$JES 904 Compendium of Jainism (Jain Academic Bowl Manual 3rd Edition)

Author(s): JAINA Education Committee
Publisher: JAINA Education Committee

Page 374

F05 Story - Stories after Bhagwan Mahävir
03 - Temples of Delwädä
03 - Temples of Delwädä
Mount Abu is a beautiful town on a mountain in the state of Rajasthan. Within the town, there are two magnificent Jain temples, known as the Delwädä Temples. The carvings in both of these temples are breathtaking. The carvings in the marble ceilings of these temples are so minute and intricate that it is difficult to copy the design even on a piece of paper. These temples are regarded as "poetry in marble". Vimalshä built the first temple in the 11th century A.D. at a cost of 180 million rupees. The second temple, called Lunig Vasahi, was built by two brothers, Vastupäl and Tejpal, in the memory of their elder brother. This temple was built in the 13th century A.D. at a cost of 120 million rupees. The stories associated with the architects of these two temples are presented here. Vimalshä The Solanki dynasty was the golden period for the state of Gujarat in which the authority and prosperity of the state reached its peak. The credit for putting Gujarat in this position mainly goes to the king's chancellors and commanders, who were at the helm of affairs. It is interesting to know that many of the chancellors and some of the commanders of that period were Jains. Vimalsha was a very capable and outstanding commander in several respects. King Mulräj, the founder of the Solanki dynasty, had an advisor named Vir Mahattam. His wife's name was Virmati. They had three sons named Nedh, Vimal, and Chahil. While they were still very young, their father renounced worldly life and became a monk. Their mother then went to her parents' place and raised her sons with love and care. Nedh was very intelligent and grew up to be a wise, considerate youth. Vimal was bold and smart. He liked horseback riding and archery. He steadily gained expertise in those arts, and in due course turned out to be a well-known equestrian and an accomplished archer. As the sons grew older, their mother brought them back to the capital city of Pätan so that they could pursue a career of their choice. In line with their interests, Nedh joined the royal court and Vimal joined the army. Both of them quickly began to rise in the ranks and became known for their outstanding capabilities. Since Vimal in particular was handsome and brave, he impressed a multimillionaire of Pätan, who had a beautiful daughter named Shridevi. He thought Vimal would be a perfect husband for his daughter. Vimal agreed, and Shridevi and Vimal got married. Luck continued to favor both the brothers. During the reign of King Bhimdev, who came to the throne in 1021 A.D., Nedh became the chancellor and Vimal secured the position of commander. Vimal was fortunate to get a beautiful, loving wife and a high ranking military position at a relatively young age. Moreover, because of his amicable nature, he soon won the hearts of everyone and came to be known as Vimalshä. Some people at the court could not bear the good fortune of Vimalshä. They were jealous and began to look for his drawbacks. They noticed that Vimalshä would not bow to anyone, not even the king, before offering obeisance to the omniscient Jain Tirthankars. Thereupon, they started telling King Bhimdev that Vimalshä was arrogant due to his position and was not even willing to bow to the king. They said his ambition knew no bounds and he might even try to acquire the throne. Unfortunately, Bhimdev started to believe those courtiers and began to look at Vimalshä with suspicion. When Vimalshä learned of the disaffection of King Bhimdev, he decided to leave Pätan. Accordingly, he went to mount Abu (which was known as Chandraväti at that time) with his followers. There he learned that Dhandhuk, the chief of Chandraväti, was aspiring to become independent from the sovereign King Bhimdev. Vimalshä attacked him with the force at his command. Dhandhuk could not fight him and fled. Vimalshä thus occupied Chandraväti. He had no ambition to become the king and took possession of Chandravati in the name of King Bhimdev and considered himself the governor of the place. Vimalshä was now happily passing his days at Chandraväti with his wife. Shridevi was a very affectionate lady and made him happy in every respect. They had no children. Being religious minded, however, the couple considered it as the consequence of their unwholesome karma. Once, they happened to meet Dharmaghosh-suri, who was the well-known Jain Acharya of that time. Vimalshä regularly listened to his sermons, which made him even more religiously oriented.
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Compendium of Jainism - 2015