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90 : Śramaņa, Vol. 64, No. 4, Oct.-Dec. 2013
that in the Navpada Oli pājā the yantra is made on the ground with sand grains, much like the method used to make the Tibetan Sand Mandalas. Jains then bring a wealth of offerings to yantra made from colored grains and also create their own offerings out of rice such as making a swāstika out of rice topped with three small piles of rice, a crescent moon, and an anuswāra or dot. This rice offering represents the four types of domains in the universe, the human, animal, heaven, and hell as the four squares in the swāstika, with the three piles representing the three jewels of right conduct, view, and knowledge, the crescent representing the abode of the Siddhas, and the Anuswāra as the Arhat.
The Siddhacakra should be seen as the most successful attempt to organize the worshipful objects of Jain devotion into a single yantra. However, this does not mean that it was the only attempt. There are other Jain yantras, which appear to aspire to the same goal. For example, below to the right is a sacred syllable symbol with each of it's lines representing the five worshipful beings alluded to in the Siddhacakra and Namokāra mantra. Right below this picture is another attempt to show the five worshipful beings alongside the Namokāra mantra. John Cort explains that even the mendicant is not dismissed from worshipping the five worshipful beings with an idol. While the mendicant does not make offerings to the five worshipful beings as the laity do towards the Siddhacakra, due to his lack of possessions, he nevertheless carries around with him five conch shells representing the five worshipful beings, who are also the main focus of the Siddhacakra and Namokāra mantra. These conch shells he wraps in a cloth and places atop a tripod made of three sticks whenever he lectures, begs, or does anything of religious importance. This tool used for the worship of the five supreme beings called a Sthāpanācārya, is among the only possessions a mendicant owns besides a fly whisp and a mouth cover. "' Below are other attempts at outlining the five worshipful beings in a visual representation.
