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S.P. PADMAPRASAD: JAIN FOLK SONGSANDLEGENDS OF KARNATAKA
2. Work songs
Songs sung while doing work or the other are called-work songs. These are of various types like—household works, agricultural works etc.
While skimming the curds into buttermilk and taking out butter one shrāvakī sings a song recollecting siddha Bhagavān. She sings like this
*Recollecting siddha I dipped the skimming rod And by his grace came up the fresh butter in the butter milk/ 3. On children
A childless woman prays Jaina Yakshis to bless her with children:
'Akka Padmāvati, Tangi Sarasvati makkala tāyi jvalini/kushumāndyammā makkala phalava kodi namagés
It means, “oh goddess Padmāvati, Saraswati, Jvalāmālini, Kuşmāņdini-mothers of children, give us the boon of children’.
Here, Sarasvati is the speech of Tirthankara-according to the Jains. According to Hindus she is the goddess of knowledge. Other three goddesses are the Yakshis worshipped in Jaina tradition. Especially Kuşmāndinī or Ambikā Yakshi is dīpicted as carrying a child on her lap. Hence here the shrāvakī (Jain housewife) prays these goddesses to bless her with a child.
A mother describes the devotion of her son towards Jaina and says he, naughtier than all other children, climbed up the Champak tree, plucked flowers and made a boquet of flowers for Jina.
Ella makkalingintha pundugära namakanda kenda sampigeya mara yeri/Hoovane koidu chendu kattidanū jinarige//
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