Jain Temple Selling Its Treasure!

Adinath Jain Shwetambar temple in Chikpet will auction its artefacts to fund its expansion plans!

Bangalore Mirror Bureau

Posted On Sunday, February 21, 2010 at 09:26:33 AM

A Jain temple in Bangalore has decided to auction some of its artefacts to fund its renovation and expansion plans.
This is what the management of the century-old Shri Adinath Jain Shwetambar temple in Chikpet will do on March 10. The auction, titled ‘Mystery of Chikpet’, will be conducted by city-based auction house Bid & Hammer at ITC Windsor. A preview of the collection will be held at the Bid & Hammer Preview Hall in Jayanagar 5th Block from Feb 27 to March 5.

FAVOURITE TEMPLE

The temple, one of the favourites of the Jain community in the city, has a fascinating history as its original Spartan-style construction was subsequently improved upon by artisans from different parts of the country.

The temple is being expanded to accommodate its growing number of devotees. It is in this backdrop that it was decided to dismantle the temple and auction the artefacts to construct a new temple.

This is perhaps the first time in the country that the auction of temple architecture is taking place.

139 ITEMS

The collection includes 139 architectural and related objects, Pahari School paintings of Lord Mahaveera, the divine guardians of Chikpet, colonial dwarapals, silver doors, vintage Art Nouveau Majolica Ceramic tiles, architectural pillars and other masterpieces.

The auction also encompasses related items such as original antiquarian prints, traditional paintings and works of art to complement the star architectural lots.

One of the chief attractions are a set of six stained teakwood colonial pillars with four apasaras carved at the top. The divine guardians or Chikpet apasaras are a creative amalgamation of eastern and western styles with distinct references to Roman, Victorian and Christian influences. These pillars are expected to fetch Rs 35 lakh to Rs 42 lakh.

LARGE-SCALE EXPANSION

Maher Dadha, chairman and managing director, Bid & Hammer, said the expansion plans did not allow the temple to retain these artefacts. “Most of the items were added when renovations began about 80 years ago. However, the current expansion plans are on a larger scale, so these items will fall short in terms of size.”

The proceeds of the auction will be used for rebuilding the temple. The bidding price will begin at Rs 7,500 and can go up to Rs 42 lakh.

Jain festival in Kumari district

Yogesh Kabirdoss

Chitaral Jain Temple in Kanyakumari district, where the Department

of Tourism intends to conduct the Jain Temple Tourism Festival–09

on September 6.

CHENNAI: In a bid to showcase Tamil Nadu’s unique Jain monuments that stand testimony to a cultural past that saw the religion propounded by Mahavira flourishing for several centuries in various parts of the State, the tourism department is organising a ‘Jain Temple Tourism Festival’ at a remote village called Chitharal in Kanyakumari district on Sunday.

An initiative of the State secretary of tourism, Dr V Irai Anbu, the festival is the first of its kind event in Tamil Nadu that will ultimately turn the various heritage Jain structures, hitherto unknown to tourists and visitors to the State, into places of tourist attraction and also a pilgrimage for followers of Jainism.

At Chitharal, situated near Marthandam, a huge cave with rock-cut sculptures of Jain Tirthankaras and attendant deities exemplify how Jainism has thrived and has spread close to the land’s end, 2000 years ago, and how much it has contributed to the religious and cultural heritage of the State.Though the cave, which have been carved in a hillock standing amidst a scenic landscape, was converted into a Bhagavathi Amman Temple around the 13th century, the Jain images have not been tampered with. The preserved relics will be the highlight of the festival, which will be marked by folk performances and cultural events.

The Department of Tourism has developed a pathway leading to the hillock, which is about 200 feet high, for the convenience of those visiting the cave that is likely to be added to the list of popular places of interest in the district.

Besides the Chitharal site, there are 13 other Jain monuments spread across the State from Kancheepuram to Kazhugumalai to Sittanavasal to Uthamapalayam. Each of these temple has a fascinating history to narrate. By popularising the heritage sites, the department of tourism expects the State’s profile as a tourist destination and also as a place for pilgrimage to undergo a sea change. That there is more than the historic temples, will draw more visitors to the places that have been hitherto neglected and not showcased appropriately.