Our visit to
Rankapur, the site of a sprawling fifteenth century Jain temple
complex,
was a surprise of the trip. Rankapur is in a rural valley in Rajasthan,
between Udaipur and Jodhpur. Our driver recommended it. We spent two
hours; we could have spent two days. I would have loved to photograph
"the golden hour."
The temple sculptures are exquisite:
sensual and joyous, unlike anything in western religious art. They are
virtually unknown in the Western world.
Here is my very non-scholarly attempt to explain them, to be revised
when I learn more. The Jain religion originated about the same time as
Buddhism: 500-400 BCE, and has a similar cultural background and
spiritual goal, namely to reach a state of nirvana, beyond desire and
reincarnation. But while most philosophies, eastern and western, reject
transient sensual pleasures as an impediment to spiritual development,
the Jain religion evidently embraces them, knowing that they are
transient and will pass. Better to satisfy your desires than be pulled
back by desires you rejected but secretly longed for.
These remarkable sculptures make me want to exclaim, "Laissez les bon
temps roulez" (an old
Sanscrit mantra). They deserve to be much better
known.
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