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03 - FOUNDER AND LORD MAHÄVIR
person came to him asking for donation, and Bhagawan Mahävir gave him half the piece of cloth that he had. Later on, the other half of the cloth got stuck in a tree and Bhagawan Mahävir never picked it up.
As a monk, he continuously traveled on bare feet for the next twelve and one-half years to eradicate all karma that subdue the original qualities of the soul (four Ghäti Karma). He carefully avoided harming other living beings including animals, birds, insects, and plants. He also went without food for long periods of time to gain the inner power as a part of his religious practice. He remained calm and peaceful when facing unbearable hardships. During this time, he remained in deep silence and meditation to conquer his desires, feelings, and attachments.
Eventually his spiritual powers developed fully, and he realized perfect perception, perfect knowledge, unlimited energy, and perfect conduct completely free from mental agony. This realization is known as the perfect enlightenment or Keval-Jnän. Lord Mahävir spent the next thirty years traveling throughout India preaching the eternal truth that he had realized. He established a religious order based on the Jain philosophy, which had been preached by his predecessor Tirthankara Pärshvanath (950 BC to 850 BC) and all previous Tirthankaras. However, Lord Mahävir expanded the code of conduct by emphasizing celibacy as a separate vow, not as a part of the non-possession vow. He also introduced Sämäyika and Pratikraman like daily observances for his followers. He felt that such changes were essential for proper spiritual advancement at that time. Thus, Mahävir, even though he established a new religious order, was more of a reformer of the old religious order of Lord Pärshva than the founder of a completely new faith.
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JAINISM AND SPIRITUAL AWAKENING
