Vigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra Manuscript

Vigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra Manuscript

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The birth of a prince who is to become a jina is celebrated on the sixth night by a vigil during which offerings are made in thanksgiving of this auspicious event. The four seated noblewomen hold an offering or gift of a mirror and flowers. The diagonal markings indicate a horizon line, and the dark blue beyond indicates that it is night.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Vigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra ManuscriptVigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra ManuscriptVigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra ManuscriptVigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra ManuscriptVigil on the Sixth Night after Mahavira's Birth: Folio from a Kalpasutra Manuscript

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.