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________________ MALLIKAMAKARANDA 425 especially, women, to be the source of grief he took to asceticism. Manorama knows that it is this man whom Candralekha wants to kill. She requests Makaranda to narrate his life story. He tells his account thus : "There was a merchant by name Jinadatta, who lived in 'Suvarnadvipa'. He was the best among highly religious persons. He had inherited immense wealth. I was his only son born to him in his late age. I was named Makaranda. Right from my boyhood I squandered away our ancestral wealth by gambling and I had to depend on others for even two meals a day. In the very prime of my life I started visiting harlots." Tapasakumara was disgusted with him to hear it and told him not to proceed further in his narration. When Manorama and Makaranda importunated him to allow him to narrate the rest of the account he relented. Makaranda then resumed narration : "As it was not possible for me to live amongst my own relations and people belonging to my caste I migrated from Suvarnadvipa to the mountain Pancasaila. There I was separated from my beloved by an unknown agency in a mysterious way. Then I decided to end my life by throwing myself into the ocean when I saw there a Bharunda bird that had arrived. What happened in between I do not know but I found myself this morning in the garden adjoining the siddhayatana." Tapasakumara (rightly) thinks that the Bharunda bird, greedy of flesh, must have brought him there and suddenly dropped him down from high above. Makaranda then requests Tapasakumara to suggest to him some way to put an end to his life. Just then Devalaka arrives there to offer Tapasakumara divine fruits. Tapasakumara learns from Devalaka that he has been asked by Candralekha to find out of what form the newly arrived man is and where he is seated'. Tapasakumara fears something untoward might happen to Makaranda. Just then Magadhika arrives there and excitedly says : "A great misfortune is about to visit them." She whispers into the ear of Tapasakumara what that misfortune is. Hearing her words Tapaskumara feels very much distressed at the hard-heartedness of his mother. He regards Magadhika like his own mother and requests her to show the way to save himself and Makaranda. She advises Makaranda to go to the siddhayatana and stay there as (even) minor calamities do not visit a person during his stay in the siddhayatana. Tapasakumara too advises him to go there and follow Magadhika's instructions scrupulously. Magadhika and Makaranda then leave for the siddhayatana.. From behind-the-scenes there is the sudden fall or throw of a huge slab of stone from above. It was the doing of Candralekha who was terribly angry with Makaranda for pursuing her daughter (Mallika) even in a different dvipa and wanted to kill him on the spot 'at one stroke'. She asks Devalaka to remove the slab of stone so that she could again kill him Stud.-54 Jain Education International For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org
| SR No. | 001868 |
| Book Title | Studies in Jain Literature |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | V M Kulkarni |
| Publisher | Shardaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre |
| Publication Year | 2001 |
| Total Pages | 114 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English, Literature, & Story |
| File Size | 14 MB |