Sadhvi Vishrut Vibha
Inspiration Generates Enlightment
Once, two Brahmins, named Jayaghosha and Vijyaghosha lived in the city of Varanasi. Both of them were well versed in the Vedas.
One day, Jayaghosha went to take a bath in the river. There he saw that a snake had caught a frog in its mouth and was trying to swallow it.
Just then, a Kurura bird was swallowing the snake, the pain of frog, which was being eaten by the snake increased. Watching this painful sight, Jayaghosha’s heart was filled with unberrable sorrow, which changed him, and he accepted the path of renunciation from a Jain monk.
Jayaghosha wandered from village to village and finally came back to Varanasi, where he stayed in a garden situated on the outskirts of the town. There, he undertook a fast for a month. On the day of his paarna he went to the city for alms. At that time, his brother, Vijyaghosha was performing a sacrifice. He had invited Brahmins from various places and a variety of food dishes had been prepared.
When Muni Jayaghosha reached the enclosure of the sacrifice for alms, Vijyaghosha said, “I shall not give you alms, seek alms in some other place. This food is reserved for those who are scholars of Vedas, sacrifices, astronomy and religious scriptures and are capable of uplifting their own soul as well as the souls of other people.”
The great monk, Jayaghosha, remained calm, even though he was insulted and refused alms. In a soothing voice he explained to Vijyaghosha that one can neither become a shraman by wearing a uniform nor a Brahmin by repeating om; neither a monk by residing in a forest nor a hermit by wearing robes of kushgrass. Further he said, “One becomes a shraman by equanimity, a Brahmin by celibacy, a monk by gaining knowledge and a hermit by performing austerities.”Listening to these great words of Jayaghosha, Vijyaghosha got enlightened. This freed him from the bondage of Karma. He realized his own mistake regarding the conditions and attributes of asceticism. He accepted monkhood and finally both the brothers attained liberation.
