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The Belgolian Bahubali and Western Indian Notices
97
Perhaps the earliest Northern reference to Gommaţadeva of the Southern country is by the Digambara friar Madanakirti in his Sāsanacaturstrinsika (c. late 12th cent. A.D.) : Devo Daksina-Gommataḥ sa jayatad digvāsām sāsanam // 7 //
The next allusion is from the Svetāmbara side and is found in the Kalpapradipa of Jina prabha Süri of Kharatara gaccha' (early 14th cent. A. D.). In the “Caturśīti-mahātirtha-sa igraha-kalpa" inside the selfsame work, the Sūri includes “Gommaţadeva Bāhubali of the southern country": (Dakşiņāpathe Gomaţadevah Sri-Bahubaliḥ). As some indications are, Jainaprabha Sūri had gone as far as Urungal (mod. Warangal) in Andhradeśa on pilgrimage with Samarasimha, the renovator of the Satruñjaya hill Jaina temples, sometime early in the second quarter of the fourteenth century A. D. He does not seem to have visited SravanaBelagola but possibly records on the basis of what he then may have heard.
The earliest allusion in the late medieval period is by the Digambara monk Megharāja whose Tirtha-vandanā in Gujarati, a psalm pertainig to the Digambara Jaina tirthas, dates from the earlier part of the sixteenth century. Among the places to which he offers obeisance are those where images of Bahubali are located :
............ Gommatasvāmi Belguleë
Terapure Vaddhamā ne Poyanāpure vandu Bāhublië // 19 // The next allusion is in the Sarva-tirtha-vandanā by Jñānasāgara of the Nanditaţa-gaccha of the Kāşthā-sangha (c. 17th cent. A. D.). The author briefly alludes to the miraculous legend which tells as to how as a result of Cāmundaraya's austerities the image was revealed (when he) struck an arrow to the hill-top.10
One other Digambara monk, namely, Bhattāraka Somasena of the Sena Gaņa of the Müla Sangha (c. 1600-1640 A. D.) briefly alludes to Gomațasvāmi after mentioning the Bāvanna-gaja Jina (of Badvāni in Central India) in his Puşpāñjali-Jayamala."
So also refers Visvabhūşaņa of the Balātkāra Gana of the Mūla Sangha (c. the third quarter of the 17th cent. A. D.) to the 'Gomata-prabhu' of Karņāța : (Karnāte Gomata-prabhu sevyam....../48') in his Sarva-trailokya-jinālaya-jayamala."
Next in time we come across two significant notices from the Svetāmbara side. The first is the Tirthamala of Silavijaya of Tapagaccha V.S 1746/A. D. 1490. His account, unlike the former authors, is somewhat detailed. He refers to the annual abhişeka of Gommațasvami with 7800 pitchers of pañcāmsta and the splendid chariot procession of the Lord. He locates Sravana-Belagoļa some twelve košas from Srirangapattana near Mysore. Also he refers to the image of Bāhubali alias Gommațasvāmi who is at a (rough) estimate 60 ft. high, standing in käyotsarga-mudrā on the hill-top; the (Bahubali) tirtha he says was established by the Jaina Camundarāya. The Sūri also refers to the temples of Jina Vasupūjya
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