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CHAPTER THREE
et cetera with devotion and kept him near like an honored guest. But they sent away other people because of their passionate nature 103 and they themselves attended to the refreshment of the sage. When he had given the herb of the knowledge of religion to them suffering from the disease of karma, with their consent after a long time the muni went to Aṣṭāpada.
They adopted layman's vows from contact with the muni for a long time and guarded them zealously, like poor people guarding money. One day Viramati was conducted by a messenger-deity to Aṣṭāpada in order to make her religion firm. What is not possible for those devoted to dharma? Seeing the images of the Arhats being worshipped there by gods and asuras, she attained joy like one emancipated in this birth. After she had paid homage to the twenty-four statues of the Arhats on Mt. Aṣṭāpada she went again to her own city, like a Khecari.
She ate twenty dry meals 104 for each Jina, concentrating her thought very firmly on religion from sight of the sacred place. Devoted, she had golden tilakas overlaid with jewels made for the twenty-four Arhats. One day she went to the top of Aṣṭāpada with her retinue and worshipped the twentyfour Arhats together with bathing. On the foreheads of the Arhats' statues she set golden tilakas like flowers of the śrivalli.105 By giving suitable gifts to the flying-ascetics and others who had come to the holy place, she created penance. Then like one who has done her duty, like one dancing in her mind, Viramati, intelligent, returned to her own town.
Then husband and wife, with separate bodies but one mind, as it were, passed some time, zealous in pious works. When their time was completed, discerning, they died in concentrated meditation and became a god and goddess, husband and wife, in heaven.
103 230. I.e., they had rajoguņa. 104 236. Acāmla. See I, n. 324. 105 239. Acacia (or Mimosa) concinna.
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