Shri Madvijay Ravindrasuri Maharajsahebji ,62 years old, was a monk of Jain religion. The monk passed away last week in Rajgarh, Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh. The Jain community’s members in India as well as abroad collect Rs 7 crore in a bid to carry out the last rites of the monk. This is a unique ritual of Jain community where bids are called for the right to perform the last rites of Jain monks.
There are 25 rituals to perform the last rites of Jain monks. The rituals include applying saffron and chandan to the body, washing the monk’s feet, performing the last aarti, wrapping the body in a shroud and bathing the body of the monk.
Almost, land developers and gold dealers won most of the bids.
For an example, Jayeshbhai from Dubai won a bid of Rs 68 lakh to be the first pallbearer, while the second won the bid of Rs. 42 lakh, third won the bid of Rs. 27 lakh and the fourth pallbearer won the bid of Rs. 20 lakh. The bidder who got to wrap the body in a shroud had pledged Rs 52.52 lakh.
In the hierarchy of monks, Maharajsahebji was one of the senior-most in the Tristutik sect. There were 85 people in which 10 men and 75 women under Shri Madvijay Ravindrasuri Maha rajsahebji had taken `diksha’ (renunciation of family and worldly pleasures).
A source from the Jain temple said that the money which is collected by the Mohankheda temple in Rajgarh, where the monk died, will be used by the trust of the Jain temple for religious activities and to continue the work undertaken by the monk.
Babulal Vardhan who is from Rajasthan gave a sum of Rs. 41.1 4 lakh to perform the ritual of bathing the body of Shri Maharajsahebji, before the dead body of the monk was placed on the pyre.
The “ghee bolo” or bids started 450 years ago in the Jain community to increase the charity of community.
A Jain monk Vimal Sagar Maharajsaheb said that to raise funds through bids to build more Jain temples and spread the religion in the world. This is why the idea of ghee bolo or bids emerged. In the starting, the ritual of last rites was carried out only when resources were needed. But it has become a regular practice over the many years.
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