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order to drop my sorrow, let go of my illusions, and conquer my anger and pain. I want to know life's meaning. I want to know the truth.
He paid homage to Adinatha. His concentration remained intense, his mind clear, his heart open, as he continued to follow the winding path of roughly hewn stone slabs and from time to time, regular stone steps.
He hardly noticed the small square cells frequently appearing to his left and right, housing the paduka or sculptured footprints of certain Prophets. These miniature shrines were evidence of the devotion of those Jains unable to afford to build more grandiose sanctuaries, but who wanted nevertheless to express love to their beloved Prophets at this most holy of pilgrimage sites.
Pilgrims of all ages, all faiths, all castes made the ascent at their own pace. Children scurried on ahead of their parents. The elderly walked majestically along with wooden walking sticks. Those who were too weak to use their legs were carried in bamboo palanquins.
Halfway up the hill Rup stopped for a while near one of three halting places built for pilgrims along the way. From here he took in the vast sight of the gentle hills he had just climbed, as they seemed to melt into miles and miles of spacious flat countryside. Greens, oranges, and golden browns alternated as his eyes fell upon cultivated fields and wild grassy plains.
In the distance he could detect little clusters of villages hidden in areas protected by large shady trees. The Gulf of Khambhat and the town of Bhavnagar lay beyond his vision to the east. To the northwest and west, at the farthest point, he could see the six peaks of Mount Girnar, sacred to Jain and Hindu alike, and dedicated by the Jains to Lord Neminātha, the twenty-second Prophet, another exemplar of the life of non-violence. The Satruñjaya river curved its way to the south, until it met the Talaja and Khokara hills, where many ascetics and wanderers were known to have spent their days practicing meditation in its caves. Some day he too would be meditating in these caves.
By the time Rup reached the summit of Satrunjaya and entered the gateway to this gleaming white city of temples, he
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