Ambika Devi

Ambika Devi( Ambikā Devī "the Goddess-Mother") is the Yakṣini "dedicated attendant deity" or Śāsana Devī "protector goddess" of the 22nd Tirthankara, Neminatha. She is also known as Ambai, Amba, Kushmandini and Amra Kushmandini. She is often shown with one or more children and often under a tree. She is frequently represented as a pair (Yaksha Sarvanubhuti on the right and Kushmandini on the left) with a small Tirthankar image on the top. The name Ambika means Mother hence she is Mother Goddess.

According to Jain text, Ambika is said to have been an ordinary woman named Agnila who became a Goddess. She lived with her husband Somasarman and her two children Shubhanakar and Prabhankara in Girinagar. One day, Somasarman invited Brahmins to perform Śrāddha (funeral ceremony) and left Agnila at home. Varadatta, the chief disciple of Neminatha, was passing by and asked for food from Agnila to end his month-long fast. Somasarman and Brahmins were furious at her as they considered the food to be impure now. Somasarman drove her out of the house along with her children; she went up to a hill. She was blessed with power for her virtue, the tree she sat down under became a Kalpavriksha, wish-granting tree, and dry water tank has overflown with water. Gods were angry at the treatment with Angila and decided to drown everything in her village but her house. After seeing this Somasarman and Brahmins felt this was because of saintliness and went to beg for her forgiveness. Upon looking at her husband afraid of punishment Angila committed suicide by jumping off the cliff but was instantly reborn as Goddess Ambika. Her husband was reborn as a lion and he came to her, licked her feet and became her vehicle. Neminatha initiated her two sons and Ambika became Neminath's yakshi