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PART VI CONTEMPORARY JAIN LEGENDS
Summary Shrimad Räjchandra was a great saint, a self-realized master, and an outstanding educator. He was a born poet, possessed an extraordinary power of memory, a reformer of society, a keen follower, and an advocate of nonviolence. He had equal respect for all religions. As with many great personalities, Shrimad's greatness was not recognized in his life time. Shrimad was not popular among Jains because he spoke about the faults in Jain society and the traditions being carried out without understanding the proper meaning and purpose behind them. Many people have recognized his greatness since his death. Shrimad has put great emphasis on the need of a Sadguru in one's life for spiritual progress and ultimately to attain liberation. Shrimad always maintained that since he had not taken the vow of dikshä (sainthood), he was not eligible to preach the path of liberation. Therefore, even with his wealth of knowledge, he did not preach to the masses. He hoped that later in his life, he would become a monk, and when the time was right, he would bring the proper teachings of Jainism to the masses as there were many undesirable factors in the practice of Jainism at that time.
Moral: Shrimad's writings to his close associates and his personal notes are the essence of Jain religion. He has given us priceless spiritual gifts including "Moksha-mälä", "Atmasiddhi-shästra", "Apurva Avasar", and many other spiritual writings in the form of letters, articles, and poems. In his short life of 33 years, he delivered the spiritual message of eternal importance. He explained Bhagawan Mahävir's teachings in simple words. Now these teachings have become accessible to ordinary people, and we have the unique opportunity to learn about the inner state of a truly self-realized person.
38 - Questions: 1. Which incident deeply affected Shrimad at the age of seven? 2. At what age did he compose his first poem? Name some of the major works that he has written. 3. What is power of Avadhän? What was Shrimad able to do? Was it a natural ability or did he acquire it? 4. At what age did Shrimad realize samyag darshan? What did he do after that? 5. Why did he not become a monk?
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