{"id":3610,"date":"2022-01-12T17:45:23","date_gmt":"2022-01-12T22:45:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/thepreservationlab\/?p=3610"},"modified":"2026-02-09T13:10:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T18:10:46","slug":"kalpa-sutra-a-conservators-introduction-to-an-indian-religious-text","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/libapps.libraries.uc.edu\/thepreservationlab\/2022\/01\/kalpa-sutra-a-conservators-introduction-to-an-indian-religious-text","title":{"rendered":"Kalpa-s\u016btra: A Conservator\u2019s Introduction to an Indian Religious Text"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In 2017, an Indian religious text known as a Kalpa-s\u016btra <\/em>entered the lab<\/a> in desperate need for improved storage.  Being unfamiliar with this type of religious manuscript I jotted down notes in preparation for housing the item and came up with a basic housing solution.  I briefly familiarized myself with terminology, format, and condition needs.  This is a summary of those findings with links to resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Kalpa-s\u016btra:<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Kalpa-s\u016btra:<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Cincinnati and Hamilton County Public Library sent their Kalpa-s\u016btra to the Preservation Lab to receive improved storage.  The original storage enclosure was not archival and did not properly fit the manuscript.  This left the manuscript vulnerable to damage.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kalpa-s\u016btra<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kalpa-s\u016btra translates to \u201cthe Book of Ritual\u201d that was meant to be read daily.  It follows a 3-part textural structure.  The first part consists of the \u2018Lives of the Jinas (an enlightened human being)\u2019 and describes the lives of well-known figures.  The second section, known as the \u2018String of Elders\u2019 celebrates early teachers of Jainism.  And the final section, referred to as the \u2018Right Monastic Conduct,\u2019 provides rules to follow during the rainy time of year.  The \u2018rainy season,\u2019 as it is often referred to, is a time of year when the festival of Paryusan is celebrated and the Kalpa-sutra is heavily used. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jainism<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jainism is an Indian religion that shares similarities to Buddhism and Hinduism, but is regarded as a separate religion. It\u2019s believed to have originated in the 7th<\/sup> \u2013 5th<\/sup> century BCE in the Ganges basin of Eastern India.  Jains believe in karma, reincarnation and practicing non-violence to all living creatures.  While learning more, I appreciated this article<\/a> that described the Jain\u2019s thoughtful practice of non-violence by explaining how Jains eat above-ground veggies but avoid eating roots of vegetables so as not to kill the plant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Format<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier Kalpa-s\u016btra <\/em>were written on palm leaves and stored in between decorated wooden covers.  They were bound with rope or cord through holes punched in the center of the leaves and are read by flipping the leaves up, from bottom to top.  To see an example of a palm leaf book, check out this one<\/a> housed by the Preservation Lab in 2016. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Later Kalpa-s\u016btra, such as <\/em>this one owned and digitized by the Public Library<\/a>, <\/em>were written on paper beginning in the 14th<\/sup> century but still follow the same horizontal single-sheet format of the palm leaf.  Often they were hand colored, illuminated in gold, and written in a black ink calligraphic style on laid handmade paper.  Like many others, the Public Library\u2019s manuscript contains 135 individual loose leaves that have never been bound.  The leaves, also referred to as folios, were traditionally written on both sides with seven lines of text. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about formats of Jain manuscripts please refer to Jainpedia.org<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Decorative Themes<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Public Library\u2019s manuscript<\/a> is a good example of a traditional paper Kalpa-s\u016btra manuscript.  Its decoration consists of left and right margin lines, and decorative diamond-shaped marks that interrupt the text.  The diamonds (often found as circles in other manuscripts) descend directly from the tradition of punching holes in palm leaf books for binding.  They are located in similar locations to palm leaf holes and are predetermined when the text is written.  On the recto of leaves there are three gold decorative diamonds, one located in the center and one each along the right and left margins. (The V&A refers<\/a> to these decorations as \u201ccentral and marginal string holes that are not pierced.\u201d) The verso of leaves contain only one decorative diamond in the center. The religious manuscript is paginated on the recto in both calligraphy and graphite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kalpa-s\u016btra:
The three diamond shaped decorations descend from the tradition of punching holes in palm leaf books for binding.  Palm leaf books were bound with strands of cord.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Miniature block illuminations are found sporadically throughout the text. The Public Library manuscript appears to resemble similar illumination imagery and of the 15th<\/sup> century Kalpa-sutra owned by the British Library, available online here where you can read about the context behind the illuminated images<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Public Library illuminations consist of red and blue opaque watercolor and gold illumination.  The very base of the paintings are a thin open weave cloth attached directly to the handmade paper.  On some leaves, you can see where this thin cloth is folded over onto the other side of the leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Kalpa-s\u016btra:
Purple arrows point to a cloth that is wrapped around from the front of the manuscript folio.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about how to read a Kalpa-s\u016btra<\/em> please see https:\/\/jainpedia.org\/resources\/how-to-read-a-jain-manuscript\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manuscript Holders<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my research, I tried to understand how paper Kalpa-s\u016btra were traditionally stored. It is noted on Jainpedia.org that Jain manuscripts appear to have been stored within decorated covers of paper, cloth, and wood.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

From what I can gather by surveying a collection of digitized manuscripts, loose sheets appear to have been stored within chemise-like covers, sometimes with multiple flaps, such as this one from the British Library (Or. 13950) and <\/em>Gamma 453 where a loose manuscript is stored within a cloth cover:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n