Tree · above the throne
Caitya-vṛkṣa
चैत्यवृक्ष
The aśoka tree over the throne — twelve times the height of the Tīrthaṅkara beneath it.
The figure is given two ways in two places, and they agree exactly. The tree is twelve times the Tīrthaṅkara's height; Hemacandra gives Ṛṣabha's tree as three kos. Ṛṣabha stood 500 dhanuṣ, and 2,000 dhanuṣ make a kos — so twelve times his height is 6,000 dhanuṣ, which is three kos to the digit.
Set against the whole: the samavasaraṇa is one yojana across, which is four kos. The tree is three-quarters of that in height.
It is the first of the eight prātihārya, the auspicious attendants that appear wherever a Tīrthaṅkara preaches.
Measurements and counts
| Height | 12 × the Tīrthaṅkara's |
|---|---|
| Ṛṣabha's | 3 kos · 6,000 dhanuṣ |
| Against the extent | ¾ of one yojana |