Monuments of Sittannavasal in Pudukkottai

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SITTANNAVASAL MONUMENTS
Presented by S. Swaminathan (sswami99_at_gmail.com)
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Location of Sittannavasal
Sittannavasal,
a small village in the Pudukkottai district of
Tamilnadu, is a world-famous archaeological
site.
It lies at 15 km from Pudukkottai on the road to
Illuppur.
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Sittannavasal monuments
There are four interesting monuments on and
around a large rocky hillock
Arivar-koil
It is renowned for its mural paintings in the
Jaina cave temple. These paintings are second
only in importance after Ajanta paintings and
have an important place in the Indian art
history. It was a flourishing centre of Jaina
influence where Jainism flourished for over 1200
years (3rd century BC to 10th century AD).
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Sittannavasal monuments
Ezhadippattam
There are a number of natural caverns with
polished stone- beds in this hillock where Jain
ascetics performed austerities. One of such
caverns, called Ezhadippattam, contains 17
stone-beds, with inscriptions in Tamil dating
from 3rd century BC.
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Sittannavasal monuments
Navachchunai
A tarn situated on the northern part of the
hillock, with a submerged rock-cut shrine inside.
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Sittannavasal monuments
Burial sites
This village was one of the oldest inhabited
sites in this area. The megalithic burial sites
here testify to this.
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ARIVAR-KOIL
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Arivar-koil
This is a Jaina cave temple, excavated before
the 9th century AD and has the famous mural
paintings
Originally thought of an excavation of
Mahendra-varma Pallavan, this is now considered
to be a Pandya contribution Still there is
uncertainty regarding the origin of this temple
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Arivar-koil
The cave temple lies on the west face of the
hillock, near the northern end. A walk of about
100 feet over the sloping rock takes the visitor
to the cave temple.
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ARIVAR-KOIL architecture
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The cave temple consists of a garbha-griham,
an ardha-mandapam
and a pillared veranda.
Garbha-griham
A mukha-mandapam that was added in 9th century
AD has collapsed.
Ardha-mandapam
Pillared-veranda
The pillared veranda is a later addition in the
20th century.
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Originally the entire space, except the floor,
had been plastered and painted.
But only a part of the paintings on the ceiling
and patches elsewhere remain.
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Pillared-veranda
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Pillared Varenda
This pillared veranda, in front, is a later
construction, added in the 20th century by the
Tondaiman-s of Pudukkottai. It provides much
needed protection from rain and sun.
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Pillared Varenda
A 17-line Tamil inscription on the rock-face of
the original cave can be seen from here.
It mentions about the repair and extension of
the cave temple by a Jaina Acharya called Ilan
Gautaman, during the reign of the Pandya king,
Srimaran-srivallabhan (9th century AD).
It is from this inscription we find that the cave
temple was excavated before the 9th century.
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Ardha-mandapam
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Ardha-mandapam
From the front veranda one enters this
ardha-mandapam which is 22½ feet by 7½ feet.
On the side walls are two niches containing
sculptures of a Tirthankara and an Acharya.
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The ardha-mandapam contained some exquisite
paintings, of which precious little remains.
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Garbha-griham
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Garbha-griham
Beyond the ardha-mandapam is this
Garbha-griham. It is 10 feet by 10 feet.
On the back wall are three images carved in
relief. On the ceiling is carved a
Dharma-chakra. The ceiling contains relics of
paintings.
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ARIVAR-KOIL sculptures
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There are only five sculptures, all in relief,
in this cave temple. Two of them are in the
ardha-mandapam, on the side-walls. The
garbha-griham contains three figures in a row,
on the rear-wall.
These sculptures are of Jaina Tirthankara-s and
Acharya-s.
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Ardha-mandapam
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Ardha-mandapam
The niche on the southern wall contains a figure
of Parsvanatha, the twenty-third Tirthankara.
He is seated cross-legged in the dhyana
(meditative) pose. There is a five headed
serpent spreading its hood over his head
identifying him as Parsvanatha.
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Ardha-mandapam
The niche on the northern wall is a figure of a
Jaina Acharya seated in the same pose. There is
a single umbrella over the head of the image,
which indicates that it is not a Tirthankara.
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Garbha-griham
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Garbha-griham
On the back-wall of the garbha-griham are three
images carved in relief in a row.
All of them are in the same dhyana (meditative)
posture.
The northern and central figures have mukkudai
(triple umbrella), indicating them to be
Tirthankara-s. The southern figure has a single
umbrella, and probably a Chakravarti or an
Acharya.
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ARIVAR-KOIL paintings
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Indian Paintings
Ajanta, 200BC-600AD
Sittannavasal paintings are an early example of
post-Ajanta period painting and are of the
classical Ajanta style with variation in the
handling of the material by the artists.
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Indian Paintings
Kanchipuram 7th century AD
The paintings in Kailasanatha Temple in Kanchi
antedate the Sittannavasal paintings.
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Indian Paintings
Thanjavur 1100AD
The paintings in Brihadiswara Temple in Thanjavur
are the continuation of the Sittannavasal
tradition.
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Sittannavasal Paintings
The technique used is known as fresco-secco,
that is, painting done on dry wall. In this
process, the surface is first covered with lime
plaster,then coated with lime-wash and the
painting done on it. Mineral colours of
permanent nature were employed for the painting.
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Sittannavasal Paintings
The subjects of the Sittannavasal paintings
include the Samava-sarana of the Jaina
mythology, a few solo-pictures, that includes
dancing damsels, birds, floral decorations, and
various carpet canopy designs.
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Sittannavasal Paintings
Originally the entire cave temple, excluding the
floor, including the sculptures was covered
with plaster and painted. Only traces of these
are now extant.
All these paintings, which would rank among the
great paintings of India, are barely visible
now, mainly due to vandalism with in the last
50-60 years.
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Sittannavasal Paintings
This Jaina site and its paintings were first
noticed by a local historian S. Radhakrishna
Iyer in 1916.
But Jouveau Dubreuil and T.A. Gopinatha Rao
brought it before the archaeological world in
1920.
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Sittannavasal Paintings
In 1942, Dr. S. Paramasivan and K.R. Srinivasan
found that there are two layers of paintings, an
earlier and a later superimposed over the
earlier one.
The layer of painting, which we see today and
admire, is probably the work of Ilan-Gautaman
(9th century AD), mentioned in the inscription.
These are some of theearliest frescos in South
India and only example of early Jaina frescoes.
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Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
On the ceiling of ardha-mandapam, canopies of
floral pattern are painted over the two relief
images.
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Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
The samava-sarana composition
In Jainism, where worship of great souls
occupies an important place, Tirthankara-s are
the most venerated religious prophets.
One of the five important events in the life of a
Tirthankara is the first sermon after attaining
the kevala-jnana (realisation), in a specially
designed complex called Samava-sarana.
This Samava-sarana is a favourite motif for
representation in the Jaina temples.
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Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
The samava-sarana composition
The scene painted in the ardha-mandapam is a
lotus tank which is a part of the Samava-sarana
complex. It is the second region, called
khatika-bhumi (region-of-the-tank). Here, we
see, the bhavya-s (the good ones), rejoice while
washing themselves, as they pass on from region
to region in order to hear the discourse of the
Lord in the heavenly pavilion of Samava-sarana.
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Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
The samava-sarana composition
This painting shows bhavya-s enjoying themselves
in a pool, full of flowering lotuses. Flowers
with their stalks and leaves, various kinds of
fishes frolicking, a makara (mythical fish),
buffaloes, elephants and numerous birds are
shown with simplicity, charm and naturalness.
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The samava-sarana composition
The pose and expression of the bhavya-s shown in
the picture have a charm and beauty, which compel
attention.
Two of them are shown together in one part of the
tank.
One is picking lotus flowers with his right hand
and has a basket of flowers slung on the other.
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The samava-sarana composition
His companion carries a lotus in one hand, the
other is bent gracefully, the fingers forming the
mrigi-mudra (deer-gesture).
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The samava-sarana composition
The third bhavya, an extremely beautiful figure,
carries a bunch of lotus over his left shoulder
and lily over his right.
The three figures are naked, except for their
loin-cloths. The hair is neatly arranged and
the lobes of the ears are distended.
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The samava-sarana composition
The three figures are naked, except for their
loin-cloths. The hair is neatly arranged and the
lobes of the ears are distended.
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Ceiling of ardha-mandapam
The samava-sarana composition
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Pillars of ardha-mandapam
There were some exquisite paintings of dancing
girls on the pillars. These priceless treasures
are now lost forever and only their outlines are
traceable today.
These animated figures, with their broad hips,
slender waists, and elaborate ornaments, recall
the beauty of the apsara-s of mythology their
pose and expression suggest rhythm and dynamic
movement. These portraitures of dancers must
rank as one among the best in the whole of India.
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Pillars of ardha-mandapam
One of them has her left arm stretched-out in
lata-hasta pose and right arm bent at the elbow.
Her ears are adorned with olai (patra-kundala),
rings set with gems, and her arms decked with
bracelets and bangles.
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Pillars of ardha-mandapam
The other is even more graceful. Her left arm
stretched-in lata-hasta pose, while her right
arm is bent at the elbow.
The head-dress and the ornaments of this dancer
are very distinct. The hair is decked with
flower garlands.
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Pillars of ardha-mandapam
There is also remnant of a painting of a royal
couple, on the southern pillar.
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Cornice beam of ardha-mandapam
There are paintings on the corbels, beam and
cornice. On the corbel are scroll designs with
lotuses.
Painted lotuses in different stages of
flowering.
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Cornice beam of ardha-mandapam
The painting on the cornice is made up of carpet
designs with lotuses.
In front of each of the two pillars are painted
hamsa (mythical swan).
On the northern wall are the figures of fruits
and flowers in yellow and red.
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Ceiling of garbha-griham
The painting above the three relief sculptures
suggests a carpet, with striped borders and
irregular squares and circles interlinked.
Within the squares are lotus flowers.
Inside the circles is a cross, with two human
figures on upper side andtwo lion figures on
the lower side of the horizontal arm.
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EZHADIPPATTAM
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Ezhadippattam
Ezhadipattam is the name given to a natural
cavern where over more than a thousand years
since 3rd century BC, Jaina ascetics practiced
severest penance such as Kayot-sarga
(meditation-till-salvation-in-standing-pose) and
sallekhana (fasting-unto-death).
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Ezhadippattam
A few hundred meters south of the cave-temple is
the beginning of the path that leads to
Ezhadippattam.
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Ezhadippattam
The cavern is near the top of the centre of the
hill, on the eastern side. But the approach is
from the west.
The Cavern
Entry to the Cavern
Originally this path to the cavern, along a
narrow ledge was difficult and dangerous.
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The stone-beds
The cavern is roomy but low. The floor is marked
out into spaces for seventeen beds, each with a
sort of stone pillow. They are highly polished.
Most of the beds are inscribed. But all these
inscriptions are barely visible now, due to
vandalism within last 50-60 years.
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Inscriptions
One of the beds, the largest, is the oldest It
contains an inscription in Tamil in the Tamil
Brahmi script of the 3rd century BC. This is one
of the oldest lithic records of South India.
It mentions that Ilaiyar of Tenku-ciru-posil
made this seat for Kavuti born at Kumizhur in
erumi-naadu (probably in Karnataka).
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Inscriptions
Near other beds, names of other Jaina ascetics
who practised penance are inscribed. There are a
number of inscriptions belonging 7th to 10th
centuries AD.
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Ezhadippattam stone beds inscriptions nearby
There are a number of stone-beds and inscriptions
around Ezhadippattam.
There is also a passage to reach the hill through
a very narrow cavern, now under disuse.
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NAVACH-CHUNAI
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Navach-chunai
The pool takes its name from a naval-maram
(Syzygium jambolanum) close by.
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Jambunatha submerged cave temple
The sunai contains a submerged Pandya rock-cut
shrine inside.
It contains a lingam in the centre and a narrow
passage to walk around. The water is
occasionally baled out, and the lingam is
worshiped.
However, there is no clue as to why such temples
were excavated at all.
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MEGALITHIC BURIALS
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Megalithic Burials
Certain typical modes of disposing the dead in
the mega-lithic period (3rd century BC to 1st
century AD) are preserved in the Pudukkottai
tract.
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Megalithic Burials

• Excavations reveal three types of burials in
  Pudukkottai region
• grave-burials, practised by poor people,
• urn-burials, in which the dead men were buried
• in a sitting posture in a large earthenware pot
  and
• burials in deep stone-chambers formed of stone
  slabs (cists).

Quite a few burial sites are found in
Sittannavasal
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Megalithic Burials
Loosely called dolmans, these are stone-capped
burial monuments with chambers in stone.
Mudu-makkal-thazhi (burial-pots-of-the-old-people
) is the most widely used local name. These
are easily identifiable by the appearance of a
circle of laterite or granite stones and small
boulders on the surface of the spot.
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OTHER INTERESTING PLACES
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Other places of interest
At the foothills of the hillock, on the western
side, are two temples in ruins.
One is dedicated to Siva and another to a
Goddess.
There are a few loose sculptures near to these
shrines.
These two temples have not been studied in
detail yet.
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Other places of interest
There are shrines for local deity, Ayyanar with
the customary terracotta sculptures of horses,
etc. nearby.
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The Sittannavasal Complex offers an opportunity
to travel in time from the 3rd century till
modern times, and to savour certain unique
features of our past.
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Thank you
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A presentation by
Sudharsanam A centre for Arts and culture 2
Palace Nagar Pudukkottai 622005 Tamilnadu, India.
www.pudukkottai.org www.sudharsanam.org sudharsana
m_at_pudukkottai.org