Monuments of Sittannavasal in Pudukottai

The monuments contain famous Jaina paintings and isncriptions in Tamil from 2nd century BCA Presentation by Prof. Subramanian Swaminathan on the paintings of Sittanavasal

1. SITTANNAVASAL
MONUMENTS
Presented by
S. Swaminathan
([email protected])

2. Location of Sittannavasal
a small village
in the Pudukkottai district
of Tamilnadu,
is a world-famous
archaeological site.
Sittannavasal,
It lies at 15 km from Pudukkottai on the road to Illuppur.
Trichy
Thanjavur
Pudukkottai
Karaikkudi

3. It is renowned for its mural paintings in the Jaina cave temple.
These paintings are second only in importance
after Ajanta paintings and
have an important place in the Indian art history.
It was a flourishing centre
of Jaina influence where Jainism flourished
for over 1200 years (3rd century BC to 10th century AD).
Arivar-koil
There are four interesting monuments on and around a
large rocky hillock:
Sittannavasal monuments

4. Sittannavasal monuments
There are a number of natural caverns
with polished stone-beds in this hillock
where Jain ascetics performed austerities.
One of such caverns, called Ezhadippattam,
contains 17 stone-beds,
with inscriptions in Tamil dating from 3
rd
century BC.
Ezhadippattam

5. Sittannavasal monuments
A tarn situated on the northern part of the hillock,
with a submerged rock-cut shrine inside.
Navachchunai

6. Sittannavasal monuments
This village was one of
the oldest inhabited sites in this area.
The megalithic burial sites here testify to this.
Burial sites

7. ARIVAR-KOIL

8. Originally thought of an excavation of Mahendra-varma Pallavan,
this is now considered to be a Pandya contribution
Still there is uncertainty regarding the origin of this temple
Arivar-koil
This is
a Jaina cave
temple, excavated
before the 9th century AD
and has
the famous mural paintings

9. Arivar-koil
The cave temple lies on the west face of the hillock,
near the northern end.
A walk of about 100 feet over the sloping rock
takes the visitor to the cave temple.

10. ARIVAR-KOIL
architecture

11. Garbha-
griham
Ardha-mandapam
Pillared-veranda
an ardha-mandapam
A mukha-mandapam
that was added
in 9th century AD
has collapsed.
The pillared veranda is
a later addition
in the 20th century.
The cave temple consists of
a garbha-griham,
and a pillared veranda.

12. Originallytheentirespace,
exceptthefloor,
hadbeenplasteredandpainted.
But only
a part of the paintings on the ceiling and
patches elsewhere
remain.

13. Pillared-veranda

14. This pillared veranda, in front, is a later construction,
added in the 20th century by the Tondaiman-s of Pudukkottai.
It provides much needed protection from rain and sun.
Pillared Varenda

15. It mentions
about the repair
and extension
of the cave temple
by a Jaina Acharya
called Ilan Gautaman,
during the reign of
the Pandya king,
Srimaran-srivallabhan
(9th century AD).
Pillared Varenda
It is from this inscription we find that the cave temple
was excavated before the 9th century.
A 17-line Tamil inscription on the rock-face of the original cave
can be seen from here.

16. Ardha-mandapam

17. Ardha-mandapam
From the front
veranda one enters
this ardha-mandapam
which is
22½ feet by 7½ feet.
On the side walls
are two niches
containing
sculptures of
a Tirthankara and
an Acharya.

18. The ardha-mandapam contained
some exquisite paintings,
of which precious little remains.

19. Garbha-griham

20. Garbha-griham
Beyond the ardha-mandapam
is this Garbha-griham.
It is 10 feet by 10 feet.
On the back wall are three images
carved in relief.
On the ceiling is carved a Dharma-chakra.
The ceiling contains relics of paintings.

21. ARIVAR-KOIL
sculptures

22. There are only five
sculptures,
all in relief, in this cave
temple.
Two of them are
in the ardha-mandapam,
on the side-walls.
The garbha-griham
contains
three figures in a row,
on the rear-wall.
These sculptures are of Jaina Tirthankara-s and Acharya-s.

23. Ardha-mandapam

24. The niche on the southern wall
contains a figure of Parsvanatha,
the twenty-third Tirthankara.
He is seated cross-legged
in the dhyana (meditative) pose.
There is a five headed serpent
spreading its hood over his head
identifying him as Parsvanatha.
Ardha-mandapam

25. The niche on the northern wall
is a figure of a Jaina Acharya
seated in the same pose.
There is a single umbrella over
the head of the image,
which indicates that it is not a
Tirthankara.
Ardha-mandapam

26. Garbha-griham

27. The northern and central figures have
‘mukkudai’ (‘triple umbrella’),
indicating them to be Tirthankara-s.
The southern figure has a single umbrella,
and probably a Chakravarti or an Acharya.
On the back-wall of the garbha-griham
are three images carved in relief in a row.
All of them are in the same dhyana (meditative) posture.
Garbha-griham

28. ARIVAR-KOIL
paintings

29. Indian Paintings
Sittannavasal paintings are an
early example of post-Ajanta period painting and
are of the classical Ajanta style
with variation in the handling of the material
by the artists.
Ajanta,
200BC-600AD

30. Indian Paintings
Kanchipuram
7
th
century AD
The paintings in Kailasanatha Temple in
Kanchi antedate the Sittannavasal paintings.

31. Indian Paintings
The paintings in Brihadiswara Temple in Thanjavur
are the continuation of the Sittannavasal tradition.
Thanjavur
1100AD

32. Sittannavasal Paintings
The technique used is known as fresco-secco,
that is, painting done on dry wall.
In this process,
the surface is first covered with lime plaster,then
coated with lime-wash
and the painting done on it.
Mineral colours of permanent nature
were employed for the painting.

33. The subjects of the Sittannavasal paintings include
the Samava-sarana of the Jaina mythology,
a few solo-pictures, that includes dancing damsels,
birds, floral decorations, and
various carpet canopy designs.
Sittannavasal Paintings

34. Originally the entire cave temple,
excluding the floor,
including the sculptures
was covered with plaster and painted.
Only traces of these are now extant.
All these paintings,
which would rank among the great
paintings of India,
are barely visible now,
mainly due to vandalism
with in the last 50-60 years.
Sittannavasal Paintings

35. But Jouveau Dubreuil and T.A. Gopinatha Rao
brought it before the archaeological world
in 1920.
This Jaina site and its paintings were
first noticed by a local historian
S. Radhakrishna Iyer
in 1916.
Sittannavasal Paintings

36. The layer of painting,
which we see today and admire,
is probably the work of Ilan-Gautaman
(9th century AD),
mentioned in the inscription.
In 1942, Dr. S. Paramasivan and K.R. Srinivasan found
that there are two layers of paintings,
an earlier and a later
superimposed over the earlier one.
These are some of the
earliest frescos in South India and
only example of early Jaina frescoes.
Sittannavasal Paintings

37. Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
On the ceiling of ardha-mandapam,
canopies of floral pattern are painted over the two relief images.

38. The samava-sarana composition
In Jainism,
where worship of great souls
occupies an important place,
Tirthankara-s are the most venerated
religious prophets.
One of the five important events in the life of a Tirthankara is
the first sermon after attaining the kevala-jnana (realisation),
in a specially designed complex called Samava-sarana.
This Samava-sarana
is a favourite motif
for representation in the Jaina temples.
Ceiling of ardha-mandapam

39. The scene painted in the ardha-mandapam
is a lotus tank
which is a part of the Samava-sarana complex.
It is the second region, called khatika-bhumi (region-of-the-tank).
Here, we see, the bhavya-s (the good ones),
rejoice while washing themselves,
as they pass on from region to region
in order to hear the discourse of the Lord
in the heavenly pavilion of Samava-sarana.
The samava-sarana composition
Ceiling of ardha-mandapam

40. This painting shows bhavya-s
enjoying themselves in a pool,
full of flowering lotuses.
Flowers
with their stalks and leaves,
various kinds of fishes frolicking,
a makara (mythical
fish), buffaloes, elephants and
numerous birds
are shown with simplicity, charm and
naturalness.
The samava-sarana
composition
Ceiling of ardha-mandapam

41. One is picking lotus flowers with
his right hand and has a basket of
flowers slung on the other.
The pose and expression of the bhavya-s shown in the picture have a
charm and beauty, which compel attention.
The samava-sarana composition
Two of them are
shown together in
one part of the tank.

42. His companion carries a lotus in one
hand, the other is bent
gracefully, the fingers forming the
mrigi-mudra (‘deer-gesture’).
The samava-sarana composition

43. The three figures are naked,
except for their loin-cloths.
The hair is neatly arranged and
the lobes of the ears are distended.
The third bhavya,
an extremely beautiful figure,
carries a bunch of lotus
over his left shoulder and lily over
his right.
The samava-sarana
composition

44. The three figures are naked, except for their loin-cloths.
The hair is neatly arranged and the lobes of the ears are distended.
The samava-sarana composition

45. The samava-sarana composition
Ceiling of ardha-mandapam

46. Pillars of ardha-mandapam
There were some exquisite paintings
of dancing girls on the pillars.
These priceless treasures are now lost forever
and only their outlines are traceable today.
These animated figures,
with their broad hips, slender waists, and elaborate
ornaments, recall the beauty of the apsara-s of mythology;
their pose and expression
suggest rhythm and dynamic movement.
These portraitures of dancers
must rank as one among the best
in the whole of India.

47. One of them has her left arm
stretched-out in lata-hasta pose
and right arm bent at the elbow.
Pillars of ardha-mandapam
Her ears
are adorned with olai
(patra-kundala),
rings set with gems,
and
her arms decked
with bracelets
and bangles.

48. The other is even more graceful.
Her left arm stretched-in
lata-hasta pose,
while her right arm is bent at the elbow.
The head-dress and the ornaments of this dancer are very distinct.
The hair is decked with flower garlands.
Pillars of ardha-mandapam

49. There is also remnant of
a painting of a royal couple, on the southern pillar.
Pillars of ardha-mandapam

50. There are paintings on the corbels, beam and cornice.
On the corbel are scroll designs with lotuses.
Painted lotuses
in different stages
of flowering.
Cornice & beam of ardha-mandapam

51. Infrontofeachof
thetwopillarsare
paintedhamsa
(mythicalswan).
The painting on the cornice is made up of carpet designs with lotuses.
On the northern wall
are the figures of fruits and flowers in yellow and red.
Cornice & beam of ardha-mandapam

52. Ceiling of garbha-griham
The painting above the three relief
sculptures suggests a carpet,
with striped borders and
irregular squares and circles interlinked.
Within the squares are lotus flowers.
Inside the circles is a cross,
with two human figures
on upper side and
two lion figures on the lower side
of the horizontal arm.

53. EZHADIPPATTAM

54. Ezhadippattam
Ezhadipattamis the name given to a natural cavern
where over more than a thousand years
since 3rd century BC,
Jaina ascetics practiced severest penance
such as
Kayot-sarga(meditation-till-salvation-in-standing-pose)
and
sallekhana(fasting-unto-death).

55. A few hundred meters south of the cave-temple
is the beginning of the path
that leads to Ezhadippattam.
Ezhadippattam

56. The cavern is near
the top of the centre of the hill,
on the eastern side.
But the approach is from the west.
Originally this path to the cavern,
along a narrow ledge
was difficult and dangerous.
The Cavern
Ezhadippattam
Entry to the Cavern

57. The cavern is roomy but low.
The floor is marked out into spaces
for seventeen beds,
each with a sort of stone pillow.
They are highly polished.
The stone-beds
Most of the beds are inscribed.
But all these inscriptions are
barely visible now,
due to vandalism within last 50-60
years.

58. One of the beds, the largest, is the oldest
It contains an inscription in Tamil
in the Tamil Brahmi script of the 3rd century BC.
This is one of the oldest lithic records of South India.
Inscriptions
It mentions that
Ilaiyarof Tenku-ciru-
posilmade this seat
for Kavuti
born at Kumizhur
in erumi-naadu
(probably in
Karnataka).

59. Inscriptions
Near other beds, names of other
Jaina ascetics who practised
penance are inscribed.
There are a number of
inscriptions belonging 7th to 10th
centuries AD.

60. There are a number of stone-beds and
inscriptions around Ezhadippattam.
Ezhadippattam; stone beds & inscriptions nearby
There is also a passage to reach the hill
through a very narrow cavern,
now under disuse.

61. NAVACH-CHUNAI

62. Navach-chunai
The pool takes its name from a
naval-maram (Syzygium jambolanum) close by.

63. Jambunatha submerged cave temple
The sunai contains a
submerged Pandya rock-cut
shrine inside.
It contains a lingam in the centre and a narrow passage to walk around.
The water is occasionally baled out, and the lingam is worshiped.
However, there is no clue as to why such temples were excavated at all.

64. MEGALITHIC
BURIALS

65. Megalithic Burials
Certain typical modes of disposing the dead
in the mega-lithic period
(3rd century BC to 1st century AD)
are preserved in the Pudukkottai tract.

66. Excavations reveal three types of burials in Pudukkottai region:
•grave-burials, practised by poor people,
•urn-burials, in which the dead men were buried
in a sitting posture in a large earthenware pot and
•burials in deep stone-chambers formed of stone slabs (cists).
Megalithic Burials
Quite a few burial sites are found in Sittannavasal

67. Megalithic Burials
Loosely called ‘dolmans’,
these are stone-capped burial monuments with chambers in stone.
Mudu-makkal-thazhi (‘burial-pots-of-the-old-people’)
is the most widely used local name.
These are easily identifiable by the appearance of
a circle of laterite or granite stones
and small boulders on the surface of the spot.

68. OTHER INTERESTING
PLACES

69. Other places of interest
At the foothills of the hillock, on the western side,
are two temples in ruins.
One is dedicated to Siva
and
another to a Goddess.
There are
a few loose sculptures
near to these shrines.
These two temples have not been studied
in detail yet.

70. Other places of interest
There are shrines for
local deity, Ayyanar
with the customary
terracotta sculptures of
horses, etc. nearby.

71. The Sittannavasal Complex offers an opportunity
to travel in time
from the 3
rd
century till modern times,
and to savour certain unique features of our past.

72. Thank you…

73. Sudharsanam
A centre for Arts and culture
2 Palace Nagar
Pudukkottai 622005
Tamilnadu, India.
A presentation by…
www.pudukkottai.org
www.sudharsanam.org
[email protected]