4 4In the previous chapter on sculptural remains, the focus was on a general survey and analysis of sites with images. With the aid of sculptural data, the chapter brought forth diversity in iconographic representations of deities, the varied contexts that images could be placed in and a clustering of certain images within specific areas of Gujarat. Images also made us aware of the existence of deities not mentioned in literary data and of sacred sites other than those with architectural remains, such as wells and trees.
In most studies, the development of religion has been viewed more or less in a linear pattern wherein one religion was followed by the other, as seen in the opinion of Romila Thapar, ‘Buddhism had begun to be replaced by now more thriving Vaishnava, Jaina, Saiva and Sakta sects.’1 References to texts such as the Rajatarangini of the twelfth century, and Prabhandacintamani have been utilised to bring forth the religious tension that existed between religious communities. It has been pointed out that Shaiva sects attacked Jaina establishments from the seventh century onwards in Tamil Nadu, and in Karnataka, the Vira Shaivas persecuted Jaina monks and destroyed Jaina images.2
Lisa N. Owen draws our attention to the dynamic, fluid and shifting encounters between medieval Tamil Jainas and Hindus and through a study of the Jaina rock-cut sites near Madurai dispels the ‘standard narrative’ of relations between these two groups.3 The ‘standard narrative’ presents the history of interaction in the region solely in terms of dispute and conflict between fixed and monolithic communities of the Hindus and the Jaina. According to this narrative, the seventh–eighth centuries CE ushered in a period of Hindu dominance over other communities, and this presented a rupture from the harmonious coexistence of religions in the Sangam period. This Hindu revival is documented through a vast corpus of poetry of Vaishnava and Shaiva poet saints and by the ‘physical’ conversion of Buddhist and Jaina monuments into Hindu places of devotion. This narrative points that at this point in time, there was clear discourse between Hindu and ‘heterodox’ communities.4 Her study establishes not conflict but coexistence; as numerous examples show, in the early medieval period, Jaina and Hindu rock-cut monuments developed and/or coexisted simultaneously and served as sacred places of worship for both communities. At Annamalai and Arittapatti, there was visual reaffirmation of Jaina presence on these hills, especially since Hindus also worshipped here, as evidenced by at least three rock-cut caves created in the seventh and eighth centuries CE. Rather than viewing the multireligious nature of these sites in terms of opposition or competition, we can perhaps explore how these encounters point towards complex ways in which these traditions interacted and defined themselves within the medieval Tamil landscape. The rock-cut shrine at Annamalai is dedicated to Narasimha and a small pillared cave is associated with Subrahmanya. At Arittapatti, an eighth-century cave is dedicated to Shiva on the western side of the hill.5
John E. Cort also mentions how, according to the standard narrative, Jainism and Buddhism have been present and active in Tamil areas at least from the second century BCE, and harmony and tolerance among the faiths prevailed in the Sangam period. In the fifth–sixth centuries CE, the heterodox schools of Jainism and Buddhism reached their greatest popularity and began to pose a threat to the orthodox faiths.6 As a result of the great Hindu revival of the seventh–eighth centuries CE, the standard narrative concludes, the once powerful communities of Jainas and Buddhists in Tamil Nadu met their demise.7 He goes on to refute this theory and states that ‘Hindu elements in south Indian Jainism met as the product of degeneration or osmosis in a predominantly Hindu environment, but rather as parts of a shared religious culture where divine figures, literary tropes and ritual forms could be reincorporated, reformulated and resituated for polemical purposes.’8 With reference to the Shaiva Agamas, John E. Cort states, ‘While the Nayanmars set up Jains as their bête noire, the more ascetic and ritualistic Saiva Brahmana made more positive use of their encounter with Jainism. Many of the doctrines and practices outlined in Saiva Agamas composed or put in final form during this period show interesting and suggestive parallels with those of Jains.’9
Archaeological data from Vasantgadh in Sirohi district of Rajasthan also indicate the presence of the Jainas and Hindus within the same locale. The early temples, as known from the inscriptions, were for the goddess Kshemarya, Sun, Brahma, and Jaina tirthankaras. The temples came into shape as early as the seventh century CE. An inscription of 625 CE records that Rajulla was a feudatory who had been given governorship of Vasantgarh.10 The temple of Khimelamata was constructed under the supervision of a goshti signified to resemble a panch or committee entrusted with the management of the religious endowments.11 The temples dedicated to Sun and Brahma are mentioned as existing in Vatapura in the inscription of Purnapala, dated VE 1099. The ruling feudatory-like Rajulla took care of the construction of the temple. Alongside the Hindu temples, the hoard of bronze images from Vasantgarh is evidence for the presence of the Jaina community as well. This hoard has images dating from the early medieval to the medieval period and contained 240 bronze Jaina images. The vast number of images found in this hoard are clear indicators of the site being a stronghold of Jainism as well.
Literary tradition makes one believe that there was contestation and rivalry in Gujarat, on the basis of the account of Somanatha in the Prabhandacintamani. According to it, there was a rivalry between Hemachandra, the minister of Kumarapala, and the Shaiva priest, Bhava Brhaspati at the Somanatha temple. The account sates that when Kumarapala renovated the temple, he was a Shaivite, but due to the miracle performed by Hemachandra after the renovation, Kumarapala converted to Jainism.12 A number of sites of the medieval period in the northern part of Gujarat demonstrate the coexistence of Shaiva worshippers and Jainas. At the sites of Polo, Abhapur and Antarsuba, one notices the presence of Shaiva and Jaina temples in close proximity to each other. Coexistence between Jainism and Hinduism continued well into the medieval period in Gujarat in the reign of the Chalukya dynasty. Hemachandra was a revered figure in the writings on Jainism and his purported obeisance to Shiva is significant for a general comprehension of Chalukya rulership. In the time of Vanaraja, the ruler built the Panchasara Parsavnatha temple at Anhilwada Patan, and the image was brought from the site of Panchasara. His minister Ninnaya constructed a Rishabhnatha temple at Patan for the Vidyadhara gaccha. Chamundaraja, under the influence of Jaina teacher Viracharya, issued a grant to a Jaina temple (HIG, Pt.III). According to the Vadnagar Prasasti,13 the first Chalukya king to have admitted Jaina sadhus to his court was Durlabhraja.
Hemachandra’s acceptance of Kumarapala’s creed was reciprocated by the sovereign, who was an important patron of Jaina foundations and reportedly worshipped at Jaina temples. This mutual participation in the practices of the other hints at meanings of religion and community identification that are not always acknowledged in modern academic frameworks.14
The Neminathacariu mentions that the Poruyada family had men of virtue, and in the family, there was a rich merchant prince named Thakkura Ninnaya, who was invited by Vanaraja to stay in Anhilawada. Also, the tilak ceremony of Vanaraja was performed by the sister of a merchant of Kakara village. Vanaraja made Jamba, who was a sresthi, his mahamatya. This tradition of enlisting the support of rich merchants and giving them highest administrative posts, that was started by Vanaraja, continued in the Chalukyan period up to the reign of Kumarapala. The Jainas of Gujarat were important contributors to the region’s commercial and overall economic prosperity and the Chalukya’s sectarian catholicity was politic. The Chalukyas were generous patrons of Jaina foundations as well as Shaiva temple complexes.15
In the case of Buddhism, the coexistence of religions can be traced back to an earlier period in the region. Textual accounts have also been utilised to demonstrate conflict between the Brahmanical religion and Buddhism. It has been pointed out that the Rajatarangini refers to Mihirakula’s attack on Buddhist monks and monasteries. Thapar opines that Xuanzang’s account dating to the seventh century CE describes the persecution of Buddhists and destruction of Buddhist images in Kashmir and eastern India where the rulers were Shaivas.16 Here too, for the region of Gujarat, the archaeological data prove otherwise as many sites dating between the fourth and seventh centuries CE demonstrate the coexistence of both these religions.
This chapter aims at bringing out the coexistence of different religions at various sites in the period under study. At certain sites, this coexistence continues into the medieval period. The sites that demonstrate coexistence are seen as not being limited to only one area, but are spread across the region under study. The sites are located in Saurashtra (Amreli and Valabhi), northern Gujarat (Devnimori and Shamlaji) and South Gujarat (Akota and Vadodara) as well. These sites contain Brahmanical remains as well as those of either the Buddhist or the Jaina religious community.
The vast pool of archaeological, sculptural and inscriptional data from the region has not been put together to bring forth the religious diversity and the parallel existence of religions at a site. The region of Gujarat has also been seen merely as a coherent whole and developments here have served as a mere adjunct to those in the rest of the country. This chapter shall demonstrate that within the region, there is diversity not only in the database of the sites, but in terms of religious affiliation as well. The sites selected for discussion exist in different niches, along the coast, in valleys and at the foot of hill ranges, and data from these sites show considerable variations. For instance, in the case of Buddhism, while at Devnimori, one encounters a Buddhist complex, at the site of Valabhi, the database consists mainly of land grants, and at Amreli, it is mainly data from archaeological excavations, which include a number of potsherds and structural remains identified as a vihara. Besides Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion, the chapter also highlights the coexistence of Jainism with the Brahmanical religion. Thus, in this chapter, architectural, sculptural and inscriptional data as well as literary references to certain sites have been utilised.
With the data available on hand, the chapter will demonstrate the different patterns of development at the sites under study – for example, whether at a given site, construction of religious structures occurred simultaneously for two religions, or whether it happened at different periods of time. The continuity of certain sites over time shall also be discussed and analysed to see whether the affiliation of a site remains the same or undergoes a change. The chapter will also deal with sites where images dating to an earlier period are selectively picked up and placed in religious structures constructed at a later period.
As for the time period of study, it is noticed that for the first two periods, evidence pertaining to the coexistence of religions is available only from the site of Mount Girnar and its vicinity. Bulk of the sites that demonstrate coexistence are from the third period under study, namely, from the fourth to the eighth centuries CE. In order to be able to bring out the different patterns in religious coexistence, multiple affiliation, and the changes and continuities over time, we shall discuss the sites under various themes, rather than dividing the chapter into different sub-periods, as was done in the earlier chapters.
First, we shall discuss sites that demonstrate continuity where religious affiliation has remained more or less the same over time. First and foremost are the Gir hills as these were sacred to the Buddhists, Jainas and the followers of the Brahmanical religion. The earliest evidence for the coexistence of religion in and around these hills is from the Saurashtra janapada coins found at Junagadh and its vicinity. The symbols on these coins have been discussed in Chapter 1, and of main interest here are symbols depicting the ground plans of temples and depictions of viharas and stupas. These symbols on the coins amply demonstrate the existence of both these religions, and possibly, also affiliated religious structures between c. 450 and 50 BCE.
Besides the architectural remains discussed in Chapter 1, reference to the site is also found in the travel account of Xuanzang. In his account on Saurashtra, he mentions a mountain called 22 Yeuh-chen-to (Urjayanta), on top of which was a sangharama, and the cells and galleries were mostly excavated from the mountainside.17 Perhaps Xuanzang was referring to the caves located in the Gir hills that were being utilised by the Buddhists, and this is the only evidence available to prove the existence of the religion after the third–fourth centuries CE.
The Bawa Pyara caves have been considered to have belonged to the Jainas as found here is a stone inscription of the second century CE, of the grandson of Jayadaman, which contains the Jaina term Kevalajnana, and it refers to the samadhi of the Digambara saint Dharasena.18 In the opinion of Soundara Rajan, the inscription may not belong originally to the site and was brought here from elsewhere.19 Even if the inscription does not belong to the site, it still indicates the presence of the Jaina community somewhere in the vicinity from where the inscription may have originated. It also seems plausible to postulate that while the caves were used earlier by the Buddhist community at the site, later, these were inhabited by the Jainas. On the basis of mangalas, or auspicious symbols, depicted above the doors of a couple of caves here, it is believed that a monastic establishment of the Nirgrantha monks resided in the rock-cut caves.20
Mount Girnar has been associated in the Jaina literary tradition with the 22nd tirthankara, Jina Aristanemi. It was regarded sacred mainly because Aristanemi renounced the worldly ways and attained omniscience and salvation on this mountain.21 The site continued to be an important Jaina centre as it was visited by Svami Samantabhadra of the Digambara sect, and in the Svayambhustotra hymn, he describes the hill as a bull’s hump, which is what it looks like in profile.22 The Urjayanta hill or the Gir hills, it has been pointed out, grew over the centuries to the status of the holiest sites of the Svetambara sect, and continued to be so in the medieval times.23 A temple of Mallinatha and of Neminatha in the Gir hills and another four belonging to the twelfth century CE demonstrate the continued association of the site with Jainism. The fifth and the last peak is located in deep forests on the high point of the mountain, where there are footprints of Neminatha and of Andhar Vardutt Muni. Currently located at a height of 182.8 metres on the summit of Mount Girnar is the temple of Amba Mata, a Brahmanical goddess. It is noticed that in the sharing of sacred space at Junagadh and its vicinity, while the Jainas chose the summits on Mount Girnar, the Buddhists selected sites at the base of these hills. In this case, contestation of space does not seem to have occurred as, within an area, both the religions chose sites that did not infringe on the sacred space of the other religion.
Besides containing evidence for the presence of the Buddhists and the Jainas at the site, inscriptional data provide evidence to the existence of a Vishnu temple in the Gupta period, and legends and water bodies at the site prove the continuity of the Brahmanical religion at the site. The Sudarsana lake seems to have been important to the Brahmanical religion, as is evident by its name – one of the weapons associated with Vishnu is his Sudarsanachakra. The Skandagupta inscription, dating to 450 CE, at Junagadh provides definite evidence for the existence of a temple. The inscription, along with the repair of the embankment of the same lake, mentions the construction of two temples by the viceroy Chakrapalita, one of them being a Vishnu temple.24 On the way to Girnar on the southern side of the road is the holy water reservoir Damodar kunda, and on the bank of the kunda is a temple, which is believed to be the spot where the temple was constructed by the viceroy Chakrapalita.25 This is the well where the unburnt bones of the deceased, after cremation, are to be immersed for the person to attain moksa.26
The continued association of the site with the Brahmanical religion is seen in the legends found in the Skanda Purana, believed to have been compiled in Gujarat, and dated to about 700 CE. The Revati kunda mentioned in this Purana is an important tirtha (Sk.P. 7–2.17) located in Girnar, as is also the Chakra tirtha associated with Surya. According to legend, a sage named Ahirbudhnya was worshipping the Sudarsanachakra and practising penance on the Gandhamadana mountain when he was troubled by demons. Sudarsana came to his aid, killed the demons and stayed there permanently in a pond built by the sage, which came to acquire the name Chakra tirtha. A bath in this pond helps one get rid of sufferings caused by raksasas, pretas etc.27 In yet another legend, the tirtha is associated with Vishnu, who is supposed to have erected a tank in which he washed his Sudarsanachakra after killing the asuras (Sk.P. V. 3.90).
The Gir hills witness three fairs in the year, and the first of these is held in the month of Karttika from the eleventh to the fifteenth day. During these days, the pilgrims take a round of mount Girnar, starting and ending at the temple of Bhavnatha. The second fair is held on Mahashivaratri in which the pilgrims bathe in the Mrigikunda, and the third fair is the Bhadarvi Amas Sravana, which is held on the fifteenth day of the dark half of Sravana (in August).28 This fair is held in reverence to lord Krishna at the Damodar and is attended by lakhs of people from different parts of Gujarat. Thus, there seems to be a continued association of the site with Vaishnavism, beginning with the Vishnu temple constructed in the Gupta period and continuing up to date with the fair held at the Damodar kunda.29
The site of Junagadh was and continues to be sacred to Jainism and the Brahmanical religion, though Buddhism ceased to exist after a point in time. In all probability, the Jaina monks occupied the caves, associated initially with the Buddhists, till they further expanded their influence here. Mount Girnar is, till date, an important sacred centre for the Jaina community, and this clearly demonstrates the continued association of the site, which grew in importance over the centuries.
Similarly, in the case of the Brahmanical religion, while archaeological and sculptural data are wanting, data from the Gupta inscription and legends associated with water bodies in the hills also confirm the continued sanctity of the site. The data clearly demonstrate the continued sharing of sacred space between Jainism and the Brahmanical religion well into the medieval and modern times, as seen in the presence of the medieval Jaina temples, the temple of Amba Mata and the water reservoirs.
We shall now turn to discuss sites that contain evidence for the coexistence of the Brahmanical religion and Jainism, and demonstrate the continuity of two religions. The site of Khed Brahma is located on the confluence of the rivers Haran, Kausambi and Bhima Sankari and contains evidence for the presence of the Brahmanical religion and Jainism. The few Jaina schistose images from the site date to the sixth century CE,30 and the continued association of the site with the Brahmanical religion is seen in the presence of an ekamukhashivalinga of the fourth century CE and a life-size image of Shiva of the fourth–fifth centuries CE. An image depicting Shiva performing the tandava dance, dating to the seventh century CE, is now located in the Pankeshwar Mahadeo temple.31 The image of Brahma from the site dates to the sixth century CE,32 though the temple is of the eighth century CE. The site contains evidence of a continued association with the Brahmanical religion. While the site is currently a Brahmanical site, with the image of Brahma under worship and a temple dedicated to the goddess, Inamdar has reported that Hindu and Jaina images were being unearthed daily from the site while digging for laying the foundations of new houses.33 The Jaina images from the site are currently under worship at nearby locations. One of the images has been set up in the medieval Digambara Jaina temple at Khed Brahma, an important Jaina site, in the Idar hills, and the other image is also in a Digambara Jaina temple on a nearby granite hill. Thus, here, continuity in the worship of images is noticed as the images are taken from the original site and made an integral part of newer structures.
As for the Brahmanical religion, the site is more famous for a temple dedicated to a goddess. The name of the site can be attributed to the legend associated with the site, according to which, the rishis, munis and gods wanted to carry out a sacrifice or yajna at the site which was a jungle, and they requested Brahma to clear the area. This he did with a golden plough, and so, the site is known as khed (plough) Brahma or where Brahma used a plough. They then requested Brahma to provide protection from the demons, and to do this, Brahma asked Ambaji to come and reside at the site. Thus, the legends, with ease, weave together the existence of a Brahma and devi temple at the site.34 The goddess Ambaji worshipped here, in another temple, is of interest as for every day of the week, she has a different vahana, except for one day, when she is on foot.
Thus, while the site gains popularity as a Brahmanical site in a later period, the Jaina images continue to hold importance as a part of newer religious structures at an important Jaina tirtha.
At present, the site retains its importance as a Brahmanical as well as a Jaina sacred centre. In Puratan Brahmaksetra, there is a mention that at some time in the past, there were several Digambara temples here. It is inferred that there may exist a large temple of Sri Neminatha Bhagwan. Currently, the site has two Jaina temples – one dedicated to Mahavira and the other to Neminatha. It is interesting to note that at both the sites, the Gir hills and Khed Brahma, the goddess worshipped is Amba Mata, who is considered as the guardian deity of Neminatha, and both the sites demonstrate continuity in the coexistence of the Brahmanical religion and Jainism over a long period of time.
Certain sites in Gujarat demonstrate the coexistence of religions at a certain point in time, and while one religion continues, the other fades out or ceases to exist over time. The data being limited in nature for interpretation, one can only postulate that the continuity could have been either an interrupted or an uninterrupted one. We shall now discuss sites that initially contain evidence for coexistence, but over time, only one religion survives and continues to exist at the site.
The first two sites we shall discuss are the sites of Devnimori and Shamlaji, located in close proximity to each other. They contain the maximum number of archaeological and sculptural data pertaining to Buddhism as well as the Brahmanical religion. They are located on either side of the Meshvo river in the northern region of Gujarat. Devnimori is the only Buddhist site in Gujarat where archaeological excavation brought to light a large Buddhist establishment. As for the Brahmanical remains, a total of 46 Brahmanical images35 belong to the sites of Devnimori and Shamlaji, and in the region of Gujarat, the site of Devnimori has the maximum number of Shiva lingas. The Buddhist site of Devnimori had only a vihara in its initial phase, and over time, it developed into a full-fledged Buddhist complex with a protection wall of its own.
The site of Devnimori is situated on the eastern side of the bend of river Meshvo, on a commanding elevated position overlooking the gorge, the river as well as the whole valley.36
Excavations at the site of Devnimori brought to light a large sarira stupa, four uddesa stupas, a rectangular structure, an apsidal temple, and a protecting wall. The Buddhist settlement, at the site, began with the construction of a large vihara, which has been dated to before the third quarter of the fourth century CE.37 Near this vihara, Sadhu Agnivarman and Sudarsana built the sarira stupa. Along with it, the votive stupas, the apsidal temple and the protecting wall were built in the fourth century CE.38 On the basis of the antiquities found at the site, it has been pointed out that the settlement flourished till the seventh–eighth centuries CE.39
Two caskets were obtained from the mahastupa. The lowest of them contained only ashes, was made of schist, cylindrical and measured 11.98 cm in height and was 1.77 cm thick at the top. The other casket is of greater interest as it is inscribed and it contained a cylindrical copper box with silk bags, gold bottle and some organic-like material.40 As for the architecture of the site, on the south of the stupa was a large four-sided catusala vihara with a northern entrance, containing inner verandah and a courtyard.41 The vihara contained 30 rooms, a shrine room in its southern side and at the main entrance at its northern side and a flight of steps near its entrance.42 A second vihara contained two rooms, 2.43 metres × 2.43–2.74 metres each, an inner and outer verandah, drains in the south-western corner of the courtyard, parts of steps and the main entrance was west-facing towards the main stupa.43 The rooms of the vihara were divided into four categories – residential quarters, shrine rooms, entrance room, and storeroom.44
The mahastupa was located 15.24 metres to the north east of vihara I. The apsidal ended structure, which was probably a caitya hall, was located 1.82 metres to the south west of the main stupa and measured 4.87 metres × 3.04 metres and 5.18 metres × 3.2 metres and was also of brick. The hall was divided into three parts – the apse, the rectangular approach chamber and the side aisle.45 A total of 26 terracotta images of Buddha in dhyanamudra were brought to light, measuring 66 cm–68.58 cm, all of which were three dimensional, with only the backs hidden from view as they were meant for fixing on the face of the stupa.46 Of the 26 images, 12 were found totally intact, and the remaining 14 could not be repaired or remoulded. Also found at the site were 20 heads, of which 12 could be fitted back to their respective torsos.47
The images have been classified on the basis of form and features of the face, hairstyle, drapery, and cushion seat. The facial features were categorised as oval-faced, almond-faced and round-faced.48 As for drapery, the sanghati or the upper garment drapes over both the shoulders in 9 images, while in 13, only one shoulder is draped.49 The folds and frills of the images are depicted by incised lines and ribbed lines. The cushion seats are also classified into two main groups – having bands of single petal, further being sub-divided on the basis of the petals pointing up or down, and having bands of double petals. The tiny tuft of hair between the eyebrows was noticed in seven images found from the site.50
The decorative pieces recovered from the site include arches, capitals of pilasters, medallions, pilasters, bases of pilasters, and dentils or brackets, in addition to cornices, moulds and fillet bands.51 The arches at the site were classified into semi-circular stilted arches and caitya arches, and in the former category, the architectural features in relief included bell-shaped base, horizontal ledges and recesses, lion figures in relief and floral background of the lion figure.52 Square as well as rectangular decorative bricks were recovered from the site. The rectangular bricks were of the same size as those used for construction and had decorations in the form of ovolo (in quarter ellipse section, receding downwards), moulding and fillet bands. The former type was used to decorate cornices, and the two floral motifs used for it were the acanthus leaf and bay leaf. The bricks with fillet bands could be classified into those with chequer pattern and those with a hook pattern.53 The square bricks, on the contrary, had five different depictions on them, which included Buddha figures, grotesque faces, animal faces, floral compositions, geometric designs, and conch compositions.54 The wastage of manufacture such as the over-burnt images of Buddha and arches recovered from the core of the stupa provide evidence for the local manufacture of bricks and terracotta images at the site.55
The excavation report also informs us that the excavations on other mounds, within an area of about four square kilometres, at Devnimori indicate that the Shaivas also built their temples here,56 and that some of them were contemporary to the Buddhist settlement as the size of the bricks used in the temples was the same as those used by the Buddhists at the site. When the site was visited by Goetz in 1947, he reported, ‘In the midst of the jungle, along a small brooklet coming down the hillside, quite a number of small brick temples have been erected, with the usual simple moulded Gupta plinths and a rectangular cella, the walls of which are still standing to a height of four to six feet above the floor level.’57 We shall now turn to a few of the images recovered from in and around the area. Found from the site were two Manusa lingas of the Kshatrapa period58 and another linga of antiquity is to be seen at the village site of Devnimori, which is under worship by the local inhabitants.59 Found from the site were also four images of mātṛkās, the head of a mātṛkā and the torso of another, dating to the fifth century CE.60 The sculptural evidence points to the earlier presence of the Shaivites at the site as well. A number of Brahmanical images have been recovered from Shamlaji, the earliest being a two-armed standing image of Ganesha dated to the third–fourth centuries CE. Belonging to the fourth–fifth centuries CE is a two-armed standing image of Karttikeya and ascribed to 500 CE are figures that seem to represent Gana.61 From the area were also excavated a seated and a standing image, dated to sixth century CE of Vinadhara Virabhadra where Shiva is seen holding a vina. Of these two, the image representing Shiva as standing is seen in association with the Saptamatrkas,62 and in addition to these is a Shiva linga currently in the Museum at the site, which is dated to the fourth century CE.63 The size of the lingas, again, suggests that there were temples earlier since these lingas might have been the ones installed in the temple structures that were noticed by Goetz. Recovered from the site were three sets of mātṛkās images dated to between 520 and 530 CE. While the first set, dating to 520 CE, contains the images of Brahmani and Chamunda, the second set, dating to 525 CE, includes images of Agneyi, Mahesvari, Aindri Vaishnavi, Varahi, and Chamunda. The third set consists of mother and child images and is dated to between 525 and 530 CE. The second and third set of mātṛkās images, as well as the image of Virabhadra Shiva, measuring 1.1 metres in height, in the opinion of Schastok, can be attributed to a temple dedicated to Shiva.64 The images of two dvarapalas, the image of Ganga, two Nandi images, and the throne back suggest the earlier existence of probably more than one temple at the site. Of the seventh century CE are an image of Shiva and Parvati,65 an ekamukhalinga66 and an image of Mahisasuramardini as well. The find of the above images and lingas shows the continued Shaivite association of the site. Also seen here are images of Bhadra or Yasoda (fifth century CE),67 Parvati as Bhilan and an image of Lajjagaurī68. Also found from in and around the area are Visvarupa Vishnu images,69 one of which is currently under worship at Shamlaji. Thus, at the site, there is evidence of Shiva, mātṛkā as well as Vishnu worship. A look at the size of the images, dating from c. 520 CE to the seventh century CE, will demonstrate that these were crafted for being the central image of worship, either in a shrine or in the open, or were meant to adorn the walls of some religious structure, as in the case of the mātṛkā images, which vary from 39.92 cm to 89.91 cm in height.
The site has structural remains of both the Buddhist (dating from the fourth to seventh century CE) and the Brahmanical religions (dated to the post-Gupta period) and has the maximum number of images of both the religions as well. It also has a long period of continuity, beginning from the third/fourth centuries CE and continuing up to the seventh/eighth centuries CE, the longest period for a site in the region. The site would have been one of the major Buddhist sites of the region as it is the only one in Gujarat from where there is clear evidence of the existence of remains of Buddha, in the casket, and could have been part of a wider Buddhist religious network. The fifth stanza of the inscription on the casket reads that the stone casket was the receptacle for the relics of Dasabla (the Buddha).
A look at the data pertaining to Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion at these sites points to a simultaneous development of both the religions. The construction and continued maintenance and repair of the Buddhist complex at Devnimori, as well as the sculpting of the various Brahmanical images and the earlier temples at the site can all be placed between the fourth and the seventh centuries CE. Both the religions seemed to have witnessed a simultaneous growth and development in terms of architecture and sculptural activities. But while traces of the Brahmanical religion continued till it regained importance in the medieval period, Buddhism gradually faded away.
The site of Shamlaji demonstrates the continued existence of the Brahmanical religion at the site, though with a renewed affiliation. While the sites of Devnimori and Shamlaji had Shaivite affiliations in the period under study, by the medieval period, the site becomes an important Vaishnavite centre, and continues to be so up to date. The structure that helps identify the thread of continuity of the Brahmanical religion at the site is the temple Harischandrani Chorni, which dates to 800 CE. It is believed that Raja Harischandra performed sacrifices at the site in order that he may have a son.
Shamlaji is a site where one can clearly notice the continuity of the Brahmanical religion in a limited nature, till it regains importance as a famous sacred centre. The site also shows that images can survive and later be placed in a new context and a new structure. The site of Shamlaji is a Vaishnavite pilgrimage centre and holds special importance for the Bhil community of the area. While the current temple at the site belongs to the medieval period, the image it houses is of a much earlier period, dating to not later than the eighth century CE.70 The local belief is that a young Bhil boy, while digging the earth, found this image, and since then, it has been seen by the community as their ishta or kula devta. The image of Gadadhar Vishnu is black in colour, and hence, the name Shyamala of the deity. This image representing the Gadadhar form of Vishnu with four arms is placed in the medieval temple. In the month of Karttika, lakhs of devotees flock to this site, and a fair is held where food grains, clothes, gold, silver, and a number of other things are sold, which are bought by the adivasis; during the fair, a number of adivasi marriages also take place.71 On full moon nights, the temple is lit with a number of diyas.
It is noticed at this particular site that while the images under worship belong to the sixth–seventh centuries CE, the structures that they are enshrined in are either of the medieval or the modern period. It is also important to point out that not all images gain the same status. Of two lingas under worship, while one linga is housed in a temple, the other linga at the nearby site of Devnimori is not enshrined in a temple.
Similarly, at another shrine, one witnesses the continuity of an image, but this is a Shaivite image. Located opposite the shrine of Shamlaji is the Khak chowk area, at the end of which, near the corner of the street is the Trilokinatha temple. Here too, while the building is of a later period, the image of Shiva under worship can be dated to the sixth century CE,72 and the dvarapala is also of an earlier date. Yet another shrine dedicated to Shiva, the Kasivisvesvara temple, is small in size, and here, it is the linga, which is under worship. The ekamukhashivalinga enshrined in the temple is of schist and dates to the seventh century CE. The head on the linga shows a jata tied above the head, and the forehead is broad and with three eyes.73 An image of Ganesha from the late Gupta period is under worship in a small shrine on the way from the Shamlaji temple to river Meshvo.74 An image of Nandi currently located in the Ranchodji temple at Shamlaji is also of an earlier date and belongs to the sixth century CE.75
Yet, the people of the region view another form of Vishnu, the Visvarupa form, differently. Even though the image, dating to sixth century CE,76 is under worship at a temple in Shamlaji, the deity is seen as a goddess, namely Kalsi Chhokarani Ma,77 and not as a form of Vishnu. Another such image of Vishnu in the village of Ogaganj, located 20 km from Ahmedabad, is also worshipped as a goddess and is now identified by the worshippers as Tripura Mata.78 The image dates to the seventh century CE and is currently housed in a temple.79 Many such other images have been able to survive over time as they have been taken by the villagers for purposes of worship, or the images adorn the temple walls.
The place is also known as Karambu tirtha, and the legend associated with it also tells us indirectly how the site was forgotten, and then, later reclaimed. According to legend, Sri Gadadhar Vishnu came to reside at the tirtha and it had the blessing of Brahma that of all the tirthas, this was an agrasthana. Brahma performed a mahayajna, and when he began, Vishnu appeared in the form of Shyamala (the black one). On the request of Brahma, Vishnu agreed to stay at the Karambu tirtha in his Gadadhdar form. Karambu tirtha became full of pride and was cursed that it would become infamous and would regain its lost glory only in the tretayuga when Raja Harischandra, a parambhakta of Vishnu, would visit the site. This story clearly illustrates that the site was earlier an important Brahmanical site, but in due course of time, lost its importance and faded away in the memory of the people, till it was rediscovered and made important later again.
An analysis of the sites of Junagadh as well as Shamlaji and Devnimori, both containing evidence of coexistence of Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion, demonstrates different patterns. At the site of Junagadh, the continuity in coexistence is noticed up to date, and the change being of coexistence between Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion can be compared to that of the latter and Jainism. The sites of Devnimori and Shamlaji, on the contrary, demonstrate that at first, both sites ceased to exist, but at a later stage, the Brahmanical images were reclaimed and reinstated in newer structures, and the site once again becomes an important Brahmanical site and continues to be so to date.
In addition to the above-mentioned sites, there are other sites that demonstrate the coexistence of religions in the period under study, but unlike the sites discussed above, these sites lose importance over time never to be regained. Within these are some sites that demonstrate a simultaneous growth and development of two or more religions, and other sites that gradually gain importance for more than one religious community. First, we shall discuss sites where evidence points to similar dates for the archaeological remains pertaining to Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion, namely, Amreli and Nagara.
The site of Amreli contains evidence of the presence of the Buddhist community as well as the Brahmanical religion. As has been pointed out in the excavation reports, ‘Amreli appears to have been an important centre for various religious sects especially for Brahmanism and Buddhism … Besides worship of Viṣṇu the cults of Śakti and Siva appear to have been followed by the inhabitants.’80
The Brahmanical remains at the site are terracotta plaques representing the following – a goddess, probably Durga with four arms and with ugra or fierce appearance, a female figure wearing a crown and another female figure with a child on her left waist touching the breast, probably some mātṛkā,81 an image of Ganesha carved in yellowish stone, and a fragmentary image of baked clay representing the upper half of a woman with prominent breasts.82 The terracotta image of Gauri Sankara from the site is dated to the fourth century CE.83 Also recovered from the excavations were votive jars offered in religious ceremonies.84 The Buddhist remains from the site include two small clay images – one of a Bodhisattva and the other of Buddha,85 dated to the fourth century CE,86 and a number of fragmentary potsherds. The image of the Bodhisattva was recovered from the remains of a Buddhist structure on the northern fringes of the town.87
Further evidence is from potsherds, which were fragments of vessels belonging to monks. They contain fragmentary inscriptions, which seem to give the name of individuals or the localities they belonged to. Some of them read – Sri Gira [i]nagara, [V]ajapa …, Sri Vighra …, Sri Panda, Ghahta …, Vakrumidrukaya,88 indicating the presence of the Buddhist community at the site. Excavations at the site also brought to light a structure that may have been a Buddhist monastery. Excavations carried out on the northern fringe of the mound revealed structures that covered an area of 22.86 metres × 7.62 metres. Of these was a room measuring 6.09 metres × 4.87 metres, which formed the main hall of the structure. The western wing had four rooms, a verandah and a portico. On the basis of its location close to a water source and of small rooms, adjoining the main hall, it has been suggested that this brick structure was used for religious ceremonies. In addition to this, the recovery of two terracotta Bodhisattva figures while removing the bricks from the main hall helped associate the structure with the Buddhist faith.89 The structure has been identified as a Buddhist monastery, which was more extensive than what the present ruins at the site suggest.90
The site of Nagara excavations brought to light an image of Dhyani Buddha, and of the 28 seals and sealings recovered from the site, three are inscribed, of which one has an oval die with four Brahmi letters Buddha Pyasa.91 In the excavations conducted on Hanuman Dhado, the images of Buddha were seen, along with the images of Brahma and Surya.92
The sandstone-seated image of the Dhyani Buddha measures 1.39 metres high and 1.09 metres wide, and the size suggests that the image would have been installed for purposes of worship and rituals. The lower portion of a standing deity and its fragmentary vahana belonging to period III, from 0 CE/BCE to eighth/ninth centuries CE,93 were also found. The image is of sandstone, and on its side panel is a wheel and it grasps a lotus stalk. Another fragment of the lower portion of an unidentifiable image was also noticed.94
While the archaeological data give limited evidence for the existence of the Brahmanical religion at the site, literary data point to its continued existence. The site is associated with the Nagara brahmanas of the region, as mentioned in the Skanda Purana (Sk.P. VI.278.23). The region around Nagara is known as Nagna Hara desa95 in the Purana as Shiva roamed naked in the country (Sk.P.VII.i.319–48). The region around the Gulf of Khambat was also sacred and was known as Stambesvara in the Skanda Purana and contained sites such as Barkaresvara, which was situated on the sea shore (Sk.P. I.ii.1.9–11), and Barbari was a sacred town near Khambat at the mouth of river Mahi (Sk.P. I.ii.37.1).
Thus, at the site of Nagara, while Buddhism seems to have had a limited period of existence, the site continues to be important for followers of the Brahmanical religion, as seen in it being mentioned as an important tirtha in the Skanda Purana.
The next site that we shall discuss is Valabhi, which is the only site that contains evidence – archaeological, sculptural, inscriptional, and literary, for the existence of Buddhism, Jainism and the Brahmanical religion. Development of religions at this site presents us with yet another pattern, as initially, it has evidence pertaining to only one religion, but over time, gains importance as a sacred centre for all three religions. The developments here demonstrate that the Brahmanical religion seems to have been the earliest at the site, and while it continued, the site also became important to the Buddhist and the Jaina communities.
The Brahmanical remains recovered from the site are miniature Shiva lingas (first–fourth centuries CE),96 images of Mahisasuramardini and Krishna (fourth century AD),97 an image of the goddess Lajjagauri,98 and a huge sandstone Manusa linga (seventh century CE).99 Among the ruins of Valabhi were seen a number of colossal lingas and images of Nandi, which imply the existence of several Shaiva temples at Valabhi.100 Here too, once again, inscriptional data provide definite evidence for the presence of a temple at the site. An inscription of Suketuvarmana, dating to 322 Saka era on a slab, was recovered from this site. According to K.V. Ramesh, the only traces of former greatness of the site are a ruined temple of Kandesvara built of stones and mortar, and a ruined temple of Hanuman, which are located 45.72 metres east of the mamlatdar’s office.101 According to him, the ruined temple of Kandesvara was the ancient temple of Kotisvara from where the epigraph must have been recovered.102 It is dated to about fifth–sixth centuries CE and records the installation of the deity Kotisvara by Simhadatta. The last line of the inscription contains a reference to the temple (sthana) of Kotisvara, and this was the temple in which Simhadatta installed the deity Kotisvara.103 In the opinion of K.V. Ramesh, it is not unlikely that Vala was one of the seven ancient Kotisvara sthanas on the west coast. If this is taken into consideration, along with the find of the colossal Nandis and Shiva lingas and that the rulers of the Maitraka dynasty claimed to be mostly Param mahesvaras, then it follows that the site was important to the Brahmanical religion. The importance of the site also lies in the period of continuity as an important Brahmanical site, beginning from the first century BCE/CE (miniature Shiva lingas) to the seventh century CE (Lajjagauri), and it becoming an important Buddhist site in the sixth–seventh centuries CE.
Valabhi was also the capital of the ruling Maitraka dynasty, and the copper plate grants provide vital data for the site being an important Buddhist centre, as they mention 14 viharas that were located within and around the site of Valabhi. Excavations at the basement of an ancient building, conducted by R.V. Father Heras (1934) brought to light parts of a damaged terracotta stupa. Also found from the site were many Mahayanist votive clay seals with images of Buddha and the stupa, inscribed with the Buddhist creed in characters of the sixth–seventh centuries CE.104 Recovered from the site were fragmentary stone slabs bearing words such as Tathagata, Ratna traya and samgha, as well as terracotta plaques with representation of the stupa.105 The images recovered from in and around the site include a life-size image of Buddha from the nearby Islava hill,106 a brass image of Buddha from a field on the opposite side of river Ghelo, 1.2 km west of Valabhi,107 and another five bronze images, dating to the sixth century CE.108 When Xuanzang visited Valabhi, he recorded that scattered around are spots where the three past Buddhas sat down, walked or preached the law.109
Simultaneously, the Jaina community was claiming the site as an important sacred centre as well. The sculptural evidence from the site is a Jaina metal image dating to the sixth century CE. In 363 CE, tradition records that the Jaina friars held a synod at Valabhi in Saurashtra, and another such synod was held at Valabhi once more, between 593 and 516 CE.110 Also recovered from the site were some Jaina images dating to the sixth–seventh centuries CE.
Thus, at the site of Valabhi, evidence points to the existence of religious structures of Jainism, Buddhism and the Brahmanical religion between the sixth and seventh centuries CE. A list of the donations made by the Maitraka rulers to the Buddhist vihara will demonstrate that the donations were made to already existent viharas and rarely for the construction of a new one. While the earliest evidence found pertains to the Brahmanical religion, Buddhism also began to gain a foothold at the site, and was later joined by Jainism – though they did not exist at the expense of one another, but rather, coexisted. This site also stood witness to decline and fading away of the site as an important religious site, altogether for Buddhism, Jainism and the Brahmanical religion. It probably came under the attack of the Arabs and was never able to regain its importance as a sacred site for all three religious communities.
Thus, it is noticed that while the site had initially a single religious affiliation, over time, it became important to other religions as well. The point to be noticed here is that all three religions existed side by side, and the growth of one did not cause the decline of the other. Literary data will have us believe that Buddhism and Jainism were at conflict here, seen in the numerous discussions mentioned to have taken place between the Buddhist and Jaina monks. But sculptural and inscriptional data, on the contrary, amply demonstrate that both existed simultaneously, as did also the Brahmanical religion at the site. Also, the sudden decline of all three could be attributed to the repeated Arab invasions that took place and which may have led to a downfall of the city and decline of all three religions in the archaeological records.
An important site with Jaina remains is the site of Akota, which is located in the present city limits of Vadodara, the latter containing Brahmanical images. Akota is the only site under the period of study that provides definite sculptural evidence for the existence of Jainism in the region. Unearthed from the site was a hoard of Jaina images, dating from the Gupta times, with the latest image belonging to the eleventh century CE. The site brought to light a total of 168 pieces, of which 68 different objects could be pieced together. What is noticed at this site is that the Jaina images predate the images of the Brahmanical religion, as the latter date to the seventh–eighth centuries CE.
The list of the Jaina images include 8 images and an elephant-shaped incense burner of the Gupta period, a bell and 14 images dating to the seventh century CE and an incense burner and 13 images of the eighth century CE. While the Jaina images are from the Gupta period onwards, the Brahmanical images belong to the seventh–eighth centuries CE. Three images of Bhairava belonging to the site date to the seventh century CE; while one image of Lakulisa dates to the seventh–eighth centuries CE, another one dates to the eighth century CE. Also found was an eighth-century CE image of Vishnu, and the site also seems to have been important to a sect of the Shaivite community.
Similar seems to have been the case with religious structures at the site, as the Jaina structure would have predated the Brahmanical temple. Evidence for the existence of religious structures for both the religions is from inscriptional data.
Most of the inscriptions on the pedestals or at the back of the Akota images mention them to be gifts meant for installation. The continued donation of images over a period of time clearly suggests that either this site or a site nearby was important to the Jaina community. Considering the number of images found at the site and the time span covered by them, it seems plausible to suggest that they would have been housed in some type of structure, and the inscription on the image donated by Durginni corroborates this. The inscription reads, ‘This is the pious gift, in the Chandra kula, of the female worshipper Durggini, in the Rathavasatika.’111 In the opinion of Shah, Rathavasatika was the name of the Jaina shrine in which the image was installed. He points out, ‘In the first two centuries of the Christian era ārya Vajra and his disciples and other great pontiffs visited different cities of western India such as Surparaka and Bhrgukaccha. Excavations have suggested that Akota was fairly well populated in the Kshatrapa age, and it is very likely that there was a Jaina temple here at that time. Since Akota was a district town on a caravan route from central India to Broach, it is possible that it was visited by Jaina monks. Arya Ratha was a direct disciple of arya Vajra and came from Surparaka and the vasatika at Akota was probably named after him.’112 The other explanation behind the name ratha is to see the shrine as a place from where an annual procession (rathayatra) was taken out. Shah points out that the Jaina texts mention the Mauryan ruler Samprati attending such a procession, where a wooden image of Mahavira was taken out.113
The case for existence of a structure at the site is further strengthened by the presence of some mason marks on stones used for pavements in later repairs at the shrine of Bhimanatha, situated to the north of Akota. According to Shah, ‘there existed on the site a shrine called Rathavasatikā, probably named after ārya Ratha, in the second century CE’.114 Excavations at the site of Akota brought to light a structure that has been dated to the third–fourth centuries CE.115 One of the brick-built structures excavated at the site has been identified as a public building,116 which was perhaps the structure that housed a few of the bronzes excavated from the site. The find of a bell117 and incense burner118 from the site further strengthen the case for existence of a religious structure where they may have been used for ceremonial purposes.
Inscriptions give evidence for the existence of a Brahmanical temple at Vadodara. The Valabhi grant of Siladitya I, dating to 610 CE, mentions the donation of land and a stepwell to a temple of Mahadeva, or Shiva. This temple was located in Vatapadra or modern Vadodara, and was built by one Harinatha.119
It is interesting to note that no structural remains of either religion are to be found in the period succeeding the eighth century CE or the medieval period. Though the images from the hoard clearly indicate that at this site, or a site nearby, the religion continued up to 1100 CE, which is the latest date for the images from the hoard. However, Shaivism was gaining a strong foothold at a short distance of about 28 km from Vadodara, at the site of Karvan. Excavations at the site brought to light structures dating between the second and eighth centuries CE, which were temples and seem to have been of Shaivite affiliation, as seen in the number of lingas recovered from the site. The first of these was located in the southern part of the mound, and a pranala supported by bricks and provided by a large soakage jar at the floor level indicated that the structure was a temple, probably dedicated to Shiva.120 Another structural complex was noticed in the northern part of the mound, which was rectangular in plan and 29.99 metres in length, and was provided with a flight of steps with a moonstone at the entrance. Here too, a covered drain ending in a pranala draining into a soakage pit was seen in the north-eastern part of the structure. According to the excavation report, the temple was raised on a platform and consisted of a garbhagrha, antarala and mandapa. The garbhagrha had a linga on a yonipatta connected with a covered drain and a pranala. The Shaivite affiliation of the place is seen in the fragmentary inscription dating to the seventh–eighth centuries CE, which records the salutations to Shiva by a devotee.
Continuity of the site is seen in the presence of images dating to the succeeding periods, and continuing well into the medieval period. Belonging to the seventh–eighth centuries is a single image from the site, which is a sculpture of Natesa in black sandstone, measuring 53.94 cm in height.121 A detailed doorframe of yellowish sandstone, dated to the latter half of the eighth century CE, is a clear indication of the existence of a temple at the site. From the ninth century CE onwards, the site demonstrates continuity till date as an important centre of the Lakulisa sect and is considered a sakti pitha as well.
It would be interesting to mention here that temple sites of the medieval period in North Gujarat contain Jaina and Shaiva shrines next to each other, and the site of Vadodara/Akota demonstrates that the coexistence of these two religions at a site had an earlier beginning in the region.
In addition to the above-mentioned sites, there are sites that were sacred to one religion in the period under study, and later, in the medieval period provide evidence of coexistence of religions. These are the sites of Ambaji, Kotesvara and Kumbhariya, located in close proximity to each other and demonstrating coexistence at a later period in time. The sites of Ambaji and Kotesvara are Brahmanical sites, and that of Kumbhariya is a medieval Jaina site. The Brahmanical sites are mentioned in the Skanda Purana and hence indicate an earlier date of the sanctity of the site, even though the temples at the site date to a later period. The evidence for coexistence at the site starts from the medieval period with the construction of the temple complex of Kumbhariya, located on the road between Ambaji and Kotesvara. A visit to these sites demonstrates that while Ambaji continues to be an important Brahmanical religious centre, Kumbhariya no longer attracts a vast number of pilgrims, and Kotesvara is also visited by comparatively few.
Ambaji is a sakti pitha and is a site sacred to devi worshippers. The Ambika sakti pitha is located at Arasur near Mount Abu, in the south-west end of the Aravalli hills in northern Gujarat. Sculptural evidence from the site points to it being a site associated with goddess worship already in the period under study. Found from the site were images of Vaishnavi, Brahmani and Aindri, dating to the sixth–seventh centuries CE. Also found from the site, dating to the same period were images of Shiva Vinapati and Ganesha122 as well, indicating the earlier sanctity of the site, where these images would have been objects of worship. To this group probably also belonged the image of Sakti Ganesha, dating to the early seventh century CE,123 found from the site of Kumbhariya, which contained a huge Jaina temple complex in the medieval period.
It is believed that the river Sarasvati appears from under the surface of the earth at the site marked by the Kotesvara temple. The river Sarasvati is said to originate at Plaksha Prasaravana in the Shivalik hills of the Himalayas and disappear into the ground at Vinasana near Kurukshetra. It is said to surface again at Ambaji, disappear into the Kachchh desert, originate again in the Gir forest in Saurashtra, and drain into the sea at Somanatha. The legend in the Skanda Purana narrates how Visvamitra ordered Sarasvati to aid him in destroying Vasistha, and on her declining, the river flowed with blood. She then went to Vasistha to help her, who was residing in Arbuda (Abu region), and went into samadhi, and when he stared at the ground, two streams burst open, one of which was the source of Sarasvati (Sk.P.VI.172–173). Also located here is the Kotesvara Mahadeva shrine. The site is also mentioned as one of the excellent holy places and a bath in the Kasyapi Ganga (Sabhramati) at this site and in the Sarasvati helps obtain the merit of bathing in the latter half of Sravana or every day or by properly offering a sraddha on a new moon day (Padma Purāṇa VI. 135.17–35). There is no image of Ambika here, and instead, there is a yantra. Legend has it that Vimalshah is said to have worshipped Ambika prior to building the Dilwara temple at Mount Abu. Legend has it that at this site that Rama received from the goddess the arrow that would kill Ravana.
Legend has it that Krishna worshipped Shiva and Ambika at Ambikavana and that Rukmanni worshipped Ambika here prior to her marrying Krishna. Legend also has it that the tonsure ceremony of Krishna the child was performed here at Ambaji. Located close to the current temple at Ambaji and noticeable from the temple site is Gabbar hill, on top of which is perched yet another small temple dedicated to the goddess. According to the legend at the site, the flame on top of the Gabbar hill has been burning since a long time and will continue to do so. The source of the ever-burning flames at the site is natural from within the hill, which is probably what provides sanctity to the site. The Abu hills or Arbuda are associated with Vasistha and are believed to have been home to his hermitage. The Skanda Purana mentions Arbuda or Mount Abu as one of the three sacred mountains, and a holy bath here attains the benefit of 24 tirthas (Sk.P. VI.199.23–24). Nandini, his cow, is said to have fallen into a pit, and the river Sarasvati is said to have filled the pit with water to enable the cow to come out. The site is now marked by a temple at Kotesvara, from where the Sarasvati reemerges, marked by temples, which can be seen from a distance.
The site clearly demonstrates how a sacred centre, over time, can become part of a wider religious network. The images from the site do indicate the worship of the goddess and with the creation of legend and stories, the site attains the status of a sakti pitha. Once thus known, the site is not only part of a religious network in Gujarat, but also, an integral part of a religious circuit in other parts of the country that too are associated with the fallen body parts of Parvati. Further, the site’s sanctity is increased even more once it is described as a site where the holy river Sarasvati emerges from underground, to disappear again, and also, by its association with Vasistha.
Studies of the various sites that demonstrate coexistence of religions show that a single pattern of development cannot be applied. Almost each site has a different story to tell about multiple affiliations of a site and of continuities and discontinuities. While at sites such as Junagadh, the sanctity continues over a long period of time, but religious affiliation of one religion declines, at sites as Khed Brahma, there is continuity in affiliation and existence of religions as well. A number of legends develop at many of the Brahmanical sites that demonstrate a long period of continuity. Also, some sites decline all of a sudden, and the decline is not of one religion only, but of the site itself; such as was the case with Amreli, Nagara and Valabhi. The site of Valabhi follows a different pattern of development of multiple affiliations. The site, in the initial stages, has only Brahmanical remains to its credit, but later, it attains importance as sacred centre for the Buddhists as well as the Jaina community. At Valabhi, religions developed side by side, and the growth and development of any one of them was never at the cost of the other. This trend continues well into the medieval period, as seen in the case of Ambaji and Kumbhariya. While Brahmanical sculptural remains from the site date its sanctity to an early period, the site grows in importance and is a tirtha in the Skanda Purana. Then, in the medieval period at Kumbhariya, located at a short distance from Ambaji, a Jaina temple complex develops. The site of Kotesvara also becomes an important sacred centre, and all three exist together at a point in time.
It is noticed that at most of the medieval sites in northern Gujarat, a Shaivite shrine existed close to a Jaina temple, or even in the case of a temple complex, as in the case of Kumbhariya, one shrine was dedicated to Shiva. The beginnings of this trend can be traced to this period, as seen in the case of the sites of Vadodara and Akota, where Shaivite images and Jaina images were recovered.
While Jainism becomes a major religion in Gujarat in the medieval period, it is apparent that prior to that period, this religion also coexisted and shared sacred space, as seen at its major site Akota, and at other sites such as Khed Brahma and Valabhi. It also becomes clear that while studying religion, it is important to think of a parallel existence, and look for its evidence, rather than think in terms of the existence of one religion at the cost of the other.
In the succeeding period, with the coming of Islam and Muslim communities, the trend of coexistence of varied religious communities continues. In addition to patronage provided by rulers of the Chalukya/Solanki dynasty, evidence indicates the tolerant attitude of the rulers towards followers of Islam as well.
The Solankis were known to have treated the Muslims with respect, and rightly so, as a trading community, they brought in wealth into the kingdom. Ibn Haukal states that there were Jama Mosques at Famhala (Anhilwada).124 The Jawame al hekayat of Sadid al Din Mohammad Aufi narrates a story of justice of Jayasimha (1094–1103) towards the Muslim community. The story indicates the presence of a mosque at Khambat, which was rebuilt in 615/1218 in the reign of Bhimadeva II (1178–1242).125
Various Muslim communities were an integral part of the social fabric under the Chalukyan rule. The Patni, who are a Muslim trading community, are said to have settled in the town of Patan, during the rule of Mahmud of Ghazni. The community spread from Patan to the cities of Veraval, Govindpura, Naodra, Kalji, Chourvad, Keshod, and Junagadh. In older days, the community was dealing in sea transportation by wooden country crafts, and the owner of country crafts were known as Vahanvatu; they were rich and went to Gulf as well as Africa. The Bohras from Yemen are another community who came to Gujarat, settled here and made it their home. In the time of later Chalukyan kings, other communities were invited and brought to Patan to be settled, such as the Patola weavers; the Vankars, a weaving community from Saurashtra; and the Virajas or viravanijas, who appear to have been silk weavers.126
The reason behind providing support to different religious sects by the Chalukyas/Solankis has been aptly identified by Alka Patel. ‘Generous patronage was essential for the intertwining of otherwise disparate social and political contingents of society. The sizeable allocations to both new and established institutions were fundamental to the consolidation and dissemination of centralized authority and ultimately contributed to a regional and political cohesiveness.’127 It has been generally assumed that with the coming of Muslim conquerors, the Hindu temples were systematically desecrated and destroyed by the invading armies, as exemplified by the temple at Somanatha. A study of early Islamic architecture and associated inscriptions by Alka Patel negates this contestation between Hindus and Muslims as ‘It seems that in medieval Gujarat the barriers marking separate communities rather than rigid and insurmountable, were in actuality fluid and negotiable.’128 Ranabir Chakrabarti, using inscriptions on shipowners and merchants of western India, finds in them signs of amity and tolerance between the local Hindu merchants and a Hurmuzi nakhuda.129 There was a spirit of amiable relation among Muslims and Hindus and mutual trust and cooperation among them.130 Already, by early centuries of the Common era, several hundred years before the eighth-century incursions of Muhammad bin Qasim and his forces into Sindh, merchants, pilgrims and traders from various regions of Western Asia interacted with the Indian coasts and inland areas.131
The epigraphs shed light on the royal, mercantile and lay patronage of the architectural foundations that were an integral part of the sociocultural landscape of South Asia, both before and after long-term Islamic political presence in the northern Indian Plains.132 Inscriptional data pertaining to the early Islamic mosques in Gujarat reveal that the merchants and trading communities were the earliest patrons of Muslim religious architecture, and not conquering and invading rulers. Also, these were invariably newly constructed ones that did not involve the destruction of non-Islamic buildings, such as those of the Jainas or Hindus.
On the coast of Kachchh at the site of Bhadreshvar, is presumably the earliest mosque in the region of Gujarat. It is also the site of a twelfth-century Jaina temple. The local Muslim community of the Isma’ili sect is said to have constructed a mosque here with the permission of the Jaina council. But the most notable structure is the shrine of Ibrahim, dated to 1159–60, on the basis of the inscription found at the site.133
The inscription of the mosque at Junagadh dated 685/1286–87134 mentions ‘Ordered the construction of this blessed mosque the great learned chief of the merchants and the shipmasters, the pillar of the pilgrims (to Mecca) and of two shrines modest in the world and of religion Abulqasim b. Ali al Iraji.’ Iraj seems to refer to the name of a southern Iranian city near Ramhurmuz or of the ancestor of Abulqasim b. Ali and is an indication of the Iranian origin of our ‘chief of the merchants and shipmasters of the town’. This mosque is situated north of the ancient fort of Uparkot to the north east of the town. It is a rocky area with many ancient caves. The area is known as Mai Gadechi. Apart from the mosque, there is another mosque, shrine, a number of tombs, and a stepwell.135
As mentioned earlier, Junagadh, and specifically, Mount Girnar was sacred to both the Hindus and the Jainas. The Hindus climb the summit of this hill to worship the footprints of Guru Dattatreya and the temple of goddess Amba. A look at the dates of construction of the Jaina temples amply demonstrates that Islam and Jainism existed side by side at this site. The temple of Neminatha was built by Vastupala and Tejpala between 1128 and 1159 CE, and belonging to the fifteenth century CE is the Mallinatha temple, demonstrating the continued importance of Junagadh to the Jaina community. In 1128 CE, a Svetambara temple was dedicated to Neminatha and erected by Sajjana, a minister of Jayasimha Siddharaja.136 Although Jayasimha did not embrace Jainism, Hemachandra made him build a temple of Mahavira at Siddhapura and worship Neminatha on Mount Girnar.137 A bilingual inscription from Somanatha of the thirteenth century refers to a grant given to Muslims by the local ruler Arjunadeva for them to build a mosque in AH 662 (VE 1320/1263 CE). The persons responsible for the construction of the mosque was a sailor and shipowner known as Firuz b. Abu Ibrahim from the state of Hormuz.138 Presence of a wealthy Muslim trading community at Bhadreshvar is apparent from one of the tombstones, which belongs to Abu’l faraz b. Ali from Siraf. An inscription from Khambat refers to the construction of a mosque by Ali b. Shapur in 615/1218–19.139
Inscriptions from mid-thirteenth century and afterwards indicate that many Islamic buildings were constructed and maintained by both Hindu and Muslim craftsmen.140 In the bilingual Arabic Sanskrit inscription from Somanatha Veraval dating to 1264 CE, the Sanskrit version details the various artisan groups and officials responsible for maintaining a mosque in a proper state of repair. Interestingly, it is the local non-Muslim leaders who were charged with the stipulated disbursement of proceeds from the endowment’s financial interest, including forwarding of any surplus to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.141 The construction and maintenance of Islamic ritual buildings fell within the purview of both Muslims and non-Muslim laborers.142 In the 1304 donations that revolved around the the Khambat mosque, the revenues of the village which were donated to the mosque, were quite probably generated by Muslim and non-Muslim inhabitants of the village.143
The rich Islamic architecture of Gujarat is evidence for the close interactions between Muslim patrons and Hindu artisans and provides vital clues in understanding this. It is the merchants and traders, rather than rulers, who contributed to the presence of Islam and Islamic architecture in Gujarat, which led to the development of the Maru Gurjara tradition in Islamic architecture. As has been pointed out by Alka Patel, ‘The strict historiographical separation of Indic and Islamic architectural histories can prevent us from discerning the physical and historical connections between buildings housing different religious practices and the architectural innovations ensuing from the application of established forms of building to new social and religious functions.’144 These buildings signalled a more sustained and less confrontational interaction between ‘Hindu’ workers and their ‘Muslim’ patrons.145 The concept of religion was vastly different in non-modern times from what it is today.146
Mehrdad Shokoohy, while studying the mosque at Bhadreshvar, notes that ‘the workmen trained in the Indian tradition were being employed on the building projects of a Muslim community … and had learnt to accommodate the vernacular style to Muslim requirements’.147 At Bhadreshvar, there were influential Muslim mercantile community of the Ismaili persuasion and were prospering under the Chalukyan kingdom of Gujarat.148
This interaction left an impact on Indian craftsmen as well. The Vrksarnava, an architectural treatise from western India that codified generations of building experience, contains a chapter describing the construction of a mosque according to the Maru Gurjara tradition.149 This style of architecture had its impact at sites outside India, such as at the Masjid I Sanji at Larvand, located in central Afghanistan. ‘An array of Indic figural ornament adorns the sakhas and doorway and the overhanging eave above it. The original appearance of the threshold can be reconstructed by comparison with those of 11th–12th century Gujarati and Rajasthani temples, to which it is iconographically and stylistically related.’150 The mosque has similarities with the six marble temples at Kumbhariya in Gujarat, dating from 1061 to 1230 CE, a period which coincided with the zenith of Solanki or Western Chalukya rajas. The site lay at the confluence of trade routes leading from central India to Sind and northern Rajasthan and Gujarat. The details of the door jambs at Masji I Sangi all repeat a formula employed in the carved architectural forms of the Mahavira temple at Kumbhariya – for instance, the distinctive form of the curved double bell-shaped capitals, overhanging eaves with pair of hamsa, creeper carved on the frame of the lalata (shrine), to mention a few.151 The adaptive dimension is most apparent in the interior carvings, which replicate the basic formal vocabulary of Maru Gurjara temples.152 In the opinion of Finbarr Barry Flood, the Gujarati stone masons had the ability to adapt the Maru Gurjara norms to serve the needs of the Muslim patrons, as is attested by the mosques and shrines erected several decades earlier in town of Bhadreshvar.153 Arabic and Persian sources attest to continuation of commercial contacts with Muslim merchants living and trading in Anhilvada/Patan, capital of the Chalukya rajas, and Hindu merchants from the same city operating contemporaneously in Ghazni.154 These contacts would have facilitated the spread of the architectural style and movement of artisans that were crucial to the construction of the Islamic monuments in the region of Ghazni.
It is noticed that even when certain communities converted to Islam, they retained their earlier customs and traditions, indicating that there was no sudden breach with their past. Michael Naylor Pearson notes that ‘Among local converts to Islam in Gujarat, two most important commercially were the Khojas and Bohras. Both Khojas and Bohras retained many Hindu characteristics in such matters as inheritance and even in religious matters – thus the most revered book of the Khojas dealt with the nine incarnations of Visnu who had been adopted by them as Adam and with his tenth as Ali.’155
The chapter illustrates that instead of studying religions in terms of conflicts and contestations, one should view it from a perspective wherein religious boundaries are viewed as being fluid instead of rigorous, and where religious ideas, beliefs and thoughts are constantly undergoing a process of interaction, dialogues and the consequent modifications and transformations resulting thereof.
1R. Thapar, Somanatha – The Many Voices of a History, New Delhi: Penguin, Viking, 2004, p. 22.
2R. Thapar, Cultural Pasts – Essays in Early Indian History, Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 975.
3Lisa N. Owen, Transforming the Landscape – Question of Medieval Reuse and Worship at Ancient Jain Rock Cut Sites Near Madura, in H.P. Ray (ed.), Negotiating Cultural Identity: Landscapes in Early Medieval South Asia, New Delhi: Routledge, 2015, p. 113.
4Owen, Transforming the Landscape, p. 113.
5Owen, Transforming the Landscape, p. 136.
6John E. Cort, The Story of the Disappearing Jains, in John E. Cort (ed.), Open Boundaries: Jain, Communities and Cultures in Indian History, Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications, 1994, pp. 213–24, 215.
7Cort, The Story of the Disappearing Jains, p. 216.
8Cort, The Story of the Disappearing Jains, p. 218.
9Cort, The Story of the Disappearing Jains, p. 220.
10D.R. Bhandarkar, Vasantgarh Inscription of Varmalata, Vikram Samvat 682, Epigraphia Indica, 9 (25), 1907–08, p. 189.
11D.R. Bhandarkar, Vasantgadh Incription of Varnalata, PRASIWC, 1905–06, p. 50.
12C.H. Tawney (translated), Prabhandacintamani Wishing-Stone of Narratives, Merutunga Acharya, Calcutta: Asiatic Society, 1901.
13Vajeshekahr G. Ojha and G. Bühler, Vadnagar Prasasti of the Reign of Kumarapala, Epigraphia Indica, I, 1892, reprinted 1983, pp. 293–304.
14Alka Patel, Architectural Histories Entwined – The Rudra Mahalaya/ Congregational Mosque of Siddhpur in Gujarat, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 63 (ii), 2004, p. 152.
15Patel, Architectural Histories Entwined, p. 155.
16R. Thapar, Somanatha, p. 224.
17Samuel Beal, Su-Yu Ki-Chinese Accounts of India, Translated from Chinese of Hieun Tsang, Calcutta: Sushil Gupta (India) Ltd., 1958, p. 459.
18Asim Kumar Chatterjee, A Comprehensive History of Jainism, 2nd Edition, New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 2000, p. 86.
19K.V. Soundara Rajan, Junagadh, Delhi: ASI, 1985, p. 39.
20M.A. Dhaky and U.S. Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, Delhi: American Institute of Indian Studies, 2001, p. 4.
21Dhaky and Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, p. 5.
22Dhaky and Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, p. 5.
23Dhaky and Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, p. 6.
24J.F. Fleet, Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum – Inscriptions of the Early Gupta Kings and Their Successors, Vol. 3, Calcutta: Superintendent Government Printing, 1888, pp. 61–5.
25Babita Sikdar, Girinagara – The Ancient Provincial Capital of Western India, Unpublished MA Dissertation, Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, MS University, Vadodara, 1999, p. 53.
26A.M.T. Jackson and R.E. Enthoven, Folklore of Gujarat, Published in Haryana, Printed in Delhi: Reprint Vintage Books, 1989, p. 38.
27Savitri V. Kumar, The Puranic Lore of Holy Water Places, Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 1983, p. 70.
28Gujarat State Gazetteers, Junagadh District, Ahmedabad: Directorate of Government Print, 1975, pp. 814–9.
29Gujarat State Gazetteers, Junagadh District, p. 315.
30Dhaky and Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, p. 6.
31P.A. Inamdar, Some Archaeological Finds in the Idar State, Himatnagar Idar State: Department of Archaeology, 1936, plate VI.
32Inamdar, Some Archaeological Finds in the Idar State, plate VI.
33Inamdar, Some Archaeological Finds in the Idar State, p. 13.
34Data collected during field trip about the legend prevalent at the site (January 2003).
35Sara L. Schastok, The Shamlaji Sculptures and Sixth Century Art in Western India, Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1985, List of Figures.
36S.N. Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori – North Gujarat, Unpublished PhD Thesis, MS University, Vadodara, 1964. p. 19.
37R.N. Mehta and S.N. Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori (A Report of the Excavation Conducted from 1960 to 1963), Vadodara: MS University, 1966, p. 29.
38Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 10.
39Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 30.
40Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, pp. 119–20.
41Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 34.
42S.N. Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori – North Gujarat, Unpublished PhD Thesis, MS University, Vadodara, 1964, p. 93.
43S.N. Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori, p. 93.
44Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori, p. 121.
45Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori, p. 117.
46Chowdhary, Buddhist Monuments of Devnimori, pp. 166–7.
47Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavation at Devnimori, p. 141.
48Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 142.
49Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 144.
50Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 146.
51Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, pp. 148–9.
52Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 150.
53Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, pp. 164–6.
54Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 167.
55Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 184.
56Mehta and Chowdhary, Excavations at Devnimori, p. 3.
57H. Goetz, Gupta Sculptures from North Gujarat, Journal of Gujarat Research Society, 14 (1), 1952, p. 1.
58V.L. Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, Bulletin of Baroda Museum Picture Gallery, Vadodara: Govt. Press, 1960, 13, Special Number, p. 136.
59Fieldtrip (January 2003).
60R.N. Mehta, Five Sculptures from Devnimori, Journal of Indian Society of Oriental Arts, 1966, Special Number – Western Indian Art, p. 27.
61Sara L. Schastok, The Shamlaji Sculptures & Sixth Century Art in Western India, Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1985, List of Figures.
62V.S. Parekh, The Iconography of Saiva Deities from Gujarat, Unpublished PhD Thesis, MS University, Vadodara, 1978. Table.
63Fieldtrip (January 2003).
64Schastok, The Samlaji Sculptures & Sixth Century Art in Western India, p. 16.
65Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 136.
66Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 52.
67Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 48.
68Goetz, Gupta Sculptures from North Gujarat, p. 2.
69Dr. Haripriya Rangarajan, Wrong Identification of the Images of Viśvarūpa Visnu from Gujarat, Kala, 6, 1999–2000, p. 67.
70Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 35.
71Booklet – Shamalaji, Gujarati, Published by Shamalaji Vishnu Mandir Trust
72Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 35.
73Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 36.
74Devkar, Sculptures from Shamalaji & Roda, p. 40.
75Ravi Hazarnis, Vrisha Sculptures in Gujarat, in C. Margabandhu, K.S. Ramachandran, A.P. Sagar and D.K. Sinha (eds), Indian Archaeological Heritage, Agam Indological Series 11, Delhi: Agam Kala Prakashan, 1991, p. 563.
76Rangarajan, Wrong Identification of Images, p. 68.
77Rangarajan, Wrong Identification of Images, p. 67.
78Rangarajan, Wrong Identification of Images, p. 67.
79Rangarajan, Wrong Identification of Images, p. 68.
80S.R. Rao, Excavation at Amreli, Bulletin of Baroda Museum and Picture Gallery, 18, 1966, p. 14.
81Annual Report – Archaeological Department, Baroda State, 1936–37, p. 12.
82Annual Report – Archaeological Department, Baroda State, 1935–36, p. 19.
83Hazarnis, Vrisha Sculptures in Gujarat, p. 563.
84Rao, Excavation at Amreli, Bulletin, p. 14.
85Annual Report – Archaeological Department, Baroda State, 1935–36, p. 19.
86Rao, Excavation at Amreli, p. 98.
87Rao, Excavation at Amreli, p. 14.
88Annual Report – Archaeological Department, Baroda State, for Year Ending 31st July 1939, p. 5.
89Rao, Excavation at Amreli, p. 30.
90Rao, Excavation at Amreli, p. 33.
91Mehta and Shah, Excavation at Nagara, p. 107.
92Lien, Buddhist Monuments and Antiquities of Gujarat, p. 89.
93Mehta and Shah, Excavation at Nagara, p. 19.
94Mehta and Shah, Excavation at Nagara, p. 127.
95A.B.L. Awasthi, Studies in the Skanda Purāna, Part I, Lucknow: Kailash Prakashan, 1965, p. 85.
96Indian Archaeology – A Review, 1979–80, p. 24.
97U.P. Shah, A Female Bust from Valabhi, Journal of Indian Society of Oriental Arts, Special Number – Western Indian Art, 1966. p. 1.
98Vasant Shinde, The Earliest Temple of Lajjāgaurī? The Recent Excavations at Padri in Gujarat, East and West, 44 (2–4), 1994, p. 484.
99Parekh, The Iconography of Saiva Deities from Gujarat, Chart of Lingas from Gujarat.
100Kantilal F. Sompura, Structural Temples of Gujarat (up to 1600 AD), Ahmedabad: Gujarat University, 1968, p. 83.
101K.V. Ramesh, Vada Inscription of Suketuvarman Saka 322, Epigraphia Indica, 40, Part 2, 1973–75, p. 57.
102Ramesh, Vada Inscription of Suketuvarman, p. 52.
103Ramesh, Vada Inscription of Suketuvarman, p. 53.
104Lien, Buddhist Monuments and Antiquities of Gujarat, p. 91.
105M.G. Dikshit, History of Buddhism in Gujarat, Journal of Gujarat Research Society, 8 (2 and 3), 1946, p. 109.
106Kantilal F. Sompura, Buddhist Monuments and Sculptures in Gujarat – A Historical Survey, Hoshiarpur: Vishveshvaranand Institute, 1965, p. 28.
107M.K. Thakor, A Bronze Image of Buddha from Valabhipur, Journal of Oriental Institute, 11, 1966–67, pp. 79–85.
108Archaeological Survey of Western India, for Year Ending 31st March 1915, p. 30.
109Samuel Beal, Su-Yu-Ki-Chinese Accounts of India, Translated from Chinese of Hieun Tsang, Calcutta: Sushil Gupta (India) Ltd., 1958, p. 457.
110Dhaky and Moorti, The Temples in Kumbhariya, p. 5.
111Shah, Akota Bronzes, p. 39.
112Shah, Akota Bronzes, p. 40.
113Shah, Akota Bronzes, p. 40.
114Shah, Akota Bronzes, p. 3.
115Benapudi Subbarao, Baroda Through the Ages, Vadodara: MS University, 1953, p. 14.
116Subbarao, Baroda Through the Ages, p. 110.
117Shah, Akota Bronzes, p. 49.
118Shah, Akota Bronzes, pp. 31 and 44.
119G. Bühler, Valabhi Grant No.XV – A Grant of Siladitya I, Indian Antiquary, 9, 1880, p. 238.
120Indian Archaeology – A Review, 1975–76, p. 15.
121Dhananjay Hanumantrao Shinde, Karvan and the Lakulisa Sect, Unpublished MA Dissertation, MS University, Vadodara, 1979, p. 23.
122Shah, Matrka and Other Sculptures from North Gujarat, Bulletin of Baroda Museum and Picture Gallery, 14, 1962, pp. 29–32.
123R.T. Parikh, Unique Sculpture of Sakti Ganesa of the Ucchista Variety from Kumbhariya, Journal of Oriental Institute, 22, 1973, p. 374.
124Krishna Brajesh, Foreign Trade in Early Medieval India, Delhi: Harman Publishing House, 2001, p. 66.
125Z.A. Desai, Mirat I Sikandari as a Source of Study of Cultural and Social Conditions in Gujarat, Journal of Oriental Institute of Baroda, 10, 1961, pp. 353–64.
126V.K. Jain, Trade and Traders in Western India, Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers, 1990, p. 254.
127Alka Patel, Architectural Histories Entwined – The Rudra Mahalaya/Congregational Mosque of Siddhpur in Gujarat, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 63 (ii), 2004, pp. 144–63, 155.
128Alka Patel, Building Communities in Gujarat, Leiden, E.J. Brill, 2004, p. 55.
129Ranabir Chakravarti, Nakhudas and Nauvittikas – Ship-Owners and Merchants in West Coast of India, Journal of Economic and Social History of the Orient, 43, 2000, pp. 34–64, 54.
130Ranabir Chakravarti, Trade and Traders in Early Indian Society, Delhi: Manohar Publishers, 2002, p. 228.
131Alka Patel, Building Communities in Gujarat, Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2004, p. 35.
132Alka Patel, Expanding the Ghurid Architectural Corpus East of the Indus – The Jagesvara Temple at Sadadi, Rajasthan, Archives of Asian Art, 59, 2009, p. 37.
133Himanshu Prabha Ray, Trading Patterns Across the Indian Ocean: The Making of Maritime Communities, in Benjamin Z. Kedar and Merry E. Wiesner Hanks (eds), The Cambridge World History, Vol. 5, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015, pp. 287–8, 297.
134Z.A. Desai, Arabic Inscription of the Rajput Period from Gujarat, Epigraphia Indica Arabic and Persian Supplement, 1959–61, New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, 1987, pp. 18–19.
135Mehrdad Shokoohy, Bhadresvar, Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1988, p. 44.
136Kristi L. Wiley, A to Z of Jainism, Lanham: The Scarecrow Press INC, 2009, p.xxxv.
137Helmuth von Glasenapp, Jainism – An Indian Religion of Salvation – Translation, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1999, p. 57.
138Shokoohy Bhadresvar, p. 43.
139Shokoohy Bhadresvar, p. 43.
140Patel, The Rudra Mahalaya, p. 155.
141Patel, The Rudra Mahalaya, p. 155.
142Patel, Building Communities, p. 56.
143Patel, Building Communities, p. 55.
144Patel, The Rudra Mahalaya/Congregational Mosque of Siddhpur, p. 148.
145Patel, The Historiography of Reuse in South Asia, Archives of Asian Art, 59, 2009, p. 2.
146Van der Veer, The Foreign Hand – Orientalist Discourses in Sociology and Communalism, in C. Breckenridge and Peter van Veer (eds), Orientalism and the Post Colonial Predicament: Perspectives on South Asia, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1993, pp. 39–40.
147Shokoohy, Bhadresvar, p. 40.
148Shokoohy, Bhadresvar, p. 41.
149Patel, The Rudra Mahalaya, p. 158.
150Finbarr Barry Flood, Objects of Translation – Material Culture and Medieval Hindu Muslim Encounter, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009, p. 207.
151Flood, Objects of Translation, pp. 210–11.
152Flood, Objects of Translation, p. 212.
153Flood, Objects of Translation, p. 218.
154Flood, Objects of Translation, p. 218.
155Michael Naylor Pearson, Merchants and Rulers in Gujarat – The Response to the Portuguese in the Sixteenth Century, Berkley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press, 1976, p. 27.
