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UDAYAN MANTRI AND HIS SONS
Shrävikä Lachchhi helping a Jain Shravak
His loyalty to the king was unquestionable. He hesitated to help Kumärpäl who was roaming from town to town hiding from King Siddharäj. However, when Kumärpäl came to Khambhät in search of shelter, Hemchandra Ächärya advised Udayan to help him. Since Udayan highly respected the Acharya, he agreed to hide Kumärpäl in his basement. Shortly thereafter, king Siddharäj died and Kumärpäl became king of Gujarat. King Kumärpäl kept Udayan in his position as governor of Khambhät and later brought him to Pätan (capital city of Gujarat) to work as his trusted advisor.
Udayan had not forgotten how religion had helped him during his bad times. He therefore used his wealth and position to promote Jainism. As a token of his devotion to the faith, he constructed several Jain temples. Three of them are recorded in Jain history. One was the temple known as Udayanvihär in Karnävati, another was Udävasahi in Dholkä (near by town of Karnävati), and the third one whose name is not recorded was in Khambhät.
During the later part of Udayan's life, Kumärpäl sent him to subdue Sumvar, a notorious bandit in the Saurashtra region. In that mission, he had to pass through Palitänä. He decided to go on a pilgrimage to Shatrunjay hill. To commemorate the pilgrimage, his statue has been erected on a camel's back in a small
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