Ujire: A special religious discourse in a circular ‘Samavasarana’, created by Chitra Arts Studio , Bengaluru, marked the festivities of Mahamastakabhisheka at Dharmasthala on Friday. ‘Samavasarana’ is the religious meet convened by the teerthankaras.Earlier, the idol of Lord Sarvahna Yaksha was taken out in a procession from Beedu (dharmadhikari’s house) to the ‘Samavasarana Vedike’ where Yaksha Utsava was celebrated with great pomp. As many as 32 senior and junior Yakshagana artistes enhanced the beauty of the festivity by performing around the Samavasarana for Yakshagana-style song ‘Yenu Ramya Yenu Sowmya’ while 250 shravaka-shravakis from across the state sang jina bhajans. The sight of Acharya Sri 108 Vardhamana Sagar Munimaharaja, Acharya Sri 108 Pushpadanta Munimaharaj, Mataji and seventy digambar munis along with kshullaks seated on the other side was a sight to behold.Members of the Heggade family took part in the religious rituals. D Shreyas Kumar appeared as ruler Bharatha while Rani Subhadra presented herself as the Devi.Singing performances by Mohan, Dharmaraj, Bhageeratha, Sowmya, teams of Horanada Jayashri and Dharanendra Jain added extra colour to the festivities.Speaking on the occasion, Bhuvanakeerti Bhattaraka from Kanakagiri prayed for the liberation of all attendees and devotees from sadness and wished them peaceful and happy life.‘Transition from God to Google’Lakshmisena Bhattaraka Swamiji of Narasimharajapura said it was common for humans to err, but that the essence of living a fruitful life lay in learning from those errors and rectifying them. He also lamented that the people in modern times were increasingly losing faith in divine power, but seeking answers to their questions from Google.Dhavalakeerti Bhattaraka Swami from Arahantagiri Jain Mutt stressed that belief is life. He said belief in the almighty, service of the guru and self-learning of scriptures would wash away all sins of a human being.Meanwhile, various rituals such as bimba shuddhi vidhana, padabhisheka to Bahubali from 216 kalashas, siddachakra aradhane, dhwani puja and mahamangalarathi were carried out at Ratnagiri.A 1008 kalasha padabhisheka to Bahubali by the Heggade family will be held on Saturday. Prior to this, a agrodaka procession will be taken out. Book release ceremonyThe translated version of ‘Bahubali Ahimsa Digvijayam’ written by former Union minister M Veerappa Moily was released at Amritavarshini, Dharmasthala, on the occasion of Mahamastabhisheka on Thursday.Recalling the days he penned the epic, Moily said, “I saw a change within me while working on this project. Since I started writing on this epic, I am a changed man. I do not get angry any more. The teachings of Bahubali have taught me to remain peaceful and stay contended,” he said.Moily said the literary work was a result of the Shravanabelagola seer’s insistence and the support of his high school teacher.“Charukeerti Bhattaraka seer of Shravanabelagola had since three years been insisting that I write the book. On the occasion, I thank T Raghuchandra Shetty, who was my teacher at the Jain High School, Moodbidri,” he said.The Congress MP called on the people to imbibe the values of Bahubali such as ahimsa, love, sacrifice, peace and restraint.Siddasenacharya Munimharaja released the book ‘Adipurana’.‘History of Dharmasthala Sri Gomateshwara’ penned by Irvattooru Beedu Vijaya B Jain, Bantwal, was released by Veerasagara Munimaharaj.Speaking about the minor mishap that took place at the kshetra, earlier on Thursday, Dharmasthala dharmadhikari D Veerendra Heggade said the place was a witness to several miracles and that all works undertaken at the kshetra were fulfilled with divine blessings. As there were no casualties, and five people were reported to have sustained minor injuries, Heggade said it was the divine power in the kshetra that averted any untoward incident.

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