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588
The Unknown Pilgrims
persuaded that she was sincere, knew very well what she was doing and was capable of following the path she had chosen, that in times past other cases also had been known of young persons being called to the ascetic life. Therefore, he enjoined the grandfather to oppose Dākhi's desire no longer, but to leave her free in the name of the dharma." Immediately the heavy silence was broken, cries of joy burst forth on all sides and the crowd became jubilant. Morever, at Pipāda, the preparations were resumed. There was, however, one shadow cast over the general rejoicing. When Dākhi wanted to receive the blessing of her grandfather, she could not find him, for he had fled to another village. Finally, after all these painful contretemps, the mother and the daughter received dikşā; Rūpāmadevi became Sādhvi Vijñāna Sri and Dākhi, Sādhvi Vicakṣaṇa Sri, vicakşaņa meaning the one who is clearsighted, wise, intelligent, who has discernment
Here are some of the replies given by Dākhi to those who were harassing her:
Her grandfather wanted her to attend the wedding-ceremony of a relative at Amarāvati, thinking that, once she was on the spot, he would come to some agreement with the bridegroom's family to convince her of the necessity of marriage. Now Dākhi, foreseeing this stratagem, refused to follow her mother to Amarāvati and remained with the sādhvis at Agarā. When the grandfather saw his daughter-in-law arriving unaccompanied, he despatched a telegram to the upăśraya saying that Dākhi's mother was very ill, that her daughter must come at once and he even sent a man to fetch her. Here again Dākhi suspected a ruse and very firmly declined to go with her grandfather's messenger and, having told him that all this was simply a scheme to lure her away and marry her off, she added: "I have no need of a mortal spouse; here (at the upăśraya) there is an immortal spouse who will never abandon me. Sadhvi Suvarana can set her seal to such a union."37 Later on, she was to use the same turn of speech to the magistrate: "...I have no desire for a mortal spouse, but for one who is not self-regarding and is immortal."38 In a Jaina context, where
37 Ibid., p. 54.
38
Ibid., p. 81.
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