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________________ STORIES PRECEDING BHAGAWAN MAHAVIR Meanwhile, Bharat had become the undisputed emperor or Chakravarti of the world. He was the first Chakravarti of the current time cycle of Avasarpini Ara. He ruled equitably and in the interest of all. People were happy during his administration. India was recognized as Bharatvarsha. He himself was happy in every respect and ruled for a very long time. One day a ring slipped off his finger while he was in his dressing room. He noticed that the finger looked rather odd without the ring. His curiosity overtook him and he removed all his rings and saw that his fingers were no longer beautiful. Then he took off his crown and other ornaments that used to decorate his body and looked in the mirror. He noticed that he did not look as handsome as he used to look. This set off a train of thoughts. "I consider myself handsome and strong but this entire look is merely due to the ornaments which do not belong to the body. The body itself is made up of blood and bones. Then why am I so attached to my body?' He thought further. "My body will not last forever and will decompose sooner or later. At that stage, I will have to leave everything behind. The only everlasting entity is the soul.' He thus realized that nothing in the world, including his body, really belonged to him. He came to a major decision. "Why not do away with my attachment of all the temporary things and instead focus on something that lasts forever like my father did?" Thus, he developed an acute detachment for the worldly life. As per Shvetambar tradition, this reflection led to the rise of true enlightenment from within and as a result he attained omniscience or Keval-jnan in that very room as a lay person. Digambar tradition indicates that after an acute detachment of worldly life, he renounced that life and became a monk. Immediately after becoming monk, he attained Keval-jnan. At the end of his life he attained liberation. The focus of this great story is on ego and self-realization. Ego and pride build negative Karma and lead one to destructive behavior as detailed in the story. Ego also causes anger and leads one to irrational behavior. Ego and superficial pride must be overcome on the path to enlightenment and omniscience. We should all strive for cultivating humility, one of the fundamental principles of Jainism. 66 Jain STORY BOOK Jain Educap international For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org
| SR No. | 201053 |
| Book Title | Bharat and Bahubali |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | JAINA Education Committee |
| Publisher | JAINA Education Committee |
| Publication Year | 2010 |
| Total Pages | 4 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Article, Jaina_Education, & 0_Jaina_education_Story |
| File Size | 1 MB |