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अनुसन्धान-५४ श्रीहेमचन्द्राचार्यविशेषांक भाग-२
vrishni has ten sons: Samudravijaya the eldest, and Vasudeva the youngest. Samudravijaya's son is Nemi. Vasudeva's sons are Balarāma (from Rohini) and Krishna (=Vāsudeva, from Devaki). Krishna and Balarāma are thus cousins of Nemi, who is destined to be the 22nd Tirthankara.
Vasudeva has also two daughters: Kunti and Madri. They are married to Prince Pāndu of the Kuru-vamsha residing in Hastināpura. He has five sons, known as the Pāndavas. Kunti is the mother of Yudhishthira, Arjuna and Bhima; Madri is the mother of Nakula and Sahadeva. The Pāndavas are not "shalākāpurushas”, but enter the Jaina narratives because of their close family relationship with Krishna, and most importantly, with Tirthankara Nemi.
Krishna-Vāsudeva kills Jarāsandha (his Prarti-Vāsudeva), conquers the Three Continents of the Bharata-kshetra, and is crowned an Ardha-Cakri. The city of Dvārakā (in Saurashtra) is founded and is eventually destroyed by fire. Krishna and Balarāma walk in the desert alone, and Balarāma goes to fetch some water for Krishna. In the meantime, Krishna dies of an arrow shot at his feet by a stranger.
Notably, in the Jaina doctrine of karma, both Vāsudeva and Prati-Vāsudeva, on account of their nidāna (enmity and unfulfilled ambition), are predestined to be reborn in one of the seven hells (narakas). Consequently, Krishna is reborn in the Third naraka. Tirthankara Nemi predicts that after emerging from there, Krishna will become a Tirthankara, in the Bharata-kshetra, in the upcoming utsarpini (Upward moving) time.
Balarāma, grief stricken, renounced the world, assumed the vows of a Jaina ascetic (muni), and at the end of his life was reborn in a high heaven.
Early in his life, Nemi, unmarried, renounced the world and became a muni. He led a holy life, attained omniscience
