Acharya Hasti Mala
An influential ācārya of the temple dwellers congregation namely Yaśobhadra was one of the leading ācāryas of Marūdhara Pradeśa in Vikram 10th century. His period of existence was an era of miracle generation and power of mantras. A folklore prevailing in Nāralāī area of Marūdhara Pradeśa suggests a rivalry and hence a competition between Gosāins and caesura or yatis (temple dwellers congregation Ācāryas of Sāṃḍera gaccha) to demonstrate their respective power of mantra. Both parties claimed their mantras to be more powerful than the others. Both parties agreed to some terms for this competition. There is a river Lūṇī in village Khairathala. There are two temples, one of Lord Ādinātha of Jains and the other of Lord Śaṃkara. Whichever of the two parties i.e. Gosāins or yatis is able to lift their temple of their venerable Lord from Khairathala and locate it in Nāralāī before sunrise will have the right to locate the same on top of hill and will be adjudged with superior mantra power. The loser will keep the temple of their venerated lord at the foothill near the river on a plain field. If the losing party is not able to bring the temple from Khairathala to Nāralāī even after sunrise, then that party will be considered as total loser.
Both the parties agreed to these terms and started using the power of their mantras. From a popular hearsay there, both the parties demonstrated miracles with the power of their mantras and made an impossible task possible. Gosāins were able to bring their temple in Khairathala a few moments before the yatis in the skies of Nāralāī. Therefore the temple of Lord Śaṃkara was seated on the top of hill in Nāralāīand of Lord Ādinātha in the plains at the bottom of the hill.
It is said that the inscriptions in temple of Lord Ādinātha says that the temple was brought by Ācārya Yaśobhadra with the power of his mantra.
Actually there is no place for hearsays and particularly achieving impossible feats in history. However the hearsays prevailing over centuries especially about some miracles make a deep impact on the minds of the people. Thus the relationship of the miraculous powers of mantras and tantras in India affected and resulted in the pervert view of pure Śramaṇa doctrine and stayed with the ācāryas of temple dwellers congregation for centuries as a potent weapon for attracting followers.
Khimaṛṣi (Kṣamāṛṣi)
Ācārya Yaśobhadra of Sāṃḍera gaccha (temple dwellers congregation) had many disciples besides his two principal ones i.e. Balibhadra and Śālibhadra. One of such disciples was a profound saint and apostle of forgiveness named Khimaṛṣi. His following life sketch is available.
In the village Baḍagāṃva near Cittauḍa, a very poor trader by the name Bodhā used to live. He used to trade in oil and sometimes in ghee to earn his livelihood. Actually he was a trader in name only. He used to collect two or three kilos of oil or ghee and fill it in a pot to sell it in a nearby town. Whatever little money he could earn from this, he used to make his both ends meet.
Trader Bodhā while thinking of his abject poverty developed detachment from this world. Fortunately he had the opportunity to listen to the sermons of Ācārya Yaśobhadra and got himself initiated in Śramaṇa monkhood by him.
While serving his teacher for three years and performing penance, he acquired the knowledge of doctrine. Afterwards seeking the permission of his guru, Bodhā went to cremation grounds, caves and desolate places to perform severe penances. Enduring all kind of afflictions, tortures and difficulties, he maintained equanimity and absorbed in self-contemplations.
In those days when he was busy performing penance in a forest near a pond of village Dhāmanoda near Avantinagara, a number of Brahmin youths used to come there and inflict many types of physical pains on him. Bodhāṛṣi used to neither get angry on them nor disturb his contemplation on self. With such tolerance and forgiving powers and severe penance, he suddenly acquired a number of extraordinary powers.
One day he was standing under a tree in the cremation ground near the pond on one leg while meditating on his self. At that time a number of rich Brahmin youths came there. To disturb Bodhāṛṣi from his deep meditation, they started pelting stones and rocks on him and torture him with sticks. He started having severe pain, still he did not lose his concentration and continued to stand undisturbed and in deep meditation. Seeing Bodhāṛṣi undisturbed, these Brahmin youths started pelting bigger stones at a faster rate and beat him with sticks. Blood started oozing from each major and minor part of his body. However Bodhāṛṣi thinking that these youths are the cause of annihilating his karmas, he continued his auspicious meditation. Slightest anger or excitement did not rise in him. Seeing the torture and deep pains of innocent and ocean of forgiveness Bodhāṛṣi, some divine forces became active angry on those there truant Brahmin youths. Suddenly blood started flowing nonstop from the veins on their faces. Immediately those truant Brahmin youths ran away towards their home like the sparrows fly away on hearing a thunder.
Seeing the blood flowing continuously from the faces and noses of the Brahmin youths, their parents, family members and neighbours started gathering around them. They made several attempts to stop the flow of blood but none succeeded. An old medical practitioner (vaidya) said, 'All these boys have similar type of blood flow. Therefore it is not a disease but an evil spirit causing this'. On pacifying those youths and being asked, one of them told the entire episode. Hearing this from the youth, all elders of the village ran towards the cremation ground. There they saw each and every part of Bodhāṛṣi's body deeply hurt. Due to his severe penance, all blood from his body had dried yet some drops of blood were shining at scars all over his body. Seeing this, all the village elders looked with deep hatred and anguish those youths.
The parents of the hurt youths bowed at the feet of Bodhāṛṣi and rubbed their noses to seek forgiveness from Bodhāṛṣi for the sins committed by their children. Bodhāṛṣi kept on standing in deep meditation. Like the vast Pacific Ocean, deep tranquillity kept shining on his face.
According to statements of a very old man of the village, sprinkling drops of the perspiration of Bodhāṛṣi on the bodies of the hurt youths, the flow of blood from their faces and noses stopped. All the villagers touched Bodhāṛṣi's feet and put the dust of his feet on their forehead. From that day, the villagers started respectfully calling him as Khimaṛṣi or Kṣamāṛṣi. His popularity as Khimaṛṣi spread far and wide.
On that day all the Brahmins collected lot of money and put the same at the feet of Khimaṛṣi. But he, being a practitioner of non-possession did not look at it all. Afterwards that money was used for many social welfare activities.
Penance of Khimaṛṣi kept on getting severer by the day. He used to take very strange resolutions (abhigraha) before going on his begging tours for alms. To break his fast, he took such strange 84 types of resolutions that could not be possible to meet except by some super spiritual power. An example of one such resolution is given below.
To break his penance and fast and accept food, one day Khimaṛṣi decided secretly in his own mind that he would accept food if Rāvakṛṣṇa Sadyasnāta (unique friend of Dhārādhipati Muṃja's younger step brother Siṃdhukta) in his pure mind donates 21 apūpa (pūve) as alms else he will fast for the rest of his life. After fasting for 3 months and 8 days, his resolution was satisfied and he broke his fast.
The news of Khimaṛṣi's breaking his long fast in the palace of Rāvakṛṣṇa spread like electricity in Dhārānagarī. Inhabitants of Dhārānagarī came in floods to pay homage to Saint Khimaṛṣi. Prince Siṃghula Alongwith Rāvakṛṣṇa also went to the resting place of Khimaṛṣi. When Rāvakṛṣṇa knew that he has only six more months to live, then he also spent the rest of his life meditating and spiritual purification after being initiated in Śramaṇa tradition.
