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________________ MORAL STORIES 38 Kamalsen Shripat Sheth and his wife Sundari once visited Shri Shilandhar Acharya and told him that both of them observed daily vows such as reciting Namaskar Mantra and performing Navakarashi (to eat 48 minutes after sunrise), Samayika (meditation for 48 minutes), but their son, Kamalsen, did not observe any vows. Kamalsen's parents were unhappy and anxious about their son's lack of devotion and spirituality. They requested the monk to give some advice to their son, so that he would change for the better and be happy in this life as well as the next. The monk willingly obliged. After reaching home, the merchant said to his son, "Well, my son, a great teacher is visiting our town. He is a very learned man, and his lectures are worth listening to." The next day, they accompanied their son to the lecture. After paying their respect to the Acharya, they sat down to listen. The Acharya talked about many things, including hell, heaven, misery, and Keval-jnan. After the discourse, the parents asked Kamalsen what he felt about the lecture. Kamalsen replied, "I was too busy watching the movements of the Acharya's neck area." His parents were greatly dismayed and returned home disappointed. 154 Kamalsen watching the potter hiding the treasure JAIN STORY BOOK
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________________ KAMALSEN Soon after, another great sage, Acharya Gunasagar-suri, visited the town and his parents and Kamalsen went to visit him. The Acharya told the audience various stories of bravery, humor, sorrow, and family relations with religious messages because such stories attract common people. The boy liked those stories so everyday he attended the Acharya's sermons and listened with interest. After a few days, the Acharya was preparing to leave town. Kamalsen joined the people at the farewell ceremony. Many people pledged to observe some vow. Kamalsen was asked if he would take a vow. He said, "I will not tell a lie except during the day or the night. I will not put a whole watermelon into my mouth, nor will I eat cow manure." The Acharya was surprised by the boy's ridiculous behavior. Hence, in order to repent, the boy vowed not to eat food without looking at the baldhead of Simelo, a potter in the town. The Acharya was very pleased with Kamalsen for taking a vow even though it was a very strange one. One day, Simelo went to the forest to get some clay. Kamalsen was about to eat lunch when his mother reminded him of his vow. He immediately ran to the forest to find the bald potter. There he saw the potter digging in the ground. While digging, the potter came across a pot full of gems and precious stones. At the boy's arrival, he started hiding it underneath a heap of soil. Kamalsen shouted, "Yes! I have seen it (indicating to himself that he had seen the bald head of the potter, as per his vow)." The potter thought Kamalsen meant that he saw the pot and he did not want anyone else to know about the gems. Therefore, he told the boy that he would share half the treasure from the pot if he did not tell anyone. At first, Kamalsen did not understand what Simelo was talking about but later he understood and gladly accepted the treasure and returned home. Kamalsen thought deeply as he returned home, "A simple vow taken as a joke brought me this wealth. Had I taken this vow seriously, I would have benefited a lot more." This incident changed Kamalsen's life. He then observed many vows and became very happy. When one takes vows to do something, it should require true devotion and discipline and require some form of sacrifice consistent with the principles of Jainism. Taking vows that do not fit this profile is useless and has no meaning. Taking vows and following through with them benefits one's soul. These benefits may be evident in one's present life or may not be evident until some future birth. However, vows definitely help to discipline your present life. JAIN STORY BOOK 155