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JAINISM IN MATHURA
are also mentioned. This lady Vasula had therefore an unusually long life. The kula of the monk Jayabhūti, Mahika, appears as Mehiya in the Theravali as a kula belonging to Vesavāḍiya gana, which according to it, was founded by Kāmiddhī, who also was a disciple of Suhastin. Bühler89 translates the term śreṣthin as 'alderman', which suggests that Veņi, the husband of Kumāramitā, was a very respectable resident of Mathura. Lüders,90 however takes it to mean a 'banker'. In any case, in ancient India a śreṣṭhin" was regarded as an important person and his position was definitely superior to that of an ordinary merchant or sārthavaha. The inscription of year 18 refers to a sarvatobhadrikā image and also mentions the Koliya gana and Vacchaliya kula. This particular kula is mentioned in the Theravali under Koliya gana as Vacchalijja. Another inscription" of the same date is more interesting since it yields the name of Ariṣṭanemi, the twenty-second Tīrthamkara. We have already observed, in connection with our discussion of Tīrthamkaras, that the cult of Tīrthamkaras originated a century or two after the demise of Mahāvīra. We will presently see that quite a few other Tīrthamkaras appear in the inscriptions of Mathura. The image inscription of year 19 is also important since another Tīrthamkara, Śāntinātha, is mentioned here. The Koliya gaṇa, Thāniya kula and Verī sākhā are also mentioned. The 'Veri' here is the same as 'Vairi'. The dedication of this image was made at the request of vācaka Mātṛdina, who was a pupil (sisya) of vacaka Baladina. The vacaka Mātṛdina also appears in an inscription of year 22 as we will soon see.
We have two inscriptions of year 20, the first of which records the dedication of an image of Vardhamana by the śravikā Dinā, daughter of Datila, wife of Matila, mother of Jagavala, Devadāsa, Nāgadina, and Nāgadina at the request of the vacaka Ārya Sanghasiha who belonged to Koliya gana, Sthāniya kula, Veri (Vairi) śākhā. The second inscription" of the same date records the dedication by Mitrā, the first wife of Haggudeva, daughter-in-law of the ironmonger (lohavaniya) Vādhara, daughter of the jeweller (mānikara) Khalamitta at the request of the vācaka Arya Siha, the pupil of the vacaka Arya Datta, who was the companion (śraddhacara) of the ganin Arya Pāla, who was the sisya (pupil) of Arya Ogha, who was the pupil of the great preacher (bṛhamtavācaka) whose name begins with ja and ends with mitra out of the Koliya gana Brahmadāsiya kula, and Ucenāgarī sākhā. An undated inscription98 contains the names of the monks Siha and the guru Datta mentioned in this inscription.
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