Jain story
PUNIYO SHRAVAK
PUNIYO SHRAVAK
Puniya Shravak symbolised ideal worship and devotion. He was a devotee whose devotion was praised by Bhagwan Mahavir himself. A resident of Rajgruhi, he came under the spell of Mahavir’s discourses and began to practise aparigraha (abandonment of worldly possessions). He embraced poverty willingly and gave away all the wealth he had inherited from his father. He would be happy and contented with what he earned from making cotton threads. He believed that contentment had nothing to do with possessions, with wealth or acquisitiveness. It is simply a state of mind.
Being a truly devoted soul, he held co-religionists in high esteem and would invite, everyday, one of them and feed him with love and affection. He practised samayik (maintaining equinimity for a set period of time) with a heart full of devotion.
Once he could not worship with his usual concentration and was disturbed. He asked his wife to find out the reason. This set her thinking. After a long pause, she said, “1 found in my way a few cakes of dung and since they belonged to no one, 1 brought them home.” Puniya shravak said, “You did not do the right thing. If no one had claimed those cakes, they must belong to the state. Go and deposit them back where you found them.” It was then that his conscience stopped pricking him. A slight aberration, and he would be disturbed.
Once king Shrenik asked Tirthankar Bhagwan Mahavir about the state of his soul after death -where would it go ? Thereupon Mahavir replied, “To hell.” The king wanted to know what he should do to avoid such a fate. Mahavir replied, “You can avoid going to hell provided you get the punya (good deeds) acquiring from one samayik of Puniya Shravak.”
The king approached him with the request. Shravak asked him to find out from Mahavir the real worth (value) of a samayik. Bhagwan said that it was difficult to set any value to his samayik as it was invaluable.
Meru is the tallest mountain. The value of one Samayik of Puniya Shravak was worth the value of piles of money as tall as the Meru. Bhagwan Mahavir explained it differently. He said, “One goes to buy a horse and the price of a leash for the horse will be equal to the total value of money in king Shrenik’s coffers. But the price of the horse will be worth the value of one samayik.”
Shrenik realised that his entire wealth would not be able to buy even one samayik of Puniya. He felt the highest reverence for his devotion. Puniya’s life was a life of renunciation, self-denial and non-possessiveness, the life of a true shravak.
How great must be the one who was praised by Bhagwan Mahavir himself ! The importance of samayik manifested itself in the life of Puniya. Only one samayik performed with a pure heart and devotion can put one on the path of liberation and help to ward off evils.
Scriptures say that if one donates gold everyday and the other performs samayik, the one who donates gold cannot stand in comparison to the other who performs samavik.
Acharyashri Kalaksuri
Kalakacharya
In the history of Jain religion Acharyashri Kalaksuri-II had a penetrating insight with regard to the religious scriptures. He had a revolutionary outlook and approach. One thing that strikes most in his life is his constant insistence on performance of duty. Without expecting any assistance from any quarters, he incessantly struggled to achieve his goal.
Acharyashri Kalaksuri was born to the king Virsinha of Dharavas. His mother’s name was Sursundari and sister’s name was Saraswati. True to her name, Saraswati was the treasure-house of learning and beauty par excellence. Both of them, the brother and the sister, loved each other immensely. Once they had gone for a horse-ride, during which they happened to listen to the religious discourse of Acharya Gunakar. As they listened to the sermons of the Acharya, both of them felt intense feelings of renunciation and with their parents’ consent both accepted initiation. After a long spell of time, Acharya-turned Kalak Muni was on a visit to Ujjayini city. Sadhvi Saraswati, his sister of the pre-initiation life, had come to Ujjayini to pay respect to her brother. Because of her unparalleled charm and beauty, the lustful king Gardabhilla of Ujjayini arranged to abduct Saraswati.
Despite the cries of “O brother ! Please help me”, Saraswati was abducated. Subsequently Shreesangh (congregation), leading intelligentsia and neighbouring kings went to the king to persuade him but he paid heed to nobody. At last Acharya Kalak, the incarnation of strength and power, came out to oppose the king. He undertook the task single-handedly. Acharya Kalak went out of the town and became avyaktalingi. He reached Iran via Punjab. Acharya Kalak marched from there with a massive army of ‘shaks’ together with 97 ‘shak’ chieftains. King Gardabhilla created many hurdles in their way but Acharya Kalak defeated all his manoeuvres. King Gardabhilla was very proud of his Gardabhi vidya (a form of black magic). With the power of this Gardabhi black magic he could make such a loud sound that all those that would hear it would die instantly. In the front row of the battlefield, Acharya Kalak positioned a troup of very accurate and unfailing marksmen. As soon as the mouth of Gardabhi opened, these marksmen filled his mouth with thousands of arrows with the result that no sound could come out and ultimately king Gardabhilla was defeated. Saraswati was freed from the palace and was restored to her previous status of Sadhvi (nun) with honour and dignity. Thus Acharya Kalak earned immortal fame in the history as a promotor of a superior religion – saddharma.
Shri Kalkacharya had a wide following of disciples but was not attached to them. Sometimes he felt that living together with impolite disciples might enhance the karmic bondage; consequently he used to make vihar alone. Such was his unique detachment. When he had been to Iran, he had impressed the kings there with the power of his knowledge and learning and had brought them to Saurashtra. The story of his life is full of many astonishing incidents. Because of his strong will-power and very impressive personality, he could initiate a change in the political situation. He was a serious thinker and a philosopher.
For a purely spiritual attitude, he enumerated eight virtues to be essential; viz. non-violence, truth, refusal to steal, celibacy, non-possession, abstaining from love and hatred, religious meditation and the purest meditation. Whenever one thinks of brotherly love or of justice, the revered name of Arya Kalak comes to mind.
Kalikalsarvagna Hemchandracharya
Hemchandracharya
Kalikalsarvagna Hemchandracharya made extraordinary contribution for a long spell of seven decades to varied fields like poetry and grammar, history and puran, yoga and spiritual knowledge, lexicon and poetics, renunciation and penance, self-restraint and self-discipline and the state welfare and popular welfare. During the last 1000 years, there is no other personality that can match his saintliness and literary output.
This son of Chachdev and Pahini of Dhandhuka in Saurashtra, gave indications of his brilliance from his very early childhood. Acharya Shri Devchandrasuri, scholar of many scriptures and author of numerous books happened to have his stay in Dhandhuka. Pahini, the mother along with her 5 year old son Chang came there to offer their respects. At this time Shri Devchandrasuriji had gone to a temple for worship. Of his own accord Chang went up and occupied a seat. As Shri Devchandrasuri returned from the temple he saw this sight. Seeing his unperturbed facial expression and innate aptitude, Shri Devchandrasuri told Pahini, “This son of yours shall become a prominent saint in future and shall devote himself to public welfare.”
Devchandrasuri along with the prominent persons of the sangh, came to Pahini’s house. Pahini was extemely happy at this great fortune and handed over Chang, his son to the Guru. He was named Muni Somchandra. There is a legend about his being named Acharya Hemchandra. Dhanad Sheth, a prominent merchant of Patan, requested Somchandra Muni to come to his residence for alms (gochari). Dhanad Sheth managed to get Somchandra Muni seated on the heap of carbon-black gold coins and they acquired golden lustre. Thereupon Dhanad Sheth requested his Gurudev to name Somchandra Muni as Acharya Hemchandra.
Hemchandra’s reputation had reached to the court of Siddharaj, the king of Gujarat. Siddharaj requested him to write a grammar superior to that of Bhoj. Within a year Hemchandracharya wrote an exhaustive volume of grammar entitled ‘Siddhahemcha-ndrashabdanushasan’ containing one lakh and twenty-five thousand shlokas covering the grammar of Prakrit and Apabhramsha languages as well. A copy of this grammar was placed on an elephant and a procession was carried out through the city of Patan with great pomp. It was for the first time in Gujarat that ‘learning’ had been honoured on such a grand scale. Since then no scholar has written such a grammar in these 800 years. Briefly known as ‘Siddhhem’, the book of grammar was read in the court and besides India, the copies were sent to Nepal, Shree Lanka, Iran and such other far-off countries. Since then no scholar has written such a grammar in this 800 years. Siddharaj had no progeny and Hemchandracharya had made a profesy that, Kumarpal will succeed Siddharaj. But Siddaraj had great enmity against Kumarpal. Once Kumarpal went in cognito to see Hemchandracharya in Cambay (Khambhat) and as the soldiers arrived Hemchandracharya managed to hide him to save his life.
In accordance with the desire of his Guru, he wrote numerous books; as many as 700 scribes used to prepare copies thereof which were sent throughout the country.
After a very long life of 84 years, Hemchandracharya passed away in Patan in A. D. 1173. In his passing away, the world lost a great scholar.
KING MEGHARATH
Once there was a discussion going on in Indra’s (head of heavenly angels) court. One of the demi-gods said that there are brave and merciful kings on Earth who would not hesitate laying down their own lives to protect those who come to them for a shelter. Another demi-god doubted his statement. The two began to argue and so Indra intervened by asking them to go to the Earth and see for themselves. The two demi-gods made a plan of action. One of them decided to take the form of a pigeon, and the other took the form of a hawk.
On the Earth, King Meghrath was sitting in his court surrounded by his courtiers. At that time a pigeon flew in through an open window and started circling inside the hall. To the king’s surprise, it landed on his lap. The king realized that the pigeon had come there out of fear.
At that very instant, a hawk flew into the king’s court too. He said to the king, “This pigeon is my prey.” The king was struck with a wonder to hear a bird speak. However, he replied, “It is true that this pigeon is your prey, but I can give you some other food.”
He ordered his servants to bring a basket of sweets. But the hawk said, “I am not a human being. I am not vegetarian. I need the flesh for my food.”
The king said, “Let me give you my own flesh instead of this pigeon’s flesh.” Upon hearing this, one of the courtiers said, “Your Majesty, why should you give your own flesh? Let’s get the flesh from a butcher’s shop.”
The king replied, “No, because just as a confectioner’s business thrives when we consume sweets, a butcher’s trade flourishes when we use up meat. The butcher may have to kill another animal in order to supply us the meat. This pigeon has sought refuge and it is my duty to protect it. At the same time, it is my duty to see that no one else is harmed in this process. Therefore, I will give my own flesh to the hawk.”
With these words, he took out his dagger and cut off a piece of flesh from his thigh and offered that to the hawk. The whole court was stunned. But the hawk said to the king, “Oh, king! I want the same amount of flesh as the pigeon.”
So, a weighing scale was brought to the court. The king put the pigeon on one side and a piece of his own flesh on the other. The king kept putting more and more of his flesh on the scale, but was still not enough. Finally the king was getting ready to put his whole body on the scale. The court filled with the murmur that the king was giving his own life for an insignificant bird. But the king considered it his duty and religion to be above everything else. He sat on the side opposite to the pigeon in the scale, closed his eyes, and began meditating in the peace.
As soon as the king entered into the meditation, the pigeon and the hawk assumed their original divine form. Both demi-gods bowed to the king and said, “Oh great king! you are blessed. We are convinced that you are a brave and merciful man.”
With these words, they praised and saluted the king again and left. The whole court resounded with the joyous words, “Long live the King Meghrath.”
Later on, the soul of King Meghrath became the sixteenth Tirthankar, Shäntinäth.
A merciful person is someone who is not only influenced by seeing the misery and suffering of others, but goes a step further and attempts to alleviate the pain. He gives financial aid to those who are poverty-stricken and gives food to those who are hungry and needy. A merciful person would not harm others to promote himself but on the contrary, would sacrifice even his own life to save the lives of the others.
GAUTAMSWAMI
In 607 B. C., in the village of Gobargaon, a Brahmin couple called Vasubhuti and Prithvi Gautam (family name) had a son named Indrabhuti. He was tall and handsome. He had two younger brothers named Agnibhuti and Vayubhuti. All three were well versed in the Vedas and other rituals at an early age. They were very popular and great scholars in the state of Magadh. Each one of them had 500 disciples.
Once in the city of Apapa, a Brahmin named Somil was conducting a Yagna (sacrificial ceremony) at his home. There were over four thousand Brahmins present at the occasion, and there were eleven popular scholars among them.
Indrabhuti stood out as a bright star. Somil was a staunch supporter of the Brahmin philosophy and was very happy during the ceremony. The whole town was excited by this event in which they were going to sacrifice the sheep and the goats. Suddenly, Somil noticed many celestial beings coming down towards his sacrificial site. He thought that this would make his offering ceremony the most popular in the history. He told the people, “Look at the sky, even the angels are coming to bless us.” The whole town was eagerly looking at the sky.
To their surprise, the celestial beings did not stop at their site, instead they went further down. Somil’s ego melted away as he learned that the celestial beings paid homage to Lord Mahävir, who had come to near by Mahasen Forest. Indrabhuti was outraged by this incident and his ego was bruised. He started thinking to himself, “Who is this Mahävir who does not even use affluent Sanskrit, but speaks the common public language of Ardha Magadhi.” Everyone in the ceremony was overpowered by the mere presence of Lord Mahävir. Indrabhuti once again thought, “Mahävir opposes animal sacrifices, and if he succeeds then we Brahmins will loose our livelihood.. I will debate with him.” He left to challenge him.
Mahävir welcomed Indrabhuti by calling him by his name even though they had never met before. Indrabhuti was surprised, but then he said to himself, “Who does not know me? I am not surprised he knew my name. I wonder if he knows what I am thinking.” Omniscient Mahävira knew what was going through Indrabhuti’s mind. Indrabhuti, even though a great scholar, had a doubt about the existence of Atma (soul) and was thinking to himself, “Can Mahävir tell that I doubt the existence of the soul?” The next moment Mahävir said, “Indrabhuti, Atma (soul – consciousness) is there and you should not question it.” Indrabhuti was shocked and began to think very highly of Mahävir. Then, they had a philosophical discussion, and Indrabhuti changed his beliefs and he became Mahävir’s first and chief disciple. Indrabhuti was fifty years old at the time, and from then on he was called Gautamswämi, beause he came from Gautam family.
Meanwhile in the town, Somil and other scholars were waiting to greet the expected winner of the debate, Indrabhuti. They were shocked to learn that Indrabhuti had become the disciple of Mahävir. The other ten Brahmin scholars, also went to debate with Mahavir, also became his disciples, the same way as Indrabhuti. The people present at the Somil’s place began to leave, and Somil canceled the ceremony and turned all the animals loose.
One time, Gautamswämi was going back after the gochari (getting food or alms), and he noticed many people going in another direction. He asked them what was going on. They said, “We are going to see Anand shravak. He has been performing austerities and has attained a special knowledge (Avadhignan).” Anand shravak was Mahävir’s follower, so Gautamswämi decided to go and visit him. When Anand saw Gautamswämi coming to his house, he was very happy that his guru (spiritual teacher) was coming. However, even though he was very weak due to his austerities, he got up and welcomed Gautamswämi. Gautamswämi inquired about his condition. Anand replied, “With your blessings, I am fine.” After some time, Anand told Gautamswämi with respect, “Reverend teacher, I have attained Avadhijnan because of which I can see as high as fourteenth heaven and as low as the seventh hell.” Gautamswämi thought, ” A shravak can attain Avadhijnan, but not to this extent.” Aloud he told Anand, “You should do prayshchit (atonement) for your imagination.” Anand was puzzled. He knew what he could see, but his teacher told him to atone for telling that. So, he politely asked Gautamswämi, “Does one have to atone for telling the truth?” Gautamswämi replied, “No,” and then left the place thinking, “I will reconfirm this with Lord Mahävir.”
Gautamswämi returned to Lord Mahävir, who was sitting with his other disciples, and asked about Anand. Mahävir said, “Gautam, Anand was telling the truth. How could a person like you with so much knowledge make such a mistake? You should atone for your mistake.” Mahävir believed in the truth, and he would never cover up the mistake of his disciple just to make their group look good. Gautamswämi put his alms aside, and immediately went to Anand’s house to ask for forgiveness for his doubt. Anand was proud of his humble teacher, who did not mind admitting his own fault to his followers.
On another occasion, Gautamswämi went to town for the alms. He was returning with the kheer (a sweet made from rice and milk) in a patra (bowl) when he saw fifteen hundred hermits. Gautamswämi felt that they were hungry and offered them the kheer. They began to wonder how Gautamswämi would feed all of them. Gautamswämi requested all of the hermits to sit down, and then he served everyone with the kheer with the help of
Aksheenmahanasi (nondiminishing) Labdhi (special power). While serving the kheer, he kept his thumb in the kheer. To everyone’s surprise they were all well served from the small patra (bowl). The hermits were all so impressed by Gautamswämi, that all fifteen hundred decided to take diksha (renunciation) from Lord Mahavir.
Many sadhus, including those hermits, attained Kevaljnan, but Gautamswämi was still unable to achieve it. He was worried that he would never attain Kevaljnan. One day, Gautamswämi asked Lord Mahävir, “There were eleven of us (main desciples – Gandhars) who accepted diksha and most of them have attained Kevaljnan. Why am I so unlucky that I am not able to attain Kevaljnan?” Lord Mahävir replied, “Gautam, you have too much affection for me. In order to attain Kevaljnan you must overcome the attachment. So, until you give up your attachment towards me, it would not be possible for you to attain Kevaljnan.”
On the day when Mahavir was to attain nirvana (liberation), Mahavira sent Gautamswämi out to preach to a man named Devsharma.. On his way back, Gautamswämi learned that Lord Mahävir had attained nirvana and reached the moksha (salvation). Gautamswämi went into a state of shock and sorrow, lamenting, “Lord Mahävir knew this was going to happen. Why did he send me away.” Gautamswämi could not stop his tears and started weeping. Within a few minutes, he came back to his senses and began thinking, “Maybe this was destined to happen this way. No one can live forever; no relationship is permanent. Why was I so attached to Mahävir?” He contemplated that he was wrong and gave up attachment for Mahavir. During this deep thinking, he burned his Ghati Karmas and attained Kevaljnan at the age of eighty.
Gautamswämi taught and spread Jain principles for next twelve years. He attained Moksha, at the age of ninety-two in 515 B.
| ACHARYA HEMACHANDRA
Acharya Hemchandra was born in 1088 A .D. into the Modha Vanik (merchant) caste, in the town of Dhandhuka, sixty miles from the city Ahmedabad in Gujarat State. His parents were Chachadev and Pahini. When Pahini was pregnant, she had a beautiful dream. She narrated her dream to Acharya Devasuri, who was in Dhandhuka at that time. The acharya said that Pahini was to give birth to a son who would make great progress in the areas of spiritual knowledge, intuition, and conduct. Upon the birth the child was named Changdeva. The next time Acharya Devasuri was in Dhandhuka, he saw Pahini carrying her son. He said to Pahini, “Let me take care of this brilliant son. He is destined to be a great spiritual leader.” However, he could not convince her to give him her son. The acharya kept pursuing and reminding that her son would become a famous monk and would glorify the Jain Order. Again, he requested that she should sacrifice her self-interest and love for the child for the good of the people. Ultimately, Pahini let the acharya take her son with him.
The fame of Hemchandra’s efficacy and knowledge gradually spread everywhere. The noble culture was on the rise in Gujarat due to the ability of Hemchandra and the cooperation of King Siddharaja of Gujarat. King Siddharaja was succeeded by Kumarpal. Hemchandra had predicted seven years earlier that Kumarpal would be the king. Also, the acharya had once saved Kumarpal’s life. Therefore, Kumarpal considered Hemchandra his spiritual teacher (guru) and benefactor. Kumarpal gave him the exceptional honor and sought his advice in the shaping of his kingdom in Gujarat. In a very short time, Gujarat became a center of non-violence, learning, and good culture.. Hemchandra did not only think of the development of his own career, but always thought of the universal welfare. In spite of this, some Brahmins were very jealous about this and they were trying to disgrace Hemchandracharya and Jainism. Therefore, some Brahmins approached King Kumarpal and said, “Hemchandracharya is a very egoistic person and he does not respect Hindu Gods.” King Kumarpal was not ready to accept these views about his spiritual teacher, Hemchandracharya. Brahmins requested King Kumarpal that he should invite Hemchandracharya to come to the temple of Lord Shiva (God of destruction). The purpose of this was to humiliate Hemchandracharya because they thought he would not go to the temple of Lord Shiva and bow down to him. When Hemchandracharya came, King Kumarpal said, “We would go to the temple of Lord Shiva.” He accepted the offer without any hesitation. Brahmins were happy in their mind thinking that they would be able to make their point today and glorify their religion. Yet, they were wrong. They underestimated Hemchandracharya. To the surprise of those Brahmins, Hemchandracharya bowed down in front of Lord Shiva but by saying, “Bhavbijaskurajanana ragadayah kshaymupagata yasya; Brahma va Vishnurva haro Jino va namastasmai.” Meaning, “I am bowing down to that god, who has destroyed the passions like attachment (Rag) and hatred (Dwesh) which are the cause of worldly life, whether he is Brahma, Vishnu, or Jina.” This showed that indeed the acharya was genius and had a broad-minded attitude based on basic Jain principles. Under Hemchandra’s influence, King Kumarpal accepted the Jainism. He prohibited violence and killing of any animal in his kingdom. King Kumarpal made many laws that nurtured the Jain religion. Vegetarianism was found not only in the Jains, but also in all the people of Gujarat. Jainism became the land of the region. Hemchandra composed several literary works that included many verses. The acharya was the first one to put non-violence on a political platform. He was the architect of the greatness and unity of Gujarat. In the field of metaphysics, he was a Yogi. His work Yoga-Shastra, a treatise on yoga, is very famous. People called him ‘Kali-kala Sarvajna’ meaning ‘all-knower in the dark period’. He died in 1173 A. D. at the age of eighty-four. The Jain culture still shines brightly in Gujarat, due to the influence of the literary works contributed by the great Acharya Hemchandra. |
| DREAMS OF MOTHER TRISHALA
Tirthankar Mahavir’s soul was an angel in the tenth heaven before being born as Prince Vardhaman. At midnight on the sixth day of the bright half of Ashadh, his Ayushya Karma ended, and so did his life as an angel. His soul came to earth and was conceived in the womb of a Brahmin lady named Devananda. That night, Devananda had 14 unusual and great dreams. She woke up and told her husband about the dreams. He told her that their son would be a great one and gifted with many virtues. After 82 days, on the thirteenth day of the month of Aaso, Saudharma Indra, the King of Angels was in his court. His throne started shaking, so he used his Avadhijnan, a special mental power through which one can see distant things, to see what was going on. He learned that Lord Mahavir’s soul was conceived in Devananda’s womb. For a moment, he was puzzled, but then he realized that this was the result of Lord Mahavir’s gotra karmas from his previous life. He said to himself, “No, Tirthankar Bhagwan is never born in a low status family. This should not happen to Mahavir. I will move his soul to a high status family.” Saudharma summoned Angel Hari-naigamesin to his court and commanded him to transplant the fetus from the womb of Devananda to the womb of Queen Trishala, the wife of King Siddharth, and to put Queen Trishala’s fetus in Devananda’s womb. Angel Hari-naigamesin left the court of King Saudharma Indra to go to Devananda’s home. With his divine speed, he soon arrived at the bed side of Devananda and paid his reverence to the soul of Lord Mahavir. With his divine power, he put Devananda into a deep sleep, removed the fetus and then left to go to Queen Trishala’s palace. Again with his divine speed, he reached Queen Trishala’s palace within a very short time. He used his divine power to put Queen Trishala into a deep sleep and then he performed the exchange of the fetuses. Once again, he paid reverence to Lord Mahavir’s soul. Then he left with the fetus of Queen Trishala and went to Devananda’s home to replace the fetus in her womb. (Digambars do not believe in the fetus transfer part.) That night, Queen Trishala had those fourteen great dreams. The dreams filled her with wonder and joy. She woke up her husband, King Sidharth and told him what she saw in the fourteen dreams. He told her that those dreams seemed very auspicious. The next day, King Siddharth summoned the scholars to his court and asked them about the meaning of these dreams. (Digambar sect does not believe prince Vardhaman being conceived by Devananda.)
This dream indicated that she would give birth to a child with exceptionally high character. The four tusks signified that he would guide the spiritual chariot with its four components: monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen.
This dream indicated that her son would be highly religious and a great spiritual teacher. He would help cultivate the religion.
This dream indicated that her son would be as powerful and strong as the lion. He would be fearless, almighty, and capable of ruling the world.
This dream indicated that her son would enjoy great wealth and splendor. He would be a Tirthankar, the supreme benefactor of all.
This dream indicated that the fragrance of her son’s teaching will spread throughout the universe, and he would be respected by all.
This dream indicated that the child would help lessen the suffering of the all living beings. He would bring the peace to the world. He would help the spiritual progress of entire humanity at large.
This dream indicated that her son would have the supreme knowledge and would dispel the darkness of the delusions.
This dream indicated that her son would carry the banner of the religion. He would reinstate the religious order throughout the universe.
This dream indicated that her son would be perfect in all virtues and would be full of compassion for all living beings. He would be a supreme religious personality.
This dream indicated that her son would be beyond worldly attachment. He would help liberate human beings who were tangled in the cycles of birth, death, and misery..
This dream indicated that her son would have a serene and pleasant personality. He would achieve the infinite perception and knowledge and would escape from worldly life which is the ocean of birth and death and the misery. This would lead his soul to the Moksha (liberation).
This dream indicated that all of the Angels in the heaven would respect, honor, and salute her son’s spiritual teachings.
This dream indicated that her son would have infinite virtues and wisdom and he would attain the supreme spirit.
This dream indicated that her son would reform and restore the religious order. He would remove blind faith and orthodox rituals. Furthermore, he would burn or destroy his karmas and attain salvation. Some scriptures say that Queen Trishala had sixteen dreams.
To summarize the indication of all these dreams is that the child to be born would be very strong, courageous, and filled with virtues. He would be very religious and would become a great king or a spiritual leader. He would reform and restore the religious order and guide all the creatures of the universe to attain salvation. He would also be liberated. Lord Mahavira was born on the thirteenth day of the bright half of the month Chaitra, five hundred and forty-three years before the Vikram Era, that is in 599 B. C |
