Neminatha
Neminatha | |
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22nd Tirthankara | |
Member of Tirthankara, Salakapurusa, Arihant and Siddha | |
Other names | Nemi, Nem |
Venerated in | Jainism |
Predecessor | Naminatha |
Successor | Parshvanatha |
Symbol | Shankha (conch) [1] |
Height | 10 bows – 98 feet (30 m)[2] |
Age | 1000 |
Color | Black |
Gender | Male |
Personal information | |
Born | Ariṣṭanemi |
Died | |
Parents |
|
Dynasty | Yadu clan [3][4] |
Part of a series on |
Jainism |
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Neminātha (
Neminatha, when heard the cries of animals being killed for his marriage feast, freed the animals and renounced his worldly life and became a Jain ascetic. The representatives of this event are popular in
Along with
Nomenclature
The name Neminatha consists of two Sanskrit words, Nemi which means "rim, felly of a wheel" or alternatively "thunderbolt",[5] and natha which means "lord, patron, protector".[6]
According to the Jain text
In
Life
Neminatha was the twenty-second Tirthankara (ford-maker) of the avasarpiṇī (present descending cycle of Jain cosmology).[12][13][14] Jain tradition place him as a contemporary of Krishna, the ninth and last vasudev.[15] There was a gap of 581,750 years between the Neminatha and his predecessor, Naminatha as per traditional beliefs.[16][11] He lived approx. 81,000 years before the 23rd Tirthankara, Parshvanatha as per the Trishashtishalakapursusha Charitra of Acharya Hemachandra.[16]
Birth
Neminatha is mentioned as the youngest son of king
Life before renunciation
He is believed to have been born with a dark-blue skin complexion,[22] a very handsome but shy young man.[4][17] His father is mentioned as the brother of Vasudeva, Krishna's father, therefore he is mentioned as the cousin of Bhagwan SriKrishna in Trishashti-salaka-purusha-charitra.[12][23][21][24][25][26] Sculptures found in Kankali Tila, Mathura of Kushana period depicts Krishna and Balarama as cousins of Neminatha.[27]
In one of the legends, on being taunted by Satyabhama, wife of Krishna, Neminatha is depicted to have blown Panchajanya, the mighty conch of Krishna through his nostrils. According to the texts, no one could lift the conch except Krishna, let alone blow it.[28][17] After this event, the Harivaṃśapurāṇa, as composed by Acharya Jinasena, states that Krishna decided to test Neminatha's strength and challenged him for a friendly duel. Neminatha, being a Tirthankara, is believed to have defeated Krishna easily.[29] He is also mentioned as spinning a great Chakra with the right leg toe during his childhood.[17]
As a teacher
In the war between Krishna and Jarasandha, Neminatha is believed to have participated alongside Krishna.[30] This is believed to be the reason for celebrating Krishna-related festivals in Jainism and for intermingling with Hindus, who worship Krishna as one of the incarnations of Vishnu.[31]
Renunciation
Jain tradition holds that the Neminatha's marriage was arranged with Rajulakumari or Rajimati or Rajamati, daughter of Ugrasena.[28][17] Ugrasena is believed to be the king of Dvārakā and maternal grandfather of Krishna.[17] He is believed to have heard animal cries as they were being slaughtered for the marriage feast. Taken over by sorrow and distress at the sight, he is believed to have given up the desire of getting married, and to have become a monk and gone to Mount Girnar.[12][33][34][24][11] His bride-to-be Rajulakumari is believed to have followed him, becoming a nun and his brother Rahanemi became a monk, joining his ascetic order.[17][25][28]
According to Kalpasutras, Neminatha led an ascetic life thereby eating only once every three days,[35] meditated for 55 days and then obtained omniscience on Mount Raivataka, under a Mahavenu tree.[22]
Disciples
According to Jain texts Neminatha had 11 Gandhara with Varadatta Svami as the leader of the Neminatha disciples.[36] Neminatha's sangha (religious order) consisted of 18,000 sadhus (male monks) and 44,000 sadhvis (female monks) as per the mentions in Kalpa Sutra.[37]
Nirvana
He is said to have lived 1,000 years
The
Legacy
Worship
Along with Mahavira, Parshvanatha and Rishabhanatha, Neminatha is one of the twenty-four Tirthankaras who attract the most devotional worship among the Jains.[40] Unlike the last two tirthankaras, historians consider Neminatha and all other tirthankaras to be legendary characters.[12] Scenes from Neminatha's life are popular in Jain art.[36] Jinastotrāņi is a collection of hymn dedicated to Neminatha along with Munisuvrata, Chandraprabha, Shantinatha, Mahavira, Parshvanatha and Rishabhanatha.[41]
The
Samantabhadra's Svayambhustotra praises the twenty-four tirthankaras, and its eight shlokas (songs) adore Shantinatha.[42] One such shloka reads:
O Worshipful Lord! Endowed with supreme accomplishments, you had burnt the karmic fuel with the help of pure concentration; your eyes were broad as open water-lilies. You were the chief of the Hari dynasty and had promulgated the unblemished tradition of reverence, and control of the senses. You were an ocean of right conduct, and ageless. O Most Excellent Lord Ariṣṭanemi! After illuminating the world (the universe and the non-universe) through powerful ways of omniscience, you had attained liberation
— Svayambhūstotra (22-1-121)[43]
Literature
The Jain traditions about Neminatha are incorporated in the Harivamsa Purana of Jinasena.[44][45] A palm leaf manuscript on the life of Neminatha, named Neminatha-Charitra, was written in 1198-1142 AD. It is now preserved in Shantinatha Bhandara, Khambhat.[46] The incident where Neminatha is depicted as blowing Krishna's mighty conch is given in Kalpa Sūtra.[9]
Rajul's love for Neminatha is described in the Rajal-Barahmasa (an early 14th-century poem of Vijayachandrasuri).[47] The separation of Rajul and Neminatha has been a popular theme among Jain poets who composed Gujarati fagus, a poetry genre. Some examples are Neminatha Fagu (1344) by Rajshekhar, Neminatha Fagu (1375) by Jayashekhar and Rangasagara Neminatha Fagu (1400) by Somsundar. The poem Neminatha Chatushpadika (1269) by Vinaychandra depicted the same story.[48][49][50][51][52]
Arddha Nemi, the "Unfinished Life of Nemi", is an incomplete epic by
Neminatha, along with Rishbhanatha and the Śramaṇa tradition, has been mentioned in the Rigveda. Neminatha is also referred to in Yajurveda.[56][57]
Iconography
Neminatha is believed to have had the same dark-bluish-colored skin as Krishna.
The earliest known image of Neminatha was found in Kankali Tila dating back to c. 18 CE.[61]
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Neminatha Jain statue (c. 475 CE), in Buddha style from Shreyansh giri
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Neminatha, Nasik Caves, 6th century
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Akota Bronzes, MET museum, 7th century
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Neminath Sculpture,National Museum, New Delhi, 11th Century
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Image at Maharaja Chhatrasal Museum, 12th century
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Neminath idol, Government Museum, Mathura, 12th Century
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Depiction of Neminatha on Naag as bed, chakra on foot finger and conch played by nose at Parshvanath temple, Tijara
Temples
Neminatha is one of the five most devotionally revered Tirthankaras, along with Mahavira, Rishabhanatha, Parshvanatha and Shantinatha.
Luna Vasahi in
Important Neminatha temple complexes include
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Brahma Jinalaya
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Bhand Dewal, Arang
See also
References
Citations
- ^ Tandon 2002, p. 45.
- ^ Sarasvati 1970, p. 444.
- ^ a b von Glasenapp 1925, p. 317.
- ^ a b c Doniger 1993, p. 225.
- ^ Monier Williams, p. 569.
- ^ Monier Williams, p. 534.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, pp. 164–165.
- ^ a b Jain & Fischer 1978, p. 17.
- ^ Zimmer 1953, p. 225.
- ^ a b c von Glasenapp 1925, pp. 317–318.
- ^ a b c d e "Arishtanemi: Jaina saint". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- ^ Zimmer 1953, p. 224.
- ^ a b Tukol 1980, p. 31.
- ^ a b c Natubhai Shah 2004, p. 23.
- ^ a b Zimmer 1953, p. 226.
- ^ a b c d e f g Natubhai Shah 2004, p. 24.
- ^ Dhere 2011, pp. 193–196.
- ^ Upinder Singh 2008, p. 313.
- ^ Cort 2001, p. 23.
- ^ a b Jain & Fischer 1978, pp. 16–17.
- ^ a b Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 164.
- ^ Johnson 1931, pp. 1–266.
- ^ a b Umakant P. Shah 1987, pp. 165–166.
- ^ a b c Sangave 2001, p. 104.
- ^ Gaur 1976, p. 46.
- ^ Vyas 1995, p. 19.
- ^ a b c von Glasenapp 1925, p. 318.
- ^ Doniger 1993, p. 226.
- ^ Beck 2012, p. 156.
- ^ Long 2009, p. 42.
- ^ Natubhai Shah 2004, pp. 23–24.
- ^ Sehdev Kumar 2001, pp. 143–145.
- ^ Kailash Chand Jain 1991, p. 7.
- ^ a b Jones & Ryan 2006, p. 311.
- ^ a b c d e f Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 165.
- ^ Cort 2001, p. 47.
- ^ Melton & Baumann 2010, p. 1551.
- ^ Natubhai Shah 2004, p. 25.
- ^ a b Dundas 2002, p. 40.
- ^ Lienhard 1984, p. 137.
- ^ Jain 2015, pp. 150–155.
- ^ Jain 2015, pp. 150–151.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 239.
- ^ Upinder Singh 2016, p. 26.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 253.
- ^ Kelting 2009, p. 117.
- ^ Amaresh Datta 1988, p. 1258.
- ^ K. K. Shastree 2002, pp. 56–57.
- ^ Nagendra 1988, pp. 282–283.
- ^ Jhaveri 1978, pp. 14, 242–243.
- ^ Parul Shah 1983, pp. 134–156.
- ^ Rice 1982, p. 43.
- ^ Sastri 2002, pp. 358–359.
- ^ Acharya Charantirtha 1973, p. 47.
- ^ Natubhai Shah 2004, p. 269.
- ^ Reddy 2023, p. 187.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, pp. 164–168.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, pp. 164–170.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, pp. 264–265.
- ^ Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 166.
- ^ Cort 2001, p. 229.
- ^ Ching, Jarzombek & Prakash 2010, p. 336.
- ^ a b Umakant P. Shah 1987, p. 169.
- ^ Titze & Bruhn 1998, p. 253.
- ^ Chugh 2016, p. 300.
- ^ Chugh 2016, p. 295.
- ^ Chugh 2016, pp. 305–306.
- ^ Azer 2011.
- ^ Chugh 2016, p. 437.
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Non-Copyright
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain
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- Gaur, R. C. (1976). "Vedoc Chronology". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 37. JSTOR 44138897. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
- Azer, Rahman (27 June 2011). "Lakshmeshwar, a melting pot of cultures". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 9 May 2021.