On a wooded hillside in the Aravalli range of hills in Rajasthan, north of Udaipur, is an exquisite Jain temple, intricately carved in white marble, Ranakpur. It has a cool serenity, its pale stone a welcome contrast to the vivid colours and assault on the senses that is India.

The main temple here is Chaumukha Mandir, dedicated to the first tirthankara (Jain teacher or spiritual leader), Adinath. The name means Four-Faced Temple. It is so-called because it has a four-way symmetry; there are four entrances and four identical images of Adinath, each facing in a different direction.

The building of the temple

This is widely considered to be the most beautiful Jain temple in India, and one of the most important. It was built in the 15^th century, inspired by the vision of Shreshti Dharana Shah, a minister in the court of Kumbha Rana, ruler of Mewar. Dharana Shah was a devout Jain, who had taken a vow of lifelong celibacy. One night he had a dream in which he saw the Nalinigulma Viman, a divine flying chariot mentioned in Jain mythology. Awaking, he resolved to build a temple to resemble this heavenly image. He persuaded Kumbha Rana to donate some land, and then set about the search for an architect to bring his vision to reality.

Many famous artists and scholars submitted designs, but none was quite right, until a humbler sculptor named Depak presented his ideas. These impressed Dharana Shah and he could see that his vision would be realised by this man. Thus their partnership was formed and over the next fifty years the temple was constructed, at a cost (it is said) of ten million rupees – a fortune at that time.

The result is spectacular, both outside and, especially, within. It has 29 interconnecting halls, 80 domes and 1444 individually engraved pillars, no two of which are alike. Each dome is carved in concentric bands, and the whole building is covered with delicate lace-like carvings and geometric patterns. The brackets connecting the base of the domes with the top are covered with figures of deities.

This temple is both historical sight and living place of worship. It is helpful before visiting to understand a little bit about Jainism, and essential to respect their rules.

A bit about the Jain religion

At the heart of Jainism is respect for the welfare of every being in the universe and for the health of the universe itself. Jains believe that animals and plants, as much as human beings, contain living souls that should be equally valued and treated with respect and compassion. Unsurprisingly, Jains are strict vegetarians and live in a way that minimises their use of the world’s resources; they were ‘green’ long before most of the rest of the world realised the necessity of conservation.

Jains believe in reincarnation. The final reward for those who follow the religion’s tenets is an eventual escape from the continuous cycle of birth, death and rebirth to live for ever in a state of eternal bliss. There are no gods; the faithful pray to 24 idols who represent the tirthankaras. These are people who have achieved that liberation from the cycle of reincarnation and now show the path to others. It is to the first of these, Adinath, that this temple is dedicated. These idols look to the uninitiated a little like Buddha; but you can recognise a Jain idol as it always sits with legs crossed and hands folded while the Buddha may be seen in a wide variety of poses.

Jains follow three guiding principles, known as the ‘three jewels’: right belief, right knowledge and right conduct. The latter means following the five mahavratas or vows, of which the most important is non-violence; the others are non-attachment to possessions, not lying, not stealing, and sexual restraint. There are two major sects: the Digambara (meaning ‘sky clad’ – i.e. naked) sect and the Svetambara (meaning ‘white clad’) sect. The Jains at Ranakpur belong to the latter group.

Inside the temple

I was in my element wandering around in here and taking photos. I loved the dancing goddesses that adorn the pillars; the many representations of the idol or Tirthankara; the large marble elephant statues…

While it isn’t permitted to photograph any idols, there was so much else to keep me and my camera busy. There are the wonderfully carved details on the pillars; hidden corners with unexpected glimpses of the world outside; other visitors (both tourists and worshippers, photographed discreetly); and much more. Even so, my photos don’t really do this place justice; it has a special, rather calm atmosphere that has to be experienced first-hand.

Taking photos of the marble rock in which over a hundred intertwined snakes have been carved is particularly strictly forbidden. However, there are plenty of images on the internet from those who have clearly ignored that rule. I won’t collude with their disrespect by posting links, but if you search for ‘Ranakpur snake heads’ you will be rewarded!

OK, perhaps I should confess that accidentally a little of this much-venerated carving did find its way into one of my photos (see the lady in white in my gallery higher up this page). But I promise I didn’t know what I was photographing at the time!

I’m sharing this stunning white temple for this week’s Sunday Stills, for which Terri challenges us to feature objects that are the colour white.