Jainism And The Temples Of Mount Abu And Ranakpur: Jainism And The Temples Of Mount Abu And Ranakpur (13)

Ground plan of the Vimala Shah Temple

The image of Goddess Chakrasuri is three-dimensional and femininely rounded (no. 5 in the plan). Chakrasuri is the esoteric consort of Vishnu; she holds in her six arms, symbols, which also coincide with Jain concepts and philosophy. For example, the bow symbolises the ego and the arrow the senses, which bind humankind to the material world; the round form of the discus personifies the soul, the sceptre the power of knowledge, the thunderbolt spiritual power and with the noose, Chakrasuri captures the restless spirit of the faithful.

In the north-west corner (no. 9 in the plan), Krishna overpowered the snake Kaliya against whom he had to fight for the recovery of his golden ball which had fallen into the river Yamuna. The young god is represented as the conqueror of the forces of darkness, since the ball symbolises the sun and the daily rising of the sun.

Tutelary gods are of course indispensable. These are supposed to protect man against the grave dangers and perils confronting him. So, on one ceiling is shown a representation of the goddess of smallpox, Shitala (no. 12 in the plan).

The Jains often represent the goddesses of knowledge in a group of sixteen, like in the ranga mandapa. The goddesses frequently represented with music instruments and in dance postures. Brahma’s consort Saraswati (no. 13 in the plan) is also worshipped; she is seated on a swan (her mount) and represented with a veena in her hands.