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śramaņa, Vol 59, No. 4/October-December 2008
anywhere else?' then by clairvoyant knowledge the master new the very highest pleasure of heaven and that pleasure of Anuttara heaven formerly enjoyed by himself. Then he thought that in this well of samsāra, jivas from their karma perform actions that are nothing more than coming and going like a jar on a water wheel. His mind was woven with threads of continuity of disgust with saṁsāra, then he called Lokāntika-gods who have nine divisions- Sārasvatas, Ādityas, Vahnis, Aruņas and Garditoyas, Tușitas, etc. 30 They requested him to establish a Dharmatirtha. The Lord left Nandanavana with a desire to be a wandering mendicant. He called his chief of administration, his sons. He expressed his desire to hand over the charge of the empire to Bharata. Though Bharata refused to be the king at first but ultimately agreed due to his obedience to his father. The Lord gave Bahubali and other sons the rest of the empire according to their capacity. Here we can remember that according to certain scholars Sanskrit name of Babylonia is Bahubalaniyaas some say the name Bhārata-varsa has come from Bharata. However Rşabhadeva started disposing of his worldly materials. The ceremony went on from dawn to dusk. This reminds us Harşavardhana's donation ceremony in every fifth year of his kingdom. Rşabhadeva put on heavenly beautiful dresses and ornaments. Everybody was eager to see him. He got into a palanquin. Bharata, Bāhubalī, & Marudevi, Sumangalā, Sunandā, Brāhmi, Sundari and other ladies and gentlemen followed him. It was a tearful see-off. He reached the garden Siddhārtha and giving up all ornaments put on a sacred and ordinary cloth (Devadūșya)). Then on the dark eighth of Caitra, the Moon being in conjunction with the constellation Uttarāṣadha, and the moment was the end of the day32. Rigorous austerity started from the garden of Siddhartha. He plucked four handfuls of hairs as if intending to give the remains of the sacrifice to the four quarters. After fasting for three days and making the namaskrti to the Siddhas, in the presence of gods, asuras and men, saying “I renounce all censurable activity, the son of Nābhi adopted good conduct which is like a chariot on the road to Moksa. Four thousand wealthy people
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