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PART V STORIES AFTER BHAGAWAN MAHÄVIR
34-King Samprati
King Samprati was a great Jain King who lived during the second half of the third century and the first half of the second century BCE He was the grandson of the great King Ashok and the son of King Kunäl.
Jain history provides some details of his life. Buddhist literature also mentions him by the Präkrit name, Sampadi. His name occurs in some of the Hindu Puräns, wherein he is variously referred to as Samprati, Sampati, and Saptati, etc. Moreover, coins depicting a crescent and bearing his name have now been found. The sign of the crescent represents the Jain symbol of Siddha-shilä and the three dots are symbolic of the Jain trio of right faith, right knowledge, and right conduct. Some of the coins also show a swastika below the three dots. This is conclusive evidence of him being a Jain King.
Samprati was raised and educated in Avanti and became the King of Avanti in 232 BCE While he was prince, he once saw a grand Jain procession led by Ächärya Suhastigiri, who was the head of the Jain religious order. On seeing the Ächärya, Samprati felt that he had seen him somewhere. While deeply pondering over it, he faintly remembered that the Acharya was his guru in an earlier life. Samprati bowed to the Ächärya and asked whether he knew him. The Ächärya thought for a while and remembered that Samprati was his disciple in the previous life.
Various incidences in King Samprati's life
There was a severe famine when Ächärya Suhastigiri was in the city of Kaushämbi. During the famine it was very difficult for Jain monks to get alms. Jain householders, however, made sure that the monks received alms. At that time, there was a poor man who could hardly get any food and was starving. He noticed that the monks were getting enough food even during the severe famine. Therefore, he requested the Ächärya to give him some food. Foreseeing that the man had great potential to be a Jain legend in the next birth, the Ächärya told him that he could get food if he became a monk.
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JAIN STORY BOOK
