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[ Holy Abu
The upper panel shows the Jina Munisuvrata seated in a miniature shrine in the centre; to the right is a shrāvaka standing with a folded hands, to his left is a shrāvikā standing with offerings in her hand. Near the top of this central shrine are carved two celestial garland-bearers on two sides. To the left of the attendant shrāvikā is a smaller shrine with foot-prints installed in it, beyond which, at the left end of this panel is a horse standing, obviously the horse who was imparted right knowledge by Munisuvrata svāmī.? The male standing beside the horse may either be
Once upon a time, Sudarshanā saw the very monk who had recited the navakāra-mantra before her in her past existence, and piously offered her devotion to the sage. The āchārya also recognised the kite reborn as a princess and gave her instruction in the practice of the Jaina faith. She was asked to spend money and energy in acts of piety and charity. The princess repaired the old shrine of Ashvavabodha-tirtha, erected twenty-four cells dedicated to the worship of the twenty-four Jinas, and built rest-houses, alms-houses, hospitals, schools and such other charitable institutions. Spending all her wealth in the seven ways ( sapta-kshetra ) prescribed for a Jaina layman or woman, she ultimately fasted herself to death ( a very pious act and an ideal death prescribed for the Jainas) and was reborn in the heavens. Thenceforth, the tirtha at Bharukachchha came to be known as the Ashvăvabodha-and the Shakunikā vihāra-tirtha. Amrabhața, the younger son of Udayana (a minister of the Chalukyan ruler Kumārapāla of Pāțaņ) again repaired this holy shrine of old. It is said that the consecration ceremony after these repairs was performed by the celebrated ächārya Hemacandra (for further details see, Ash vāvabodha-kalpa in the Vividha-Tirtha-kalpa of Jinaprabha sūri). . 1 The theme of Ashvavabodha and Shakunikā-vihāra
seems to have become more popular in art in Jaina shrines, after the repairs done by this Amrabhata or Ambada referred
