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28
Holy Abu
The Brahmins too were greatly delighted at obtaining such a huge price for their land.1
On this land, Vimala Saha erected a magnificent white marble shrine, beautiful with fine carvings, and having a sanctum, a gūḍhamaṇḍapa (front-hall), Navacokī (rectangular hall to front of gudhamaṇḍapa), Rangamaṇḍapa (main big pavilion or assembly hall in front of the latter) and fifty two cells around the courtyard, at a total cost of several millions of rupees 2 and called it Vimala-Vasahī. "
1 Some writers believe that circular coins were spread and to cover each space, another coin was placed over it.
2
The Jaina tradition is that in all 185300,000 rupees were spent in building this shrine.
The land occupied at present by Vimala Vasahi is 140 ft. long x 90 ft. broad. Now if one-inch-square gold Mohurs are spread over it, and if one such coin is calculated at Rs. 25/each, then 45360,000 would be spent on mere purchase of the area. Under the circumstances, the traditional figure of 185300,000 rupees spent by him is not an improbable one.
3 The Vimala-prabandha and such other texts say that when the construction was begun, a certain Vyantara (a demigod) named Väli-näha, attached to false-faith (i.e. non-Jaina, here Brahmanical) used to demolish by night, whatever was built everyday. This happened continuously for six months. Ultimately, Vimala Saha invoked Amblkā devi who appeared before the former at dead of night and said: "The Vyantara god, who molests you by destroying your work every night, is Väli-näha, the Kshetrapala (Superintending deity) of this area. So to-morrow at mid-night you should propitiate him with an offering of sweets, eatables, etc., and appease him whereat he would cease to do the mischief. Next night, the minister waited upon the god with these offerings, on the site of temple under construction. The god appeared in a terrific form and demanded offerings. The minister produced them before the deity but the latter wanted meat and wine and would not be
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