Doddahundi nishidhi inscription

[1][2] The hero stone has a unique depiction in frieze of the ritual death (sallekhana and samadhi) of the Western Ganga Dynasty king Ereganga Nitimarga I (r. 853-869).

Such nishidhi's (memorial spot) were raised in medieval India in honor of important Jain personalities who ended their life voluntarily after following severe ritual vow.

[2] In Jainism, the term nishidhi (with variants called nisidhia, nisadhi or nistige) is the spot where the person, such as an ascetic, king or queen died voluntarily, or was cremated or bone relic buried.

[6] According to the historian Sarma, the Doddahundi nishidhi stone has its frieze set inside a square panel whose borders are etched to create the impression of flames that further accentuate the grave event.

The inscription below the frieze reads "bee at the pair of lotus feet of Arhat Bhattaraka" (referring to Jinasena, the kings guru and author of the Jain text Adipurana).