A.P. Jain
Conditions before the Birth:
About 2594 years back (599 BC) in the eastern region of India, a bright source of spiritual light dawned. He became famous as Vardhaman Mahaveer.
During the period of Bhagavan Parshvanath, the feudal system of rule prevailed in India. However, the beginnings of democratic system had started appearing on the political scene. It was the dawn of the localized republics. After his Nirvana the republics started expanding and Vaishali emerged as the capital of the federation of small republics. Maharaj Chetak, a staunch follower of the Parshva Tradition, was the president of the Vaishali republic and the federation.
On the northern shore of the Ganges a large and powerful group of Lichhavi Kshatriyas favoured democratic system. The six prominent clans that formed this republic were-Ugra, Bhog, Rajanya, Ikshvaku, Lichhavi, Jnat, and Kaurav, and nine chiefs represented them.
Another union was named Malla and it was divided into two parts-northwestern and south-eastern. The capital city of north-west was Kushinara and that of south-east was Pava. The nine chiefs of the Federation of Malla republics were also staunch supporters of the democratic system. Nine Mallas and nine Lichhavis combined to form a well-organized apex union called the Union of Vajji Republics. The Lichhavis of the Vaishali republic were Suryanvanshi Kshatriyas, the descendants of Maryada Purushottam Ram. Before the advent of Bhagwan Mahaveer Swami and the Buddha, these were famous as the Videhas, but later, the name Lichhavi became more popular. Still, as a cultural group they always retained their identity as the Videhas. In the Jain literature Maharaj Chetak has been mentioned as Videgraj, his sister, Trishla, as Videhdinna. Mahaveer has also been mentioned as Videh Sukumal. All this is indicative of the higher religious and cultural status of the state of Videh.
The Royal Family of Vaishali:
To the north of Vaishali, there was a suburb named Kundpur Sannivesh. There was a colony of Brahmans in the southern parts of Kundpur. The chief of these Brahamans was Rishabhdatta and his wife was Devananda. Although a rich Brahman and a scholar of the Vedas and Vedangas, Rishabhdatta was a devotee of Bhagavan Parshvanath.
In the northern parts of Kundpur there was a colony of Kshatriyas of the Jnat clan. The colony was known as Kshatriya Kundpur. Siddharth was the chief here. Because of his great valor and wealth he was respectfully addressed as Raja or Narendra. He was a highly influential member of the Vaishali republic.
Trishla, the sister of president Chetak of Vaishali, was married to Siddharth; she was also known as Videhdinna and Priyakarini, Chetak’s elder son Simhabhadra (commander-in- chief of the army of the Vajji Republic. Maharaj Chetak had seven daughters-
1. Chelana-Queen of king Bimbsar Shrenik of Magadh.
2. Shiva-Queen of king Chandapradyot of Avanti.
3. Mrigavati-Queen of king Shatanik of Kaushambi.
4. Pradmavati-Queen of king Dhadhivahan of Champa (mother of Chandanbala).
5. Prabhavati-Queen of king Udayan (Udayi) of Sindhu-Sauvir.
6. Jyeshtha-Wife of prince Nandivardhan, elder brother of Bhagwan Mahaveer Swami.
7. Sujyeshtha-Did not marry. Became ascetic in Mahaveer’s organization.Ajatshatru (Kunik), the famous warrior character in Jain and Buddhist literature, and king Udayan of Vats were own grandsons of Maharaj Chetak.
Dreams: The Premonition:
One night mother Trishla is sleeping in her soft and cozy bed. Suddenly she dreams of auspicious things and gets up. She is filled with an hitherto inexperienced joy and ecstasy.
She leaves the bed, sits on a chair and contemplates, "So many divine and auspicious things together in my dream. I had such astonishing dream for the first time in my life, what does this indicate, indeed some benefits in the near future?" She goes to king Siddharth and tells him about the dreams.
King Siddharth beams with joy and says," Devi! Your dreams are bounteous. We will gain wealth, pleasures, happiness, and a son. We shall also have territorial gains. The interpretation of these dreams indicates that the son born to you will be the embodiment of the combined of the combined virtues of all the virtuous things and signs existing on the earth. (In scriptures like Acharang and Kalpasutra, it is mentioned that the descent of the soul that was to be Mahaveer was originally the womb of Devananda Brahmani. The fetus was then transplanted into the womb of Trishla Kshatriyani by god Harinaigamehsi under instructions from Shakrendra.)
After their morning chores, Maharaj Siddharth and Devi Trishla came and took their seats in the assembly hall. His younger brother Suparshva, his wife and other members of the royal family also took their seats nearby.
Famous dream readers of Vaishali arrived into the assembly hall. Maharaj Siddharth and Devi Trishla greeted the dream readers and scholars of eight pronged system of augury, and offered them high seats. The king said to them, "Scholars of augury! Last night in the early hours of the morning, Priyakarini, Videhdinna Devi Trishla saw 14 auspicious dreams. Kindly interpret these dreams on the basis of your knowledge and experience of the science of augury and satisfy the curiosity of all of us."
The augurs listened to the details of the dreams from Devi Trishla and beamed with joy. Pondering over, they interpreted the dreams as follows-
"O king of kings! Maharaj Siddharth! According to the science of dreams there are 72 auspicious dreams. Out of these, 42 indicate of ordinary benefits and remaining 30 of great benefits. The dreams the fortunate Devi Trishla has seen are the fourteen great dreams that indicate extremely auspicious and divine gains in the near future. According to these dreams Devi Trishla will give birth to a son who will become a Chakravarti, but.....
Maharaj! According to the scriptures there already have been 12 Chakravartis, the prescribed number for this cycle of time. However, one Dharm-Chakravarti (Emperor of religion) is still to be born. As such, all the signs and circumstances point at the fact that your son, the benefactor of mankind, will be a Dharm-Chakravarti."
King Siddharth amply rewarded the dream-readers and sent them home with due honor.
The Auspicious Birth:
It was spring time and the nature was in full bloom. The atmosphere was clean and pure. Cool and fragrant breeze infused joy in every particle in the nature. In the
soundless quietude of the midnight, the sky was fluorescent with milky moonlight. The auspicious date was the thirteenth of the bright half of the month of Chaitra. The moon was in conjunction with the Uttaraphalguni Nakshatra (lunar mansion), the sign of victory. At that auspicious moment Mother Trishla gave birth to a divine child.
The child was the embodiment of divine light. As soon as it was born, the world was filled with radiant light. It appeared as if, to behold this divine light even the blind were blessed with eyes. This light penetrated even the oppressive dense darkness of the hell. The hell beings forgot their pain. Quarrels, fights, and battles stopped. Those suffering from a life time of hunger and thirst experienced a divine feeling of fulfillment. All around cool and fragrant breeze started blowing. Patients of chronic ailments felt cured. Natural enemies too had a surge of a feeling of mutual goodwill and love. All the three worlds (heaven, earth and hell) were filled with waves of happiness. With the birth of the child, the whole atmosphere underwent a strange change for some time.
Hearing the news of the birth of Bhagwan Mahaveer Swami all the inhabitants of the dimensions of gods danced with joy. First of all the king of gods, Shakrendra, came and bowed before the Bhagavan and then circumambulated mother Trishla three times. All the gods goddesses and lower gods (Gandharva, Kinner etc.) sang and danced and celebrated the birth of the Tirthankar with gaiety.
According to the Kalpasutra, on the night of the birth of the child, first of all 56 divine maidens from all directions (Disha Kumaris) performed the first cleaning and other necessary post birth duties. Shakrendra and other gods, then, took the child to the peak of the Meru mountain and gave him the first bath and annointment. They sang songs in honor of the divine birth.
At dawn a maid named Priyamvada rushed to king Siddharth and announced, "Congratulations Sire! Many congratulations! Queen Trishla has given birth to a male child."
Filled with joy and ecstasy the king gave away all the ornaments on his body, save state emblems, to Priyamvada. He also released her from slavery. Thus, a slave woman was freed of her life long slavery just because she was the bearer of the good news of the birth of the Tirthankar.
Strange Celebrations: King Siddharth called his prime minister and ordered, "Tell the officer-in-charge of celebrations to organize unique and special birth celebrations."
After the kings order, all the highways, roads, and lanes in the town of Kshatriyakund were cleared, perfumed water was sprayed, and buntings, garlands, and leaves were lavishly put everywhere. Sweets and gifts were distributed. People danced with joy. The whole town echoed with felicitous songs and music.
Maharaj Siddharth had an inspiration. He called the prime minister and said, "The celebrations of child birth in the royal family are part of the tradition. However, on this particular occasion I want something new, something unique."
The minister humbly submitted, "Sire! Express your wish and it will be carried out like an order."
King Siddharth said, "Today announce a general amnesty. Free all the prisoners; right off all the debts; distribute money to the needy; allow fifty per cent subsidy on all purchases from all traders; open centers for distribution of food and clothes to the poor, old, and invalid; and liberate old and sick slaves. Thus let the townsfolk join the celebrations free from misery, hunger and bondage.
The order of king Siddharth was carried out. The celebrations continued for ten days with unprecedented enthusiasm. People hailed the occasion and muttered, " Some divine great soul has descended on the earth to liberate the world from pain and misery."
When the name giving ceremonies approached, king Siddharth said to Devi Trishla, "Devi! There has been a continued increase in our wealth, power and happiness. As such I think we should name the child as Vardhaman (ever increasing)."
Queen Trishla consented with joy, "Maharaj! You are absolutely correct. This child is certainly going to accelerate our all-around development."
Vardhaman: The Name:
On the twelfth day after the birth of the child, king Siddharth organized a great feast and invited all his relatives and friends. After meals and other state courtesies, king Siddharth addressed the guests, "Since the day this child was conceived, our family has been blessed with increasing goodwill, respect, wealth, and mutual affection. Cash, gold, and gems have increased in our treasury. The public has gained health, peace, happiness, and goodwill. Thus since the moment this soul has descended, there has been a continued enhancement in our glory, wealth, health, and fame. As such I and Devi Trishla have thought of a befitting name for this child ‘Vardhaman’."
King Siddharth’s suggestion was unanimously approved and the child was formally named Vardhaman.
Fearless Vardhaman:
One day Shakrendra, while talking in the assembly of gods, stated, "There is no person more brave, courageous and strong than price Vardhaman." Praising an eight year old boy’s bravery in the assembly of gods was a strange thing. A skeptic god jokingly said that Shakrendra was exaggerating. And he proceeded to test prince Vardhaman.
Vardhaman was playing with children of his age in the Jnatkhand jungle. The game was to race to a target tree, climb up, and come down. The first one to reach the ground was the winner.
Vardhaman ran the race and was first to climb the tree. Just then the boys on the ground, saw a ferocious cobra slithering up around the trunk of the trunk of the tree and hissing with its raised hood. The boys stated trembling with fear and ran away. From a safe distance they shouted, "Vardhaman, do not come down. There is a black serpent of the tree-trunk.
Vardhaman, on his way down saw the snake and also heard the call of his friends. He shouted back, "Be quiet, and don’t be afraid." He jumped down. The snake followed and, hissing, it leapt a Vardhaman. With astonishing agility, the prince caught the snake by its hood and with a jerk threw it away like a piece of rope.
After this, the boys started playing another game called Tindushak. This game was also a race to a target tree. The winner was to ride piggy-back on the losers and return to the base. The god who had come to test Vardhaman also joined the group in the disguise of a boy. In the game when Vardhaman won, the god got Vardhaman on his back and started
back for the base. On way he transformed himself into a giant. With the prince on his back the god flew in the sky. The boys shouted with fear. Vardhaman, undaunted, hit the giant with his mighty fist. The god cried with pain and landed back on the ground. Vardhaman jumped from his back. The culprit disappeared and in his place appeared a god, who begged Vardhaman’s pardon.
Test by Indra in the School:
When Vardhaman entered the ninth year of his age, his parents thought that it was time to impart martial and formal education befitting a Kshatriya boy to him. They decided to send him to school.
When he went to the school he offered his respects to the teacher just like any other ordinary student. In spite of having all worldly knowledge since his birth, by offering respect to his teacher, Vardhaman honored the age old traditional ideals. The teacher gave him the first lesson of the alphabets. Vardhaman listened silently. After sometime the teacher called him and asked, "Prince! You are just idling, why don’t you repeat the lesson and memorize it?" In reply, Vardhaman recited the full alphabets. The teacher was surprised.
While he was trying to fathom the surprising capacity of the little boy, an old Brahman, with a Tilak on his forehead, entered the school. The teacher greeted him and offered a seat. The Brahman asked some complex questions on grammar. The teacher could not reply and remained silent looking down in disgust. The Brahman smiled and said, "Acharya! Please do not bother yourself. May be, This new student of yours will solve my problem. If you allow me, I may ask him?"
The teacher consented and the old Brahman put the complex questions before Vardhaman. Little Vardhaman, Without hesitating, gave correct and appropriate answers. The teacher
stared dumbfounded at the little boy. The Brahman smiled and said, "Acharya! Please don’t feel insulted. You are not aware that the sun of knowledge of this era is present before you as prince Vardhaman. He is the future Bhagwan Mahaveer Swami, the omniscient."
It is believed that Indra compiled his questions and Vardhaman’s answers into a book named Aindra Vyadaran (the grammar of the Indra).
The Family:
Jnat clan to which king Siddharth belonged, was same as the Ikshvaku clan to which belonged Bhagavan Rishabhdev. Siddharth and Rishabhdev both also belonged to the Kashyap family. It is a matter of pride for the Ikshvaku clan and Kashyap family that 22 Tirthankars came from the same family.
Devi Trishla was the sister of Chetak, the president of the Vaishali republic. Because of the paternal connection with Videh area she was also known as Videhadatta (dinna); her third name was Priyakarini.
Vardhaman’s uncle or king Siddharth’s younger brother was Suparshva. Siddhartha’s elder son was Nandivardhan. Nandivardhan’s wife was Jyeshtha.
Vardhaman also had a sister named Sudarshana. When and to whom Sudarshana was married is not mentioned anywhere. However, her son Jamali was a famous figure.
Although surrounded by unlimited wealth and grandeur, prince Vardhaman’s mind and attitude was completely detached and purified by the fire of discipline. It was like a lotus flower in the pond. The power and glory of the kingdom never attracted him. Even his marriage to Yashoda, daughter of prince Samarvir, was due to the affectionate persuasion and pressure by and from his parents. Yashoda gave birth to a daughter, who was named Priyadarshana. Prince Jamali married Priyadarshana.
According to Acharang Sutra, three names of Vardhaman became very famous:
1. Vaddhamane - This name, Vardhaman, was given by his parents.
2. Samane - Saman or Shraman indicates his natural unblemished intellect.
3. Mahaveer - This indicates his unique bravery, courage, and tolerance. This name was given by the gods.Another of his names was Sanmati. Because of his purity of thoughts he also became famous by his name. Other names of Bhagwan Mahaveer Swami, found in canonical literature are as follows: Jnatputra, Vaishlik, Vir, Ativir, Antya Kashyap, etc.
Death of Parents:
Detached from all mundane activities and desirous of becoming an ascetic in order to pursue the spiritual goal, Mahaveer was keeping the matter pending due to his earlier resolution - "As long as my parents are alive I shall not think of taking Diksha."
When Mahaveer became 28 years old his parents took the last vow of continued meditation without food. They gradually purified their souls and left their mortal bodies with a serene mental state. After their death Vardhaman told his elder brother, now king Nandivardhan, about his decision to become ascetic. Nandivardhan replied in a choking voice, "Prince! Loss of parents followed by your renunciation; how will I be able to bear these shocks at the same time? Honor my desire and postpone your program for two years."
Vardhaman accepted his elder brother’s request and stayed back for two more years. But during this period he lived like an ascetic. Indulging in spiritual practices with due discipline, he prepared himself for his impending renunciation.
Knowing about his resolve for renunciation, gods from the edge of the universe arrived and put forth the formal request, "O benefactor of the world! Your resolve is great. Please proceed on the path of renunciation and propagate religion for the welfare of the world."
Prince Vardhaman gave charity three hours everyday for one year. Rich or poor, whoever came to Vardhaman was awarded whatever he desired. At the end of one year Vardhaman was ready for renunciation.
