract is

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In regard to this style, it should be stated that although there are no cast shadows at Ajanta, yet the contours of the body are amply defined by the emphasizing of the outline and by the deepening of the colour-washes. This technique is not found in the earlier paintings of Ajanta, but it is prominent in the later work of the fourth and fifth centuries A.D. Another device adopted during this time is the use of streaks or small patches of light colour to enliven and give expression to the face. The artists of Ajanta, like the sculptors of India in all parts of the country, were eager from the beginning to produce an effect of completeness in their creations, and they have reproduced the beauty of the human body, as well as of animals, by giving their subjects a variety of delightful poses. The idea of movement combined with grace of poise is admirably suggested, the axis of the majority of the figures changing several times from head to feet without producing any effect of unnaturalness, on the contrary adding charm to the attitude.

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To produce the effect of perspective a number of devices have been adopted: for instance, in some places deeper colours have been used for the background, so that the figures painted in front in lighter colours may stand out in relief. Sometimes black dots have been added with the same object, as can be seen in the representation of the Great Bodhisattva in Cave I. The artist in this case has painted the head of the Bodhisattva in golden brown, and the long hair, which falls on his shoulders, in jet black. The effect of perspective is further enhanced by a deep green background, the darkness of which has been increased by small black dots.¹ The idea of perspective is better suggested in another scene in Cave I, in which the drawing and colours of the steps and rows of pillars show the inmates of the two pavilions in different appropriate planes.² It is true that the drawing of hills as represented by red or other colour bands is conventional in the extreme, and similar conventionality is to be found sometimes in the case of architectural forms; but the charge that the artists of Ajanta did not understand perspective is not justified, for the drawing of the round pavilion in Cave XVI, in which the birth of the Buddha is shown, is perfect in this respect.³

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¹ *Ajanta*, i, Plates XXIV-XXV.

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² *Ibid.*, Plates XX-XXII.

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³ *Ibid.*, iii, Plates LXI.

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In regard to human forms the art of Ajanta is closely allied to that of the sculpture of Amarāvatī, so much so that if the photographs of some of the Jātaka scenes of Amarāvatī be placed side by side with the photographs of some of the paintings of Ajanta it will be difficult to differentiate between them. To appreciate this fact fully, the figures of women shown in the Chāmpeya Jātaka at Amarāvatī should be studied, for in the style of pose, the suppleness of limbs, and several artistic features, they are identical with those represented in the paintings of Ajanta.⁴ This close resemblance of form is apparently based on an artistic tradition which was evolved in the Deccan as a result of the religious beliefs and aesthetic ideals which were common to the sculptors of Amarāvatī and the painters of Ajanta and inspired both groups equally.

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⁴ G. Yazdani, *History of the Deccan*, vol. i, Pt. 9, Plate IIIa.

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interesting, for though flatness and want of shadow can scarcely be considered Chinese characteristics—seeing that early Italian, like other good mural decoration, is marked by these qualities—it is undeniable that in the drawing of the human eye, and sometimes of the whole figure, and in many ornamental details, there is a decidedly Chinese turn.’ Griffiths, *Paintings of Ajanta*, i, 7-8.

Ajanta: Explanatory Text

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As regards colours it has been observed above that down to the third century A.D. there is a complete absence of the blue tint, but in later work ultramarine is to be noticed freely, and it has admirably withstood the effects of time; colours of this shade of blue look as fresh today as when they were laid on fifteen or sixteen hundred years ago. Some expert chemists have suggested that the Ajanta artists made their blue pigment from *lapis-lazuli*, beads of which are to be seen in great abundance on the ornaments shown in the paintings of Ajanta.¹ Apart from blue there is a rich variety of other colours, notably the various shades of vermilion and terra-verde, which were doubtless produced by mixing with other colours. In regard to the ‘binding medium’ the chemical analysis of fragments of the painted surface has revealed that instead of any vegetable gum some kind of animal-skin glue was used, although in the *Vishnudharmottara* tree-resins and the pulp of the bel fruit (*Aegle marmelos*) as well as glue made from buffalo skin are included in the list of the binding media in vogue in India at some time or other.² Animal-skin glue is still used in Japan, where it is called *nikava*.

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¹ *Lapis-lazuli* beads have also been found in the cairns of the Deccan, proving that this stone was in fashion for ornaments from very early times.

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² *Vishnudharmottara*, pp. 16–17.

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The paintings of this period also throw considerable light on the social and economic conditions of the Deccan. Woman's place is generally inside the house, where she is shown behaving quite freely with her consort, but in court-scenes she is generally represented in a bashful mood.³ She is always most devoted to her husband and accompanies him even in exile.⁴ She soothes feelings of anger where harm to any person is threatened.⁵ Her dress, although scanty, shows good taste both in style and choice of material. There is a large variety in the designs of garments for the upper part of the body, ranging from a mere strip (*brassière*) to the tight-fitting half-sleeved bodice (*cholī*), and the full-sleeved shirts with slits (or cuts) on back and sides to show the beauty of form to advantage as well as to ensure freedom of movement.⁶ The material for these garments is sometimes almost transparent, a gossamer-like fabric, the tradition of which goes back to a very early period, as we know because the diaphanous muslins of Kalinga (Orissa) are mentioned in the *Periplus*. The other materials are silks and brocades with floral designs. The Deccan has been noted for its fabrics from ancient times, and both Greek and Roman writers mention this industry when describing the articles exported from the ports of the Western Coast of India. The lower garment of the ladies generally consists of a *sārī* which comes up to the waist-line and does not cover the back and the shoulders, except in the case of elderly ladies, such as Mahājanaka's mother.⁷ Ladies of Western Asiatic countries are shown wearing long full-sleeved coats and low skirts.⁸

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³ *Ajanta*, i, Plate XXIV. The dark princess is looking not towards her consort but in another direction, showing a certain modest aloofness when appearing in public.

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⁴ *Ibid.*, iv, Plates XXIII–XXIV.

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⁵ *Ibid.*, ii, Plate XLV.

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⁶ *Ibid.*, i, Plates XIII–XIV; iv, Plates XL–XLI.

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⁷ *Ibid.*, Plate XVII.

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⁸ *Ibid.*, Plates XXIV and XXXIX *a*.

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Princes of royal birth have their bodies bare down to the waist-line, but the lavish display of jewellery round their arms and necks and on their breasts does not make the scantiness of their dress so perceptible. The lower garment of the princes is a *dhotī*, or waist-cloth, generally of a striped design, in which a blue colour is prominent. The material of these dhoṭis was apparently a silken stuff of close texture.¹ The ministers and other high officers are shown dressed in long coats (aṅgrakhās) with full sleeves.² The material of these coats is something like the jāmiwār or himrū of Aurangābād at the present day, since it has floral and other attractive designs arranged in slanting bands.³ The soldiers wore round skull-caps, and jackets or shirts with full, as well as half-sleeves.⁴

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Women of this period paid great attention to their coiffure, and at Ajanta a variety of exquisite styles may be studied which are peculiar to the Deccan and South India and have never been seen in Upper India, again showing that the artists of Ajanta were people of the Deccan. The gold ornaments include ear-rings, finger-rings, wristlets, bangles, armlets, necklaces, tiaras, and diadems of a large number of designs, exhibiting perfect workmanship and good taste. The common use of these ornaments suggests that gold was then abundant in the Deccan, which view is confirmed by the existence of gold-mines in certain south-western districts of the Deccan to this day. The export of gold from the ports of Western India is mentioned by early European writers. Pearl ornaments are also to be seen in great abundance at Ajanta, and pearls probably came to the Ceylon and from the Persian Gulf; trade was carried on between the Deccan and these two places even before the Christian era. The fabulous wealth of the Deccan and the fondness of its people for pearls, gold ornaments, and rich silk stuffs may also be judged by a reference to an historical event of medieval times. When Rāmachandra, the rājā of Daulatābād, desired to conclude a treaty of peace with ‘Alā-ud-Dīn Khaljī, the latter forced him to pay as ransom for his breach of faith 17,250 pounds of gold, 200 pounds of pearls, 58 pounds of other jewels, 28,250 pounds of silver, and 4,000 pieces of silk.⁵

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It is difficult to make any plausible surmise from these paintings regarding polity, more particularly owing to the relative scarcity of ancillary evidence in literary works or contemporary inscriptions in the form of land-grants, &c., although such evidence does exist.⁶ The king was apparently the supreme head of the state, but ministers, who are generally delineated as belonging to the Brahman class, were consulted in all diplomatic and domestic affairs, and the will of the people also had considerable influence, since in stories like that of Viśvantara the regard for public opinion is amply shown. In this story the king, at the request of the people, disregarding his own and his consort's grief, exiled his beloved son because of his excessive generosity.⁷ Notwithstanding the natural wealth and the various rich industries

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¹ Ajanta, Plate XXIV. ² Ibid., Plates X, XVI, XVIII, XXXI, and XXXIV b. ³ Jāmiwār resembles the shawl-work of Kashmir and has its main texture of fine wool, floral and other designs being worked out in silk. In the Ajanta designs figures of ducks and oxen may also be seen (Ibid., Plates XVI and XVIII). Himrū is a cheap imitation of the jāmiwār, the distinction being that in it the main warp is of fine cotton. Paithan has been noted for its sāris of brocade from olden times, and the industry still flourishes there. ⁴ Ibid., ii, Plate XXXVIII; iii, Plates XXIV-XXV; and iv, Plates XXVIII, LIX a, and LXI a. ⁵ Cambridge History of India, iii, 97. ⁶ Vide Manu's Dharma Śāstra and Kauṭilya's Artha Śāstra. ⁷ The King said:

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‘Behold the people's will, And I that will do not gainsay,
But let him bide one happy night before he go away.’
‘After the space of this one night, when dawns the coming day,
Together let the people come and banish him away.’

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Cowell, Jātaka, vi, 255.

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of the country, the general mode of life was plain in the extreme; the kitchen, the pantry, and the dining-chamber of the rājā, shown in the Sutasoma Jātaka, do not differ as regards utensils and other requisites from those to be found in the house of an ordinary person (Plate XXXVI a). The royal kitchen shown in the above subject was a thatched hut with several pots hung from the bamboos of the roof by means of slings, such as may be seen in the houses of country-folk or poor people today. Below, some pots are shown on a fire over an earthen stove. The pantry is a side-apartment of the royal chamber, and in it several covered dishes and pots are placed on the floor, while the rājā is sitting in the adjoining chamber on a low seat with a plain little table in front of him. Some saucers and cups are scattered on and around this small table. This simple style of dining seems to have been based largely on certain orthodox religious principles regarding abstinence as well as the possible contamination of food. The diet and the style of dining of a prince did not therefore differ much from that of an ordinary person, but the latter would not have enjoyed venison, of which some of the princes delineated on the rock-walls of Ajanta were apparently fond (Plate LXX a).

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The dwelling-houses of royalty, though richly equipped with tassels and awnings, were small structures with narrow verandas and back rooms. The verandas represented in the paintings generally have slanting roofs resting on beams and rafters. The roofs of the rooms appear to be flat, like those to be seen in some of the rock-hewn shrines.¹ The common people lived in huts with grass roofs supported by props and beams of wood and bamboos. The architectural grandeur which is to be noticed in contemporary religious shrines cannot be traced in the secular buildings represented in paintings, the reason being that the secular ideal of life aimed at simplicity, whilst to glorify God they made His edifices as sublime and magnificent as human imagination and craftsmanship could at that time achieve. This view will be best appreciated if we describe the architectural features of those shrines of which the paintings are studied below in this Part.

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¹ The earliest representations of the flat roof with cross-beams and rafters may be seen in the vihāras at Koṇḍāṇe and Piṭalkhorā, ranging in date from the second to the first century B.C. History of the Deccan, vol. i, Plate II b.

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We begin with Cave XVII, the plan of which, given in Plate I, explains the general arrangement of the various parts of this vihāra. The veranda, while extending to a length of 64 ft., has a breadth of 10 ft. only, and consequently appears somewhat narrow to the art-critic. Similarly, the interspacing of the pillars, which are quite massive in girth, does not indicate a refined sense of proportion. The carving of the pilasters at each end, however, is exquisite, and amply atones for the heaviness of the columns in front. The hall is entered by three doors, one of them being in the middle and the other two on each side of it near the end of the wall. The middle door is of ample proportions and is adorned with elegant carving. There are also two large windows to light the interior of the hall. The latter measures nearly 64 ft. square, and has an apartment in the middle and corridors on all four sides formed by the insertion of columns. There are twenty columns altogether and they have an octagonal design, with the exception of four—two in the middle of the front row and two corresponding to them in the back row—which are square in plan. These are somewhat massive, but in the large dimensions of the hall they appear suitable. The columns are adorned with both carvings and paintings, which have been skilfully executed.

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At the back of the hall is the shrine, with an antechamber in front. The latter is rectangular in design and measures 17 ft. 9 in. in width and 8 ft. 5 in. in depth. The shrine itself is almost square in plan, its dimensions being 17 ft. 9 in. by 19 ft. 6 in. The door of the shrine is lavishly carved, the frame being divided into facets by sculptured bands representing floral designs, figures of the Buddha in different *mudrās* (attitudes), and figures of the Buddhist female deities of the Mahāyāna school. Two of them, which are carved on the two sides of the sill, apparently represent river-goddesses (*yakshiṇīs*), as they are shown standing on crocodiles (Plate III *a*). The large image of the Buddha inside the shrine is sufficiently impressive, although it suffers by comparison with the image in Cave I.¹ The Teacher is seated on a richly carved throne, at the back of which are represented the figures of two crocodiles. From the jaws of each of these monsters a man is leaping forth as if to save his life. These men in relation to the size of the crocodiles have been shown on a much smaller scale, but the artistic details of the whole design are admirably finished. The Buddha is shown in the *Dharmachakra mudrā* (teaching attitude). He is seated cross-legged with the soles of his feet turned upwards, and holds the little finger of his left hand with the thumb and forefinger of his right, as if to count the various points of his sermon. Below the throne two deer with a wheel between them are carved, representing conventionally the deer-park of Sārnāth (near Benares) where the Buddha is said to have preached the Law. On each side of the Buddha, standing by the throne, is an attendant holding a fly-whisk. The attendant on the right represents the Bodhisattva Padmapāṇi, who can be identified by the lotus-flower in his left hand; the attendant on the left is the Bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi, whose emblem, the conventional thunderbolt (*vajra*), is clearly visible in the sculpture (Plate III *b*). Near the throne are two more attendants, one holding a cup (the Buddha’s alms-bowl?) and the other something else which is not clear, as the sculpture is slightly damaged at that place. The long hair of the two attendants, curled and arranged in the form of a wig, catches the eye. Above, along the halo, may be noticed cherubs who are bringing offerings from heaven to the Buddha.

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¹ *Ajanta*, i, *frontispiece*.

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The religious dignity of the sculpture of this *vihāra* is in keeping with the sense of grandeur conveyed by its architectural style, and derived from the noble expanse of the hall and the elegance and beauty of its other adjuncts. These features, combined with the magnificence of the paintings which adorn the *vihāra*, make it undoubtedly the finest monument of its kind in India, and perhaps in the world. If any other *vihāra* can match it in splendour it is Cave I at the same place; but in this latter *vihāra* the paintings, with few exceptions, are not artistically of such a high order as those in Cave XVII.²

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² The representations of the Padmapāṇi and Avalokiteśvara on the back wall, on either side of the antechamber, and the figure of the Buddha as a beggar, on the wall of the front corridor, to the left of the door, in Cave I, are indeed masterpieces of the Buddhist art of India, and for serenity of expression and artistic beauty may stand comparison with any other specimen of this art. *Ajanta*, i, Plates VI *b*, VII *b*, VIII, XXIV-XXVII, and XXXI-XXXIII.

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On the left side of Cave XVII a passage leads through a rectangular excavation to Cave XIX, which is a *chaitya*. This rectangular excavation, which measures 19 ft. 4 in. in length and 8 ft. 10 in. in depth, was never a separate shrine, although previous archaeologists have marked it as Cave XVIII. The next cave (XIX) is indeed a magnificent temple, and notwithstanding its comparatively small dimensions the carving and the general style of its architecture exhibit perfect workmanship and a highly refined taste.¹ It has an elegant porch which opens on a finely chiselled court some 34 ft. square. The pillars of the porch show a fine sense of proportion in height and girth, and in design they resemble the pillars of Cave II and are equally attractive and well finished. The entire façade of this *vihāra* is adorned with sculptures, representing the figures of the Buddha in different *mudrās*, scenes from his life, floral patterns, jewellery designs, animal-heads, mythical beings, and pairs of lovers. These last are carved at the top—and are shown dallying with one another in horse-shoe shaped windows facing the court. The figures of two corpulent *yakshas*, one of them evidently being Pāñchika, as he holds a purse, are carved as guardians on each side of the springing points of the main arch. The rich crop of the coiled tresses of these two figures falling below their shoulders at once strikes the eye. The figures of the Buddha, carved in niches above the floor of the court, show both serenity of expression and careful workmanship. The row of hyeña-heads used as a dividing-line between the bands of sculpture, and the panel of small squares incised in the rock, serving a similar purpose, make the carving of this *chaitya* resemble that of Cave I, where these two artistic motifs are prominent. The pillars of the interior of this cave also have a striking affinity, both in design and workmanship, to the pillars of Cave I, and the virtual identity of these features, combined with the general artistic feeling shown in the decorative work of these two caves, leaves no doubt that they were excavated within a short period of each other. In Part I the date of Cave I has been assigned to the close of the fifth century A.D.,² and since the repetition of the figures of the Buddha in the triforium of Cave XIX, as also the style of the paintings in the ceiling of this temple, indicates a later phase of the art of Ajanta, this latter cave may be assigned to the beginning of the sixth century A.D., thus to a date not far removed from that of Cave I.

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¹ The hall of this *chaitya* measures 46 ft. in length, 24 ft. in width, and 24 ft. 4 in. in height. For the plan of the temple see Fergusson and Burgess, *Cave Temples of India*, Plate XXXVII, and also Griffiths, *Paintings of Ajanta*, ii, Plate 150.

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² *Ajanta*, I, 3.

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In verses 26-27 of the inscription incised in Cave XVII there is a reference to the digging of 'a large cistern pleasing to the eyes and filled with fresh . . . and copious water', and also to the construction of 'a grand *Gandhakuṭī*'.³ Prof. M. M. Mirashi, who has edited the inscription, is of opinion that 'the reference to the *Gandhakuṭī* is undoubtedly to the *chaitya* Cave XIX, which actually lies to the west of Cave XVII'. But Sanskrit poets were always prone to use superlatives when praising a work, and here, as in the case of 'the large cistern pleasing to the eyes', which is only a natural aperture in the rock and does not in any way please the eye, there may have been some exaggeration. So this *Gandhakuṭī* may also have been only an insignificant chapel with an image of the Buddha to the west of Cave XVII, which since its excavation has disappeared owing to a landslide or some other cause. The rock above Cave XVIII has disintegrated badly as the result of climatic influences and shows signs of long continued decay, so that our surmise regarding the disappearance of the *Gandhakuṭi* is rendered plausible. It has been stated above that the decorative features of the triforium of Cave XIX suggest a date posterior to that of Cave I; thus it may be argued that Cave XVII, which is earlier than Cave I both in its style of painting and in its architecture, cannot be coeval with Cave XIX.

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Linked texts (23)

Jātaka — Pāli
Kauṭilīya Arthaśāstra — Kauṭilya, Sanskrit
Divyāvadāna — Sanskrit
Mānava Dharmaśāstra — Manu & Bhṛgu, Sanskrit
Avadānaśataka — Sanskrit
Setubandha — Pravarasena II, Māhārāṣṭrī Prakrit
Viṣṇudharmottarapurāṇa — Sanskrit
Mālavikāgnimitra — Kālidāsa, Sanskrit
Meghadūta — Kālidāsa, Sanskrit
Saṃyuttanikāya — Pāli
Jātakamālā — Āryaśūra, Sanskrit
Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra — Maitreyanātha & Asaṅga, Sanskrit
Bodhisattvāvadānakalpalatā — Kṣemendra, Sanskrit
Mahāsamayasūtra — Sanskrit
Avadāna — Sanskrit
Sārnāth
Bharhut
Pitalkhora
Sigiriya
Aurangabad Caves
Kondâne
Badami
Ajanta

Ajanta: The Colour and Monochrome Reproductions of the Ajanta Frescoes Based on Photography v4: Volume 4

Contents

Volume 4

Front matter

Part Four

Ajanta: Explanatory Text

Linked texts (23)