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Iconography of 24 Tirthankaras
While the Jina was in his mother's womb, the queen-mother had the pregnancy-wish of performing various religious acts (Dharmavidhi), so the Jina was named Dharma by the king. 172 Both the sects give the vajra (thunderbolt) as the cognizance of Dharmanatha. The Jina obtained kevalajñāna under a Dadhiparna (Clitorea ternatea) tree. The Uttarapurana however, against the rest of the Digambara texts, gives Saptacchada as the Caitya-tree.
Dharmanatha obtained nirvāņa on Mt. Sammeta. Arişța or Aristasena was his chief gaṇadhara; Suvrata was his chief aryika according to Tiloyapanṇatti and Uttarapuraṇa, Bhaviyappa according to Samavāyānga and Arthasivă as noted by Ramachandran. 173
Kinnara officiated as the yakṣa of this Jina according to both the sects (except the tradition represented by Tiloyapanṇatti which calls him Kimpuruşa). Manasi was the yakși according to most of the Digambara texts, Solasă (Sulasă) according to Tiloyapannatti and Kandarpå according to the Svetambara tradition.
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The third Cakravarti Maghavan and the fourth one known as Sanatkumāra lived one after the other during the tirtha-period of Dharmanatha. The latter Cakravarti had an extremely beautiful body and was therefore also known as one of the Kamadevas of Jaina traditions. Sanatkumāra was a popular figure with the Jaina Purāņas.
According to Jinaprabha sūri, a tīrtha of Dharmanatha existed at Raṇavahapura near Ayodhya where (the image of) Dharmanatha was honoured by a Näga.174
A metal image of this Jina, originally installed in the Santinatha-Caitya at Anahillapuri (modern Patan, N. Gujarat) in v.s. 1181 is now preserved in a Jaina shrine at Nadol, Rajasthan. There is a shrine dedicated to Dharmanatha at Radhanpur, N. Gujarat. At Radhanpur are also in worship shrines dedicated to Sitalanatha, Vimalanatha, Vāsupūjya, Sambhavanatha, Ajitanatha, Rṣabhanatha (Ādiśvara), Mahavira, Simandhara svāmi, Śantinatha, Neminatha, Cintamani Pārśvanatha, Sahasraphaṇā Pārsvanatha, Godi Pārśvanatha, Kalyāņa Pārśvanatha, and Kunthunatha. The Dharmanatha temple here is a Caturmukha (Caumukha) shrine.
In cell no. 1, Vimala Vasahi, Abu, was once installed a sculpture of Dharmanatha in samvat 1202= A.D. 1145. Only the simhasana now remains. The yakṣa on one end of the seat is two-armed showing the varada mudra and the citron and riding on the elephant. The yakşi on the other end is a four-armed Ambika with lion as vahana and showing the mango-bunch in three hands while holding with her left lower hand the child on her lap.
In the Shivpuri Museum (no. 10) is preserved a sculpture of Dharma obtained from Narwar, M.P. and assignable to c. 12th cent. A.D. D.B. Diskalkar has noticed a sculpture of this Jina in the Indore Museum. 175 A Dvi-múrtika sculpture of Dharmanatha and Santinātha from Karitalai is in the Raipur Museum, M.P.176
Caves 8 and 9 (Bārābhuji and Mahāvira Gumpha respectively), Khandagiri, Orissa, have figures of Dharmanatha with the vajra lanchana.177 In Karnataka in Śravana Belagola, Müdabidri and Venur sets we have sculptures of Dharmanatha.
16. SIXTEENTH TIRTHANKARA: SANTINĀTHA
Santinatha is one of the most popular of the Jaina Tirthankaras. He was born as the prince of king Viśvasena and queen Acira of Hastinapura, in the Bharani nakṣatra, having descended on this earth from the Sarvärthasiddhi Vimana.178 Golden in appearance, Santinatha had the deer as his cognizance, according to both the sects. Burgess, on the evidence of late Canarese dhyana-slokas, gives the tortoise as the lanchana but this tradition does not seem to have been either old or popular. 179
Because the Jina loved peace, Indra called him Santi at the end of the birth-bath ceremony, 180 According to Hemacandra, the Jina was so called by his father because epidemics, evils and miseries were destroyed in the land when the Jina was in his mother's womb.180 He obtained kevalajñāna while meditating under a Nandi tree (Cedrela toona). Cakrayudha was the leader of his ganadharas. Harisena was
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