Arkivism
The Lion's Cave with Sthulabhadra and His Sisters, Folio 60 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra
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The Lion's Cave with Sthulabhadra and His Sisters, Folio 60 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra

c. 1450 · Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

This manuscript is open to a page with a painting that depicts the story of a Jain monk who transformed himself into a composite beast when his sisters, two nuns, came to visit him. Terrified, the nuns ran to a senior monk, at the lower left, who admonished their brother for his overly prideful display of power. Remarkably, this story is not told in the text itself, which contains only their names among a list of prominent Jain teachers. The painting would remind a reader of the story that is found in many commentaries to the text.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description
Credit lineThe Lion's Cave with Sthulabhadra and His Sisters, Folio 60 (verso), from a Kalpa-sutra, c. 1450. Western India, Gujarat. Gum tempera, ink, and gold on paper; overall: 12.5 x 25.7 cm (4 15/16 x 10 1/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Edward L. Whittemore Fund, 1932.119.60.b

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