A stone sculpture of a Jain Tirthankara has been found by history enthusiasts at an agricultural field at Dharmanathapuram near Lalgudi in Tiruchi district.
The heavily eroded stone sculpture was found by Mahatma Selvapandian and M.Saravanavel, history enthusiasts, based on information shared by a village resident, Edward Backiaraj, in a social media post.
“We found the sculpture lying unprotected in an agricultural field. An earthen lamp (akal vilakku) was found nearby, indicating that it is being worshipped on auspicious occasions,” Mr. Selvapandian told The Hindu.
The sculpture, measuring 65 cm in height and 36 cm in width, probably belongs to the later Chola period. The Tirthankara is seen seated in a meditative posture (ardha padmasana) and has elongated ear lobes. A prabhavali is seen around the head and a triple umbrella above. Chamaras are found on the sides, he said.
However, the Tirthankara could not be identified as the representative symbol (lanchan) associated with each of the 24 Tirthankaras could not be found in the statue, as it has suffered heavy erosion. Locals have a misconception that it is a sculpture of Buddha. They also have a strange practice of placing the statue face down on the ground, by way of praying for rain, during prolonged dry spells, Mr.Selvapandian said.
Statues of Jain Tirthankaras have been found at various places in and around Tiruchi, including one at Nagar, situated close to Dharmanathapuram. Some of statues are on display at the District Government Museum now. The discovery of the statue at Dharmanathapuram indicates that a Jain monastery could have existed in the near vicinity, Mr.Selvapandian added.
