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RITUALS
D09 - Yakshas and Yakshinis
right hands she carries a mango in one hand and in the other a branch of a mango tree. In one left hand she carries a rein and in the other she has her two sons. 03 Padmävati Devi She is the dedicated deity of Lord Pärshvanath, the 23Tirthankar. Her color is golden and her vehicle is a snake with a cock's head. She has four arms. Her two right hands hold a lotus and a rosary and two left hands hold a fruit and a rein. 04 Saraswati Devi
Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, is considered to be the source of all learning. Her divine energy is the source of spiritual light, eradicator of all ignorance and promoter of all knowledge. She is respected and adored by all faiths, worldly people and saints. She has four arms, one hand holding a book, one holding a rosary and two hands holding a musical instrument Veenä. Her seat is a lotus and the peacock is her vehicle representing equanimity in prosperity. In some books it is mentioned that the swan is her vehicle. 05 Lakshmi Devi Goddess Lakshmi represents wealth. The people worship her as the goddess of wealth, power, money etc. In her upper two hands, she holds a lotus with an elephant, in the lower right hand a rosary and in the lower left hand a pot. 06 Manibhadra Dev Shri Manibhadra is originally a Yaksha, worshipped by Indian masses since very olden times. His introduction to Jain worship is only a later adaptation. It is an image of a six_armed Yaksha with an elephant as his vehicle. 07 Ghantäkarna Vir
This deity is worshipped for protection and for driving away evil influence created by the malicious Yakshas and Yakshinis. His arrow indicates penetration of evil forces. The bow gives forceful momentum to the arrow. His symbol is the bell that resounds to create auspicious sounds in the atmosphere. Sometimes people who are not aware of the facts call him Ghantäkarna Mahävir by mistake. That creates confusion between Lord Mahävir and Ghantäkarna Vir. He is not connected to Lord Mahävir in any way. 08 Näkodä Bhairava This is the deity of Bhairava. This deity is usually found near the entrance of the temple. People from far and near visit the shrine and make offerings to the deity upon fulfillment of their material desires. It is a positive force around the temple. 09 Bhomiyäji This deity is in the shape of a mountain. It is the natural positive energy of the mountain Sametshikhar. This energy inspires and guides believers and the pilgrims in completing their pilgrimage of Sametshikhar peacefully.
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Compendium of Jainism - 2015
