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F05 Story - Stories after Bhagwan Mahävir
04 - Udayan Mantri and His Sons - Ambad and Bähad
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 temple on the way to the main complex on the hill. That place is now mistakenly known as Päp Punya Ni Bäri (window of good and bad karma). At that time, there was a wooden temple on the hill. While Udayan was worshipping there, he saw a mouse take a lit wick in its mouth and roam about. Udayan recovered the wick from the mouse, but he realized that the temple could be set on fire by a mouse. He therefore vowed to construct a new temple there. He succeeded in his expedition against Sumvar, but he was badly wounded in combat, and his death was imminent. On his death bed he told his sons about his vow to reconstruct a new temple at Shatrunjay hill. They promised him that they would fulfill his vow. Thereafter, he died peacefully knowing his vow would be fulfilled. Ämbad and Bähad Udayan had four sons, named Ämbad, Bähad, Chähad, and Sollak. Ämbad was a poet and a bold warrior. He became the chancellor of King Kumärpäl. He constructed the western walkway on Shatrunjay hill, now known as Gheti Ni Päg. He expanded Udävasahi of Dholka and renovated the wellknown temple of Shakunikävihär at Bharuch. Ämbad had pledged his allegiance to Kumärpäl and served him with utmost sincerity and loyalty. When Kumärpäl's successor, King Ajaypal, came to the throne, he began to undo everything Kumärpäl had stood for. As a result, Ambad decided to resist him with all the means at his command. Ajaypäl sent troops to subdue him. Ambad, however, refused to be subdued and died fighting Ajaypäls troops. The second son, Bähad (also known as Vähad), was a politician and statesman. He first worked for King Siddharäj, and under King Kumärpäls regime he became the king's trusted right hand man. When Kumärpäl undertook the renovation of Somnath temple, the project was entrusted to Bähad, who carried out the work very well. In order to honor the pledge to his father, Bähad undertook the construction of a grand temple on Shatrunjay. The temple was completed in 1155 A.D., but soon after, portions of the temple fell down due to intense wind. Bähad then arranged to reconstruct the fallen parts so it could withstand high winds in the future. There is an interesting anecdote associated with the construction of that temple. When Bähad undertook the work, many people wanted to contribute to the project. A list of donors was prepared in order to accommodate them. At that time, there was a poor man named Bhim who earned his livelihood going from place to place selling ghee (refined butter). He went to the place where the list was being prepared. He had an intense desire to contribute to the project, but he had only one coin, the one he had earned that day. How could he speak about donating such a small amount when people were contributing thousands of coins? Bähad noticed his eagerness and called him to his side. He gently asked Bhim to contribute whatever he wanted. Naturally Bhim hesitated. However, he said that he wanted to contribute the coin he had earned that day. Bähad not only accepted the offer, but also wrote Bhim's name at the top of the donors' list. When he was asked to explain, Bähad said that the other donors, including him, had contributed a part of their wealth while Bhim had contributed his entire wealth. It so happened that when Bhim returned home, his wife asked him to fix a wooden post to restrain their cow. As he was digging, he came across a box buried in the ground. As he opened it, he saw that it contained gold coins and other valuables. He thought it was the consequence of his contribution to the temple and took the entire wealth to Bähad as his contribution to the temple. The construction project was completed in 1157 A.D. at a cost of 29.7 million coins, and the opening ceremony was performed on a grand scale in the presence of Shri Hemchandra Acharya.
Compendium of Jainism - 2015
Page 379 of 398
