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Svayambhūstotra
vigorous dance movements, she stopped, and the next instant her form 'dissolved' and was no more! Nīlānjanā was dead. The incident reminded the assembly that the life is transient and the time on hand needs to be utilized sublimely. The fire that had been smouldering in the heart of the Lord now leaped into a flame. He turned His back to worldly pursuits, pleasures and enjoyments, and stepped on to the path of asceticism that leads one to Eternal Bliss, free from worldly cycle of births and deaths. Lord Rṣabhanatha spent almost 1000 years (chadmasthakāla) performing karma-destroying austerities, and then attained the all-embracing knowledge - Omniscience (kevalajñāna) – that reveals the whole of the universe to its possessor. The World Teacher became truly qualified to expound the reality of substances, souls and non-souls. A heavenly Pavilion (samavasarana) was erected for His Discourse Divine under instruction of the lord of the first heaven. As an Omniscient (kevalī) he preached Truth, for 1 lakh pūrva less 1000 years (kevalakala), for the benefit of all bhavya - capable of attaining liberation - souls, present and future.
The Lord's Teachings, comprising 12 departments (dvādaśānga), were truly comprehended and assimilated by exceptionally accomplished disciples or Apostles (ganadhara), the Chief among them being sage Rṣabhasena Svāmi. The Apostles propagate Truth as expounded by the Lord and through their worthy disciples it gets passed on to innumerable bhavya souls through the ages.
The time period of Lord's renunciation (samyamakāla) was 1 lakh purva (chadmasthakala + kevalakāla).
Lord Rṣabhanatha attained liberation (nirvana) from Mount Kailāśa on the fourteenth day of the dark half of the month of Maghamagha kriṣṇa caturdaśī when 3 years and 82 months were remaining for the start of the fourth period (duṣamā-suṣamā) of the present descending (avasarpini) half-cycle.
I bow to Lord Rṣabhanatha so that I may realize His perfection par excellence.
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