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Jaina Iconography-A brief Survey
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Cakres'vari, the yaksini of the first Tirthankara Rsabhanatha is also a later goddess, for in all earlier representations, atendating c. 900 A.D., it is Ambika who figures as the yaksini of Rsabhanatha and all other Tirthankaras (cf. the image installed by Jinabhadra Vacanacarya from the Akota Hoard. Her iconography shows close similarity with that of the Hindu Vaisnavi, Cakres'vari Yaksi invariably carries the Cakra and shows in the other arms, the conch, the varada mudra the disc. etc. Like Vaisnavi she rides on the eagle.
It is often difficult to differentiate between images of Cakres'vari the Yakshi and Cakres'vari or Apraticakri the Vidyadevi, if the goddess is not accompained by the figure of a Jina (either on her crown or above the pedestal). Apraticakra. the Vidyadevi is earlier in origin than the yaksi of the same type.
Siddhayika replaced Ambika as the Yaksi of Mahavira, during the process in which separate yaksas and yaksinis were evolved for each Jina. Though she is regarded as one of the four principal yaksinis, she could not become so popular as the other three yaksinis, namely Cakresvari, Padmavati and Ambika. In the sve. traditions, Siddhayika usually shows the book, the Vina, the abhaya or varada and citron in her four hands and rides the lion. In the Digambara tradition she shows the book and the varada or abhaya when two-armed. The lion is her vahana:
Alist of the later yaksas of the 24 Tirthankaras, according to the Svetambara and Digambara traditions, is attached herewith Space does not permit us to refer the iconographic pecularities of each of these deitties. It may however be noted that names of some of these yaksas are interesting. Gomukha, the cow-faced yaksa of Rsabhanatha has his parallel in Nandi or Nandikesvara, the mount and attendant of the Hindu Siva. There are Jaina yaksas like the Sanmukha-yaksa, the Brahmayaksa, the Catur-mukha-yaksa, the Is'vara-yaksa and so on which obviously betray later attempts to placate Hindu gods in Jaina worship.
Yaksa (S've):
Tirthankara:
1. Rsabhanatha
2. Ajitanatha
3. Sambhavanatna
4. Abhinandana.
5. Sumatinatha
6. Padmaprabha
7. Suparsvanatha
8: Csndraprabha
9. Suvidhinatha
10. Sitalanatha
Jain Education International
Gomukha
Mahayaksa
Trimukha
Yaksesvara or Isvara
Tumburu
Kusuma
Matanga
Vijaya
Ajita
Brahma or Brahmä
For Private & Personal Use Only
Yaksa (Dig.)
Gomukha Mahayaksa
Trimukha
Yaksesvara
Tumburu
Kusuma or Puspa
Matanga or Varanandi
Syama or Vijya
Ajita
Brahma or Brahmesvara
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