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Cosmic and Purificatory Rite
repetitions, this last Part is limited in its scope to the rite, presenting the major sūtras, the pillars, as it were,3 and outlining the order of this rite as followed by the Sthanakavāsi sādhvis.4 No explanatory words can replace direct contact with the sutras as they are read, re-read, studied and meditated. They are rendered correspondingly more intelligible, the more one has already assimilated the doctrine they contain and grasped their importance for the sadhvis.
Before turning our attention to the more important sūtras and the over-all sequence of events within the rite, we may take note of a few facts concerning it, its special features and the structuring of this Part.
1. The rite
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Dharma-kryia, sacred action, ritual, is an integral part of worship. For the Jaina ascetics, the avaśyaka-vidhi is the embodiment of worship. As its name indicates, its performance is obligatory. Moreover, it is a community rite and is to be performed in a given place, the upāśraya or some other place of shelter, and at a specified hour, namely, before sunrise and at sunset or later. This place of worship is necessary for śṛamanis who are perpetual pilgrims on this earth, so that the moments consecrated to this rite are pauses in the
3 This subject which in itself is very vast would necessitate extensive treatment. Here, to preserve harmony with the other Parts, we limit ourselves to what is essential.
4 The principal differences between this rite and that observed by the Mūrtipūjaka sādhvis will be indicated. As for the rite followed by the āryikās, the rite of sāmāyika, which is peculiar to them, has already been given (P 662 ff.). As regards the other avaśyakas, the content of the principal sutras is identical, except for a few variants, to that of the sutras recited by the Svetambaras. The differences are confined to the secondary sutras and to the order followed.
5 Bhava-puja, the interiorised veneration of the tirthankaras, is one of the ingredients of bhakti; japa, the repetition of a mantra, is one of the ingredients of both bhakti and dhyana. These two spiritual activities are personal and not strictly obligatory. They express the essence of the worship but are not integral parts of the rite.
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