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JAINA MANUSCRIPTS
157
of Tondaimandalam, the reference to Yakshi Dharmadevi is of socio-cultural interest. Infact, a separate shrine for the same yakshi finds a place within the Kunthunatha temple complex and it receives special worship on all Sundays.
The popularity of another Yakshi cult is also known from Ponnur (Svarnapura) near Vandiwash. The local Jaina temple of Kanakamalai Alvar which flourished in the Pandya and Vijayanagar periods had been a centre of Yakshi worship, especially Jvalamalini whose cult was popularized by one Helacharya. It has been pointed out that Helacharya probably belonged to the 9th century A.D. His teachings were later on codified by one Indranandi Yogindar in his work Jvalamalini Kalpa (ARE: 1928-29, pt II, para 73&74). Another important centre in Andhra Pradesh figuring in two manuscripts (Ms no 199 and 217) was also the seat of the cult of Jvalamalini.
A discussion on myths relating to Yakshi cult will not be out of context here. Yakshis were folk deities in the early peninsular India and they got introduced in Jaina pantheon as attendant deities of Tirthankaras. They gained prominent position from the seventh century A.D. Through the ages myths developed around the worship of Yakshis, particularly Ambika and Jvalamalini yakshis. Ambika, the most popularly worshipped yakshi of the Digambara faith is the attendant deity of Neminatha, the 22nd Tirthankara. Kannada myths connected with her came to be localized and associated with Tirumalai in Polur taluk. Tradition goes that Ambika Yakshi of Tirumalai uninterruptedly fed as many as 8000 monks when there was a large scale migration of Jaina monks from North India to South India. It has been opined that this myth had taken place consequent to the
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