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Dr. Charlotte Krause: Her Life & Literature
gods are supposed to be, and therefore dispense with the fourth parts of stutis.).
Stutis of this description form part of the 'Pratikramaṇasūtra', i.e., the text of the daily ritual, of all the Śvetāmbara sects, since "Tīrthankara-vandana' is one of the six 'Avaśyakas', or indispensable daily duties of a Jaina. The first quarter of a stuti of the devotee's selection also forms part of the caityavandana ritual mentioned in a former chapter, representing the second of the two changeable recitation pieces of the pertinent liturgy.
Our present stuti is true to type with its four-fold eulogy, clearly presented in four exactly parallel Sragdhara stanzas.
One of its formal attractions is the skilful way in which onomatopoeia has been carried through therein, suggesting, in the first stanza, vocal, and in the second and third ones, instrumental music. Obviously, the poet intends this musical performance to illustrate the belief that when the Tīrthankara preaches in the 'samavasaraṇa', his voice is not only in itself distinguished by ‘upanītarāgatvam', i.e., possession of melody in the technical sense (one of its 35 stereotyped supernatural qualities ), but it is also harmoniously accompanied by celestial music, which devoted gods and genii continuously produce ( another of the stereotyped atisayas of the Tirthankaras )."
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The use of onomatopoeia in this way, though, is not unique. A famous Samskṛta stuti composed by the celebrated Saint and poet Jinakusala Sūri of the Kharatara Gaccha, who died in V.S. 1389, is composed according to the very same principle. I refer to the Pārṣvanātha-stuti179 beginning with the words 'Drem drem ki dhapa mapa', which, forming part of the Pākṣika Pratikramaṇa of the Kharatara Gaccha, is also known as the 'Pākṣika-stuti'." It is possible that our poet, whose name and whereabouts are not known, tried to emulate that popular piece of poetry and its fascinating tingle of sounds.
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Yet while Jinakuśala Suri's stuti is in honour of Pārsva
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