Kevalaodhi Buddhist And Jaina History Of Deccan Vol 2

Author(s): Aloka Parasher Sen, B Subrahmanyam, E Siva Nagi Reddy
Publisher: Bharatiya Kala Prakashan

Page 117

Sakti-cult in Jainism with special reference to Deccan
319
authors brought out their Tantra texts, like the Kālika-Purāņa and the Rudrayāmala. Thus, the Buddhists, the Jainas, the Saivaites and the Vaishnavaites developed their Tántric system during the medieval period. At the same time, women of tribal and untouchables communities were also accorded a place in the Tantric pantheon called as SAKTI and received worship.
Yaksha and Yakshi are technically known as SASANADEVATAS in the Jaina pantheon. They figure as subsidiary deities and were accorded the most venerable position next to the Tirthankaras. Their mention in the Harivamsa Purana (783 AD) marks the beginning of the concept of Sāsanadevatas. According to the Jaina tenets, Indra appointed a Yaksha and a Yakshi to serve as attendants upon every Tīrthankara. Thus, originally they were the attendants of the Tirthankaras. Gradually their position was elevated and most of them even attained the status of independent deities. There is literary as well as archaeological evidence to show that between the 10th and 13th centuries AD, the Yaksha Sarvānubhūti or Kubēra, Dharanēndra and the Yakshis Chakrēśvari, Ambikā, Padmāvathi and Jvālāmālini attained such a position in Jainism resulting in development of independent cults around them. The Yaksha and Yakshi pair became popular, as they are known to have both benign and malific aspects. As benign spirits they bestow happiness upon devotees fulfilling their desires: while as malefic sprits they bring about disaster. According to U.P. Shah, the Yaksha-Yakshi pairs appear for the first time in art in circa 6th century AD. The list of the 24 Yakşha-Yakshi pairs was finalized in about the 8th-9th centuries AD as found in the Khāhāvali, Tiloyapannatti and Pravachanasārõddhāra. The earliest Yaksha-Yakshi pair noticed in Jaina art was Sarvănubhūti and Ambika. Then come the figures of Dharančndra and Padmāvathi. The other Yaksha and Yakşhis were also carved in the 10th century AD.
It must be noted here that as independent sculptures, the depiction of the Yakshis was more popular than their male-counterparts. This was so because the Yakshi was considered as capable of bestowing children upon the childless and transmitting iron into gold. The Jvälini-Kalpa and the BhairavaPadmavathi-Kalpa" speak of the supernatural qualities of these deities. Thus originating as attendant spirits of the Tirthankaras and credited with occult powers, they were deified and worshipped as popular goddess. After the 10th century AD, the depiction of the Yakşhis became more frequent than their malecounter parts. The ritual respect enjoyed by the Yakşhis becomes evident, for, we come across several names like Padmāvathi-Yakka and Jvälānayya borne by people in the Andhra-Karnataka regions.
With this background, let us now take-up independent Yakshi sculptures for study. The Jainas appear to have been very liberal in assimilating the deities and other elements from Brāhmaṇical, Buddhist and folk-cults. But, at the same, they always maintained the supreme position of their Jinas. Sculptural evidence about the prevalence of the Yakshi Cult in Andhra is not available till the 9th-10th centuries AD. Among the independent Yakshi sculptures, Padmavathi, Ambikā, Chakrēsvari and Siddhayiki occur mostly in Andhra. The Sirur Inscription of Western Chalukya king Bhuvanaikamalla (Somēśvara II) dated Saka 995" describes Mahāsämanta Aggalarassar as a Sāsanadēvilabda-vara-prasada. A unique record of Tribhuvanamalla (Vikramāditya VI) found in Kolanupaka records the gift of the village Panuparru given by Mahāmandalēśvara Chālukya Ganga Permadikumara Somēśvara to the temple of Ambikā, the sāsanadēvi of the 22nd Tirthankara, Nēminātha in the year 1125 AD. Even today we can see the inscribed pillar and the ground plan of the temple built exclusively for Ambika. It is evident from the Rüpamandana of Sūtradhāramandana (c. 15th century AD) that Yakshi of Ādinātha, Pārsvanātha and Siddhayiki respectively in Jaina worship is evidenced by literary references and archaeological finds. The Kalpa-Pradipa (popularly known as Vividha-Tirtha-Kalpa) frequently refers to temples of Ambikā. The most important temples