Danavulapadu Jain temple is an ancient

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

center located in Danavulapadu village of

Kadapa district Kadapa district (officially: YSR district; formerly: Cuddapah district) is one of the twenty six districts in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. On 19 August 2005 nomenclature of “Cuddapah” has been changed as “Kadapa” by the Govern ...

in the state of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

History

Danavulapadu Jain temple, discovered in 1903, was once an important Jain center and received royal patronage from

Rashtrakuta dynasty Rashtrakuta ( IAST: ') (r. 753-982 CE) was a royal Indian dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian subcontinent between the sixth and 10th centuries. The earliest known Rashtrakuta inscription is a 7th-century copper plate grant detailing the ...

. According to inscriptions on

Nishidhi stone A hero stone (Vīragallu in Kannada, Naṭukal in Tamil) is a memorial commemorating the honorable death of a hero in battle. Erected between the second half of the first millennium BC and the 18th century AD, hero stones are found all over India ...

, the site was popular among Jain acharyas to perform

Sallekhana ''Sallekhana'' (IAST: ), also known as ''samlehna'', ''santhara'', ''samadhi-marana'' or ''sanyasana-marana'', is a supplementary vow to the ethical code of conduct of Jainism. It is the religious practice of voluntarily fasting to death by ...

. A 13th century inscription found in neighbouring village mentions present of this temple. A ''chaumukha'' (four-faced) idol was installed in 8th century during reign of

. There is a one-line

sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

inscription at the base of the statue with characters from the early

Eastern Chalukyas Eastern Chalukyas, also known as the Chalukyas of Vengi, were a dynasty that ruled parts of South India between the 7th and 12th centuries. They started out as governors of the Chalukyas of Badami in the Deccan region. Subsequently, they beca ...

period. In 968 CE,

Khottiga Khottiga or Amoghavarsha IV (ruled 967–972 CE), who bore the title ''Nityavarsha'', was a ruler of the Rashtrakuta Empire. During this period the Rashtrakutas started to decline. The Paramara King Siyaka II plundered Manyakheta and Khottiga di ...

, Rashtrakuta empire, installed a ''panavatta'' for the

Mahamastakabhisheka The ''Mahamastakabhisheka'' ("Grand Consecration", "The Great Indian Festival") refers to the '' abhiṣeka'' (anointment) of the Jain images when held on a large scale. The most famous of such consecrations is the anointment of the Bahubali ...

Shantinatha Shantinatha was the sixteenth Jain tirthankar of the present age (Avasarpini). Shantinatha was born to King Vishvasena and Queen Aiira at Hastinapur in the Ikshvaku dynasty. His birth date is the thirteenth day of the Jyest Krishna month of the ...

About temple

The temple plan features a

mandapa A mandapa or mantapa () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian architecture, especially featured in Hindu temple architecture. Mandapas are described as "open" or "closed" depending on whether they have walls. In temples ...

antarala Antarala (Sanskrit: अन्तराल, lit. ''intermediate space'') is a small antechamber or foyer between the garbhagriha (shrine) and the mandapa A mandapa or mantapa () is a pillared hall or pavilion for public rituals in Indian arc ...

, and

garbhagriha A ''garbhagriha'' or ''sannidhanam'' is the ''sanctum sanctorum'', the innermost sanctuary of a Hindu and Jain temples where resides the '' murti'' (idol or icon) of the primary deity of the temple. In Jainism, the main deity is known as the ' ...

. The adhishtana of the temple is decorated with fine carvings. There are carvings of

Nāga The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...

, Nāginī,

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and on ...

and

Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

on temple wall. The temple enshrines a 10th-century idol of a five-hooded serpent

Parshvanatha ''Parshvanatha'' (), also known as ''Parshva'' () and ''Parasnath'', was the 23rd of 24 ''Tirthankaras'' (supreme preacher of dharma) of Jainism. He is the only Tirthankara who gained the title of ''Kalīkālkalpataru ( Kalpavriksha in this "Ka ...

seated on a lotus shaped pedestal with cavings scroll ornaments and sculptures of elephants and crocodiles as vahanas. The hands, and portion nelow the knee is broken. There is an image of

yakshi ''Yakshinis'' or ''yakshis'' (यक्षिणी sa, yakṣiṇī or ''yakṣī''; pi, yakkhiṇī or ''yakkhī'') are a class of female nature spirits in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain religious mythologies that are different from devas and ...

lotus position Lotus position or Padmasana ( sa, पद्मासन, translit=padmāsana) is a cross-legged sitting meditation pose from ancient India, in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh. It is an ancient asana in yoga, predating hatha ...

seated on a lion. The second shrine is heavily ornate structure enshring an idol of

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a ' ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the '' dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable pass ...

. Several serpent deities idols have been placed besides the well near the temple complex. The temple also houses an idol of

Padmavati Padmāvatī may refer to: Deities * Lakshmi, the Hindu goddess of fortune * Alamelu, or Padmāvatī, a Hindu goddess and consort of Sri Venkateshwara of Tirupati * Manasa, a Hindu serpent goddess * Padmavati (Jainism), a Jain attendant goddess ( ...

Gallery

File:Jain Tirthankara at Danavulapadu (cropped).jpg, Parshvanatha idol File:Ganapati Statue at Danavulapadu (cropped).jpg, Image of Ganesha File:Excavated Statues at Danavulapadu (cropped).jpg, Idols of serpent near the temple

Conservation

The temple complex is complex is protected by

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexand ...

. Various artefacts, inscriptions and sculptures discovered at the site are now placed inside Government Museum, Chennai.

History

About temple

Gallery

Conservation

See also

Notes

References

Citation

Sources

Books

Web

External links