The Mathada Basadi

The Mathada Basadi, probably built around the fifteenth century, contains the principal deity Lord Shri 1008 Chandraprabha Tirthankara, Lord Shri 1008 Neminatha Tirthankara, a Samavasarana Jina image, a Sahasrakuta Jina image, and hundreds of beautiful ancient Jina images made of metal and stone. Mother Kushmandini, the presiding deity of the sacred site, and Mother Jwalamalini are also enshrined here. Inscriptions in the Basadi indicate that it was constructed especially for Charukirti Panditacharyavarya Mahaswamiji, the pontiff of the monastery. The Basadi contains the guru-seat and throne; after a new pontiff is selected, the consecration ceremony is performed here, as is the annual anniversary of that ceremony. The Basadi is notable for distinctive murals painted with natural pigments. These paintings, made on the inner walls of its courtyard during the reign of Mysore’s Krishnaraja Wodeyar III, around the seventeenth century, have remarkably survived to the present. To the left of the entrance are beautifully painted scenes of Parshvanatha’s nine previous births, the five auspicious events in his life, and the Samavasarana. To the right are vivid scenes of the Neminatha Tirthankara chariot festival traditionally held at Shravanabelagola: people pulling the chariot, the Bhattaraka of the time, various flags, parasols, festoons and fly-whisks, merchants, dancers, and the public. These are followed by scenes from the Nagakumara Charita, depictions of the six leshyas, the twenty-four Tirthankaras, and the five tutelary deities. The present revered pontiff has initiated restoration of these paintings. In niches above the courtyard are artistic lime-and-sand stucco images of Saraswati, Kushmandini, Padmavati, Chakreshwari, Jwalamalini, Sarvahna Yaksha, Brahma Yaksha, Saudharmendra, and other deities. On the upper floor is a Basadi built around the 1930s, containing an image of Lord Shri 1008 Parshvanatha Tirthankara.