410 Analysis of the Mackenzie Manuscripts. [Ma?, 



Section 7. — Account of the Jain temple of Parsvana-natha-svdml,, 

 at Tiru Narrayanen Tonda a village, in the district of Yelvunachura 

 Cottai. 



It is in the Vriddhdchala district : a Stfhala mahatmya. In a certain 

 wilderness, a kind of roots grew which Verdars dug up for food. One 

 day a man of that class saw some growing in the cleft of a rock, and 

 going to dig them up, discovered the image of the above god. A winged 

 creature also appeared ; at which the hunter, being dazzled exclaimed 

 " Appa ! Ayya /" The being said " I am Appa, and Ayya is in that 

 image." The hunter asked for a spiritual vision, and had one enlight- 

 ened eye given him ; the report of the circumstance led to much dis- 

 cussion among the country people ; who, on consulting, noted various 

 marks about the hills, and concluded that it must have been a place of 

 residence, for ancient ascetics. The king of the country, coming to 

 knowledge of these things, treated the hunter handsomely, and had a 

 temple built on the spot. There is then a narrative given, as having 

 happened before this circumstance, to account for the image being found 

 there. This forms a Jaina version of the Pandiya king renouncing 

 the Jaina system for that of the Saivas. By this account the famous 

 Appa r was born and bred a Jaina, but, through ill-treatment of the 

 head ascetic of that system, he went away to the south, by way of the 

 Chola kingdom, and became a Saiva. In consultation with Sampanta 

 and Santarar, a plan was formed to convert the Pdndiyan king, Appar 

 by the power of incantation inflicted on him a grievous illness, and then 

 sent Sampanta, and Sundarar, with the Viputhi (or sacred ashes), 

 saying that if he accepted these he would be cured. He replied that 

 being a Jaina he could not do so. On their returning with this answer 

 to Appar the latter inflicted severer pain on the king ; and then went 

 personally to him, and said, if his teachers could remove one-half on 

 one side, he would remove the other. The Jaina teachers being sent 

 for, said that to use magical incantation was contrary to their religion. 

 Appar then promised to cure the king, to which he consented ; through 

 the craft of Appar, and because an evil time for the Jaina system was come. 

 After being cured Appar asked of the king to allow all the Jaina temples 

 to be turned into Saiva ones at which he hesitated ; but at length being 

 gradually overcome, and through previous ignorance of his own system 

 he was drawn over to become a Saiva ; and he then gave a body of 

 troops into the hands of Sampantar, Sundarar and Appar ; with which 

 they displaced the Jaina images, and turned the fanes into Saiva ones. 

 But on coming to the hill in question, in this paper, as soon as Appar 

 ascended three steps towards it he was struck blind. Astonished he 



