2003.7.1 Jina

Jainism was founded in the 6th century BCE by Vardhamana Mahavira, who preached a religion of peace, purity, and the conquest of desire. Like Buddhism in the same period, Jainism was an offspring of Hinduism. Its peaceful message still marks one of the great religions in India. This Tirthankara, or enlightened Jain holy figure, sits in the traditional pose of meditation. He is naked because the “sky-clad” followers of Jainism believe that clothing is a barrier between a person’s spirit and the realization of enlightenment.  On his chest is the sacred srivatsa mark, symbolizing transcendence.

"Jina," in Dallas Museum of Art: A Guide to the Collection, ed. Bonnie Pitman (Dallas: Dallas Museum of Art; New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2012), 104.

Apply to objects where number equals 2003.7.1