What nation on earth could have maintained the semblance of civilization, the spirit or the customs of their forefathers, during so many centuries of… - James Tod

The lieutenants of Shihābu-d-din disturbed the close of Kumarapal’s reign; and his successor, Balo Muldeo, closed this dynasty in S. 1284 (A.D. 1228), when a new dynasty, called the Vaghela (descendants of Siddharaja) under Bīsaldeo, succeeded. The dilapidations from religious persecution were repaired; Somnath, renowned as Delphos of old, rose from its ruins, and the kingdom of the Balakaraes was attaining its pristine magnificence, when, under the fourth prince, Karandeva, the angel of destruction appeared in the shape of Alau-d-din, and the kingdom of Anhilwara was annihilated. The lieutenants of the Tatar despot of Delhi let loose the spirit of intolerance and avarice on the rich cities and fertile plains of Gujarat and Saurashtra. In contempt of their faith, the altar of an Islamite Darvesh was placed in contact with the shrine of Adinath, on the most accessible of their sacred mounts: the statues of Buddha [the Jain Tirthankaras] were thrown down, and the books containing the mysteries of their faith suffered the same fate as the Alexandrian library. The walls of Anhilwara were demolished; its foundations excavated, and again filled up with the fragments of their ancient temples.

I could have consumed a month in surveying the works of the princely merchant, but time pressed, and other objects of equal importance awaited me. Passing through a court, a flight of steps conducts to the rival temple, dedicated to Parswanat’h, the twenty-third and most popular of the Jineswars. This shrine was erected by the brothers Tej Pal and Bussunt Pal, likewise merchants of the Jain persuasion, who inhabited the city of Chandravati during the sway of Dharaburz, and when Bheem Deo was paramount sovereign of Western India. The design and execution of this shrine and all its accessories are on the model of the preceding, which, however, as a whole, it surpasses. It has more simple majesty, the fluted columns sustaining the munduff are loftier, and the vaulted interior is fully equal to the other in richness of sculpture, and superior to it in the execution, which is more free and in finer taste... It is impossible to give a distinct idea of the richness and variety of the bassi-relievi either of the principal dome or the minor ones which surround it. We must not, however, overlook a singular ornament pendant from the larger vault, the delineation of which defies the pen, and would tax to the utmost the pencil of the most patient artist. Although it has some analogy to the corbeille of a gothic cathedral, there is nothing in the most florid style of gothic architecture that can be compared with this in richness. Its form is cylindrical, about three feet in length, and where it drops from the ceiling, it appears like a cluster of the half-disclosed lotus, whose cups are so thin, so transparent, and so accurately wrought, that it fixes the eye in admiration….

NOVEMBER 29th – At length, I obtained a view of this, perhaps the most renowned of all the shrines of India, ‘the city’ par eminence, more reverentially styled Deva-Puttun, ‘the city of the god,’ or still more accurately, Deva-Pat’han, ‘the chief dwelling of the deity.’…As we approached, we crossed the Triveni, or three united streams, viz. the Vrijini, the Sarasvati (a name of the Hindu Minerva), and the Hiranya, or ‘golden.’…What a host of associations arose to one who had indulged the hope of making a pilgrimage to this the most celebrated shrine connected with Hindu and Mooslem history! Pressing on to the goal, I passed, with mingled prejudice and contempt, the place of sepulture of the Mooslem saint, Abbi-Sah, nor halted for breath, until within the “temple of the sun,” deserted, desecrated, a receptacle for kine, the pinnacle, to its spring from the cella, demolished, and the fragments strewing the ground. There is nothing of immensity, though there is great solidity, in the structure, which is of the order of sacred architecture called Sikra-bund, or ‘pinnacled,’ and with all the details of decoration laid down in the Silpi-sastra. The figures are bold in design, the attitudes of some striking, but the material, a coarse gritty sand-stone, does not give great scope or facility to the chisel; yet, as a whole, the edifice is imposing. The jambs and lintel of the entrance-door are of a well-polished yellow-coloured mineral, apparently jasper, though it may be that species of marble akin to the jaune antique. The munduff, or central dome, is not above sixteen feet in diameter, supported by strong, slightly ornamented columns, having a portico all round, terminated by square pilasters abutting from the external wall. Beyond the munduff, there is a domed vestibule, with pillars and pilasters, leading to the sanctum, where a globular patch of red paint, placed by the cowherds, is now the only symbol of the sun-god. The sovereigns of Nehrwalla had repaired the injuries done by Mahmoud, but the spire, again thrown down by the sanguinary Alla, has never been re-erected. North of the temple is the Surya-coonda, excavated from the solid rock. The descent to it is by a steep flight of narrow steps. The water is said to cure the diseases of both body and mind, the term of ablution and probation being one solar revolution, during which, not only faith, but good works must be manifested, in order to make the remedy efficacious…