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| Ahimsa Sthal, New Delhi |
The 24th Tirthankara
Story of Lord Mahavir
Vaishali City, 599 BCE (Present Day: Vaishali, Bihar)
Birth and Early life as a Prince:
A beautiful city named Vaishali City was ruled by Solar Dynasty. More precisely, by the Ikshvaku Rulers. It was the era for a great change, in which a god was about to come on the earth.
Vaishali City was prosperous and was being well-ruled by the king of that time, King Siddhartha. Few years ago, he married with a daughter of President of Vaishali City, Trishala. One night, Queen Trishala had dreams. They were in a proper series. Scholars say there were totally 14 dreams. (According to Shwetambar), and 16 dreams (According to Digambara). Those dreams meant something. As we know that our forefathers had specific knowledge about the particular dreams and their results. And this was the perfect moment. Queen Trishala saw those dreams at that night.
The series of dreams are shown below: (Good Omens)
1. Dream of an elephant
2. Dream of a bull
3. Dream of a lion
4. Dream of Laxmi
5. Dream of flowers
6. Dream of a full moon
7. Dream of the sun
8. Dream of a large banner
9. Dream of a silver urn
10. Dream of a lake filled with lotuses
11. Dream of a milky-white sea
12. Dream of a celestial vehicle
13. Dream of a heap of gems
14. Dream of a fire without smoke
15. Dream of a pair of fish (According to Digambara)
16. Dream of a throne (According to Digambara)
After having these dreams, frightened Queen Trishala woke up her husband, King Siddhartha and informed him about these dreams. They both knew that those dreams were signifying something. Queen Trishala was pregnant in those days, and they couldn’t ignore such moments in such precious time.
Next day, King Siddhartha summoned few scholars and asked their help to enlighten them about the results of those dreams. Scholars said that those dreams indicate good result, and they might result into a brave, courageous, intelligent and virtuous child. Hence, the dreams had the throne and other things that indicated a child with royal and kinglike future. However, dreams have few things which indicated a peaceful nature and very simple lifestyle. Whichever would create the child’s nature, we know that, right?
In few months, on the 13th day of bright day of Chaitra month, Queen Trishala gave birth to a son, a scion of Ikshvaku Dynasty. Many good omens had been noticed before the son was born. He was named Vardhman, a boy who grows and grows, with each prospect like knowledge, brilliance, strength and courage.
Considering that child’s childhood, it was simple and his nature was quite complicated. Royal Family which belonged to Solar Clan, especially Ikshvaku Dynasty, was hoping and expecting him to become a great king. But that boy’s destiny had something different for him, something better, or the best. The boy seemed very brave, courageous and peaceful since his childhood.
At his young age, he married to Yashoda, and gave she gave birth to a daughter, named, Priyadarshana. (According to Shwetambara). However, Vardhman’s mind had been wandering elsewhere, away from the luxuries and comforts of palaces, away from the actual life. His mind was continuously asking for one thing, a meaning which could make sense to his heart and which could explain him the real meaning of humanly mortal life. What is the meaning of pain and happiness? He wanted to dig these answers. And he understood that he couldn’t get answers if he stayed in the royal palaces and enjoyed those comforts and luxuries.
Therefore, he made the most painful decision of his life, and he left the comforts of royal palaces, along with all luxuries and even the relations. He went away from Vaishali City, which had expected him to become their king. It is said that Vardhman had a sibling, named Nandivardhana. But not sure, who took the throne after departure of Vardhman. He took Diksha (Celibacy.. Leaving relations and comforts behind and live like a sage). It’s noted that he took Diksha at Vaishali.
Sandavan, 569 BCE (Present Day: Kundalpur, Madhyapradesh)
Ascetic Life:
After leaving his home and city Vaishali, he moved in a park/forest, called Sandavan, which was near the Kundalpur (Present Day: Kundalpur, Madhya Pradesh). He started meditating in that parks and nearby areas to get the enlightenment of everything. In the beginning, he wore few clothes around his lower body. But then, he felt that there should be no shame in wandering around without clothes. Besides, a celibate must wader without nothing, and clothes can’t be considered as nothing. So, he left clothes too, and started meditating.
The youngster, whose name was Vardhman before he took Diksha, sat in meditation under a tree, named Ashoka Tree. People, passing by that tree through the forest, felt odd, seeing a young man sitting under a tree, completely naked. They considered it as a shameful act, and Vardhman had to endure too much humiliation in that period. Boys used to throw stones at him, while he was meditating. Few stories about unbearable humiliations are popular in culture, which proves his peaceful mind and a beautiful nature. He endured all humiliations, and then, finally, that moment came. The moment of enlightenment. After twelve and half year. He achieved his enlightenment at the age of 43.
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| A popular story from his ascetic life |
Rijuvaluka, 556 BCE
Spiritual Enlightenment (Keval Gyan)
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| Enlightenment of Lord Mahavir (Keval Gyan) |
On the 10th bright day of Vaishakh, at the place called Rijuvaluka, that ascetic Vardhman achieved his spiritual knowledge, which was his enlightenment (Keval Gyan), and he became a legend. He became the Mahavir. After enduring pain and humiliation of the world for so many years, he got his enlightenment and became a legend. That spiritual knowledge gave him perfect perspective, bliss, knowledge of truth and power.
His Teachings:
For more 30 years, Lord Mahavir travelled almost all parts of India and shared his knowledge among people. And when people realized his divine knowledge and way of spirituality, they started worshipping him as their mentor, and eventually, a god.
Even the royal kings became his followers and followed his major teachings which still should be followed by mankind. King Bimbisar of Magadh, King Srenik, etc, famous kings were his followers and they were those few persons who gained knowledge under the one of the holiest person himself. Lord Mahavir was not just a man with flesh and blood, he was a long living message for mankind which established a way to gain the great destination of all souls. (Moksha)
Lord Mahavir’s teachings are concluded in his main five principles, which should be considered as the pillars of peace and bliss.
1. Ahimsa (Non-violence): Ahimsa Paramo Dharmah. Ahimsa means Non-violence. The greatest Dharma for us. Non-violence can bring bliss in mankind, and it has that ability to melt a stone-hearted person, and change many hearts, and eventually, this particular concept can establish a peaceful nation.
2. Satya (Truthfulness): Truthfulness of a person always leads him to greatness. A truth-speaking people are always favorited among the one who doesn’t follow this concept. Truthfulness is indication of a person’s pure heart and his honesty. These concept can establish purity in one’s heart.
3. Asteya (Don’t steal): Stealing something is always seen wrong, and that is wrong. If someone is not giving something properly (with heart), why to accept it? Because it is what seems like stealing.
4. Brahmacharya (Celibacy): Celibacy doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t marry or don’t have intercourses. It means we must not connect ourselves in those bonds so tightly that we can’t break it when the time comes. We must understand our spiritual existence and that, we are just souls. And the relations, we make here, are just our body’s relations.
5. Aparigraha (Detachment): As I explained that we must not attach ourselves so much in people, or in mortal things that we forget about our actual and spiritual existence. We must have that free look over these things and should concentrate on the supreme soul.
I wrote four posts for explaining the most important concepts of Gita, and I personally think, these teachings also teach us the same. When there are so many evidences about effects of these principles in our daily lives, I still wonder why we don’t follow these. Are we afraid of losing or failing? Are we so attached with these mortal stuff that we don’t see what we actually are? Are we so sunk in the luxuries and comfort of these mortal things that we don’t know the pain of poor? Are we so dumb that we are not seeing perspectives of so many people, who tried to change our lifestyles?
Besides, I agree that sometimes these principles are hard to follow, and sometimes we have to take a different route. E.g., As Gita says that we must follow the path of Ahimsa (Non-violence), because it’s the best way to follow. But when the situations are like that Mahabharata war, you can’t take the way of Ahimsa. Pandavas and Krishna tried many time to explain Duryodhana that what he was doing, was wrong. They tried the way of peace and non-violence. But sometimes, enemies take your thinking of non-violence as your weakness and attack on it, and you can’t let them do that, can you? So, sometimes it becomes necessary to take a different route.
We must not kill animals or even harm them. They have done nothing wrong, or harmful to us, then why to hurt them? So whatever we do with animals, is completely wrong. We can explain people about its consequences, but we can’t force.
Pawapuri, 527 BCE (Present Day: Pawapuri, Bihar)
Moksha (Departure from earth):
After spending 72 years of his life on the earth, the god departed on the day of Diwali from the earth in 527 BCE. He got Moksha in Pawapuri (Present Day: Pawapuri, Bihar).
I personally think, whether you believe him as god or not, but you can’t deny the better results of his lifelong teachings. I think, he was not just a person with flesh and blood, he was the symbol that gave us the knowledge that we had forgotten in many years. Since the Dark Age (According to Hinduism) has started, it’s been more than 5000 years. And it’s been more than 2500 years, since Lord Mahavir existed. After those 2500 years, a messenger, the god himself comes to share that forgotten knowledge and people accepts his teaching with pleasure. But after another 2500 years, that knowledge seems to have been forgotten by our generation. I know that Lord Mahavir’s teachings have been followed by almost Jain people, but is it sufficient? Who said that his teaching can’t be followed by people of another religion? When a person of Ikshvaku Dynasty (In which our Lord Rama was born) could leave pleasures of his life and shows us the path to follow, why we can’t accept? As a matter of fact, 22 Tirthankara of Jainism were born in Ikshvaku Dynasty. And I still don’t understand why people have been discriminating us. As I said, I believe Lord Mahavir as a symbol of truth and bliss. Even if I’m Hindu, I think his teaching adds that extra flavour in Hinduism. The epics and pillars of Jainism adds more sweetness, which we need badly in recent days.
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| Carving of Lord Mahavir in ancient cave |
Since it’s been the holiest festival of Jains, Paryushana has been going on, I thought it’s the perfect moment to remind the teachings about the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism to my readers as well as myself.
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