In the centre of a stepped panel painting, a golden figure sits in the lotus posture of meditation – padmāsana – with a śrīvatsa on his chest. Either side are two worshippers fanning him with fly-whisks. Above him is a triple umbrella, which is a symbol of his royal status.

The golden figure is the last Jina, Mahāvīra, easily recognisable from the emblem of the lions below him.

In this manuscript the figure at the centre of the page recurs at the end of each chapter – sandhi. This is at the end of chapter 1. The text of the final colophon of the chapter starts on the last line of the page and continues on the next folio. It is emphasised by orange powder.

It reads:

iya siriJasahara[rāya, added in the lower margin]carie daya-lakkhaṇa-dhamma-bhāvaṇā-sarie siri-paṃḍiya-Rai[then next folio; 20 recto]dhū-viraie siri-mahābhavva-Hemarāja-ṇāmaṃkie Jasahara-uppatti-payāsaṇo paḍhamo saṃdhī pariccheo.

Thus ends the first chapter, describing the origin of Yaśodhara, in the story of Yaśodhara, devoted to reflection and doctrine, having the characteristic of compassion, which was composed by Pandit Raïdhū and is dedicated to the glorious Hemarāja.

The long protruding eye is a typical feature of western Indian painting. Its origin is unclear.

Other visual elements

This is a good example of an average manuscript. A red background is used for the painting but there is no use of gold, intricate design elements or elaborate script.

The bottom of the right margin contains the number 4, which is the folio number.

In the upper and lower margins there are syllables missing from the main text, or corrections. The number before them is the line number where they should be inserted.

Script

The script used for the main text is the Jaina Devanāgarī script. It is used for writing numerous Indian languages, here Apabhraṃśa Prakrit.