Artwork Page for Text, Folio 51 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra

Details / Information for Text, Folio 51 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra

Text, Folio 51 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra

c. 1475–1500

Western India, Gujarat

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Medium
Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper
Measurements
Overall: 12.5 x 25.7 cm (4 15/16 x 10 1/8 in.)
Credit Line
Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1932.119.51.b
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Nemi, who was the cousin of the Hindu god Krishna, lived in the ancient mythic past. Like every other Jina, after achieving enlightenment he gave a mystical teaching to all the gods and animals and appeared to the assembly simultaneously in all directions. This exposition of Jain teachings is depicted by the circular diagram with Nemi seated in the center. The crescent moon under the seated figure of Nemi at the top of the page reveals that he is depicted in the realm of liberation, above the world of birth and death, in eternal meditative bliss.
A horizontally oriented tempera and ink folio features rows of dense black and red Indic script on cream paper. The characters are unified by a thick horizontal bar along the top. Three large, solid red circles are spaced across the page, framed by vertical red borders. Smaller marginalia fill the paper's edges, which show light staining and wear. A handwritten number appears in the lower right corner.

Text, Folio 51 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra

c. 1475–1500

Western India, Gujarat

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