Encyclopaedia of Jaina Studies Vol 01 Jaina Art and Architecture

Author(s): Sagarmal Jain, Others
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 423

Yasodhara-Carita
401
forthwith asked his men to search a human pair.
At the same time, the Jaina monk Sudatta arrived in the city of Rajapura with his samgha . In the samgha there were two kşullakas- Abhayaruci and his twin sister Abhayamatí who went for alms in the city. Abhayaruci and Abhayamats were captured by the soldiers of king Haridatta and were brought to the goddess Candamārī's temple as the human pair for sacrifice. In the temple the kşullakas blessed the king and impressed the king with their speech. The king asked them the reason for accepting ascetic vows. Abhayaruci recounted the story of king Yasodhara who ruled the land of Avanti with its capital Ujjaini. He married to princess Candramati and has a son named Yasodhara. Kşullaka Abhayamati told that he was the prince Yasodhara in one of his previous births. The king, appointing prince Yaśodhara as his successor, decided to renounce the world spending rest of his life in search of spiritual peace.
Prince Yasodhara preferred to pass his time with his queens in place of taking interest in state affairs. Yasodhara's favourite queen Amstamati fell in love with a singer and began to visit him at night. One night king Yasodhara saw her with her lover and in despair wished to die telling her mother the reason of a bad dream. His mother suggested him for a sacrifice of a cock in the temple of gooddess Candamāri to counteract the effects of the evil dream. Yaíodhara refused to associate him with violence giving the sacrifice of a cock but agreed to his mother's proposal that in place of a live bird a cock made of flour may serve the purpose. Accordingly, king Yaśodhara and queen Candramati went to the temple and offered the sacrifice of a cock made of flour.
King Yasodhara could not rid himself of a sense of revulsion and decided to renounce the world for spiritual peace giving the responsibility of state to his son, Yasomati. Queen Amrtamati urged her husband and his mother for a feast in her pavilion and wished to accompany her husband to the forest. In the feast
Amritmati served the poisoned food to her husband and his mother. As a result both of them died and underwent several rebirths.
In his first rebirth Yasodhara was born as a peacock. One day, while he was out for food with his mother a hunter killed his mother and took him home. Yasodhara grew into a beautiful bird and was presented by the hunter to the king. The king was Yasodhara's son Yasomati. Meanwhile, Yasodhara's mother, Candramati was born as a dog in Yasomati's palace. One day the dog spied the queen Candramati with her lover and recalling his past birth attacked them in anger.
In the next rebirth, Yasodhara appeared as a snake and Candramatī as a porcupine. Both met death in the forest. In their third rebirth, Ysodhara was born as a large fish and his mother as a crocodile (Pl. 284). Once the crocodile caught the leg of a maid from the palace who came to bathe in the river Siprā. As a result Yasomati ordered to kill the crocodile, and the fish was caught and cooked in the royal kitchen and served to the king.
In the fourth rebirth, Candramati was born as a wild goat and Yasodhara as her male offspring (Pl. 285). Yasodhara was killed by a hunter and his soul took the forms of embryo in the womb of Candramati. Candramatī was brought to the palace of Yaśomati to be slaughtered in the śrāddha ceremony. Candramati's soul reincarnated as a buffalo. Once the buffalo wallowed in the water of a pond where came down a horse to quench his thirst. The buffalo killed the horse in fight and on the complaint of the horse owner the king ordered to roast the buffalo alive.
In the next rebirth Yasodhara and Candramati were born as a cock and hen and were presented by a Bhila woman to king Yasomatī. One day, when the birds' incharge was attending the birds in the royal garden a Jaina monk came to give a discourse. The teachings of the monk caused the birds to recall their past lives and they began to cry. The king Yašomati was celebrating the spring festival in the garden with
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