From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Duodecennial Jain festival involving large-scale anointment of Jain images
Mahamastakabhisheka
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|
Also called
| Translation: Head Anointing of Gommateshwara
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Observed by
| Jains
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Type
| Religious
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Significance
| Completion of the statue of
Gommateshwara statue
|
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Celebrations
| Anointing the statue of
Gommateshwara
with milk, saffron, sugarcane juice, sandal paste, rice flour , flowers etc.
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Observances
| Prayers,
Jain rituals
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Date
| Decided by the luni-solar
Jain calendar
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Frequency
| every 12 years
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The
Mahamastakabhisheka
("Grand Consecration") refers to the
abhi?eka
(anointment) of the
Jain
idols when held on a large scale. The most famous of such consecrations is the anointment of the
Bahubali
Gommateshwara statue
located at
Shravanabelagola
in
Karnataka
,
India
. It is an important Jain festival held once every 12 years. It is an integral part of the ancient and composite Jain tradition.
The festival is held in veneration of a 17.4-metre (57 ft) high monolithic statue of the
Siddha
Bahubali. The anointing last took place in February 2018, and the next ceremony will take place in 2030.
[1]
The ceremony in 2018 is said to be the 88th in the series that commenced in the year 981 AD and was the second Mahamastakabhisheka of the 21st century. The ceremony is expected to be graced by numerous Jain
ascetics
. The February 2018 event was held under the leadership of Charukeerthi
Bhattaraka
Swamiji of Shravanabelagola from 17 to 25 February 2018.
[2]
Anointment of the Gommateshwara Bahubali image
[
edit
]
Bahubali, the son of
Rishabhanatha
, the first of the twenty-four Jain
Tirthankaras
, is worshipped for living with exceptional qualities that he displayed during all stages of his life from conception, birth, renunciation, enlightenment and salvation. This 58.8 feet tall statue is the most magnificent among all Jain works of art. It was built in circa 983.
The Bahubali statue is described as one of the mightiest achievements of ancient Karnataka in the realm of sculptural art. The statue stands upright in the posture of meditation known as kayotsarga, reaching a height of nearly 57 feet atop the
Vindhyagiri
Hills - accessible through a flight of 700 steps.
Procedure
[
edit
]
Purified water and
sandalwood
paste is poured over the statue from a scaffolding. This event continues for weeks. As the
Mahamastakabhisheka
begins, consecrated water is sprinkled onto the participants by devotees carrying 1,008 specially prepared vessels (kalashas). The statue is then bathed and anointed with libations such as milk, sugarcane juice, and
saffron
paste, and sprinkled with powders of
sandalwood
,
turmeric
, and
vermilion
.
[5]
Offerings are made of petals, gold and silver coins, and precious stones. Most recently, the ceremony's finale has included an enormous shower of flowers from a waiting helicopter.
Other Mahamastakabhishekas
[
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]
Apart from the anointment of the
Gommateshwara statue
at
Shravana Belgola
, anointment of the Jaina images take place at Jain temples throughout India.
[7]
Anointment of the other Gommateshwara statues in Karnataka are also honoured with a Mahamastakabhisheka festival every 12 years.
[
citation needed
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
Citations
[
edit
]
- ^
Correspondent, TNN (8 February 2006).
"Mahamastakabhisheka of Bahubali begins today"
.
The Times of India
. Archived from
the original
on 26 January 2013
. Retrieved
19 December
2012
.
- ^
Staff Reporter (13 October 2016),
"Dates for Mahamastabhisheka at Shravanabelagola announced"
,
The Hindu
, retrieved
26 February
2018
- ^
Kumar, Brajesh (2003),
Pilgrimage Centres of India
, Diamond Pocket Books (P) Ltd., p. 199,
ISBN
9788171821853
- ^
Drivedi, Rakesh Narayan.
???? ????? ???? ?? ???? ????????? ?????
. p. 65.
- ^
"Karkala Mahamastakabhisheka 2014"
.
- ^
"Venur Mahamastakabhisheka 2012"
. Archived from
the original
on 18 February 2013
. Retrieved
27 January
2012
.
Sources
[
edit
]
- Jaini, Padmanabh S.
(1998) [1979],
The Jaina Path of Purification
,
Delhi
:
Motilal Banarsidass
,
ISBN
978-81-208-1578-0
- Zimmer, Heinrich
(1953) [April 1952].
Campbell, Joseph
(ed.).
Philosophies Of India
.
London
:
Routledge
& Kegan Paul Ltd.
ISBN
978-81-208-0739-6
.
- Rice, Lewis (1985).
Naga Varmma's Karnataka Bhasha Bhushana
. Asian Educational Services.
ISBN
9788120600621
.
- Rice, B. L. (2001),
Gazetteer of Mysore
, Asian Educational Services,
ISBN
9788120609778
- Sangave, Vilas Adinath (1981),
The Sacred Sravana-Belagola
, Bhartiya Jnanpith Prakash
, retrieved
16 November
2017
- Ksham?s?gara, Muni (2006),
In quest of the self
, Bhartiya Jnanpith,
ISBN
9788126311668
, retrieved
16 November
2017
External links
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]