Nav Smarana

Author(s): Vinod Kapashi
Publisher: Vinod Kapashi

Page 46

5. Fear of war 6. Fear of water (travelling by boat) 7. Fear of diseases 8. Fear of imprisonment
Both the above Smaranas have been composed by Mäntunga-ächärya. However, the types of fear mentioned in both these stotras are not the same. Seven of the eight fears are common to both Smaranas. However, the Bhaya-hara Stotra mentions the fear of thieves and robbers whereas, the Bhaktämara Stotra has mentioned the fear of imprisonment as the eighth.
There may be reasons for that. Both the stotras were composed at different time in different places. People's feelings always vary from place to place and from time to time. This may be the reason why different fears have been enumerated in the stotras.
We will examine few more stotras, which were not composed by the same poet but are more popular amongst Jains. The stotra called the Laghu Shanti mentions the following fears':
1. Water 2. Fire 3. Poison 4. Snakes 5. Bad planets 6. King 7. Disease 8. War 9. Demons (rakshasas) 10. Famine 11. Fierce, wild animals.
This stotra also states that Lord Shäntinätha destroys all bad spirits.
In another smarana called the Tijaypahutta?, which we have already explored, the following fears are mentioned:
1. Disease 2. Water 3. Fire 4. Tiger 5. Elephant 6. Thief 7. Enemies.
Here the stotra also says that all obstacles created by bad planets and bad spirits are destroyed by the worship of the Tirthankaras. In addition, in the penultimate verse of the Tijaypahutta, the poet says that fever; bad planets, bad spirits, etc. are destroyed on worshipping the Tijaypahutta- yantra and drinking the holy water of the yantra.
Verse No. 12 of Laghu-Shanti 2 Verse No. 4 of Tijaypahutta