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One day, the king was performing pauşadha in his pausadha room. While he was undergoing a vigil at night, he had a thought in his mind,
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'Fortunate are those villages, towns and cities which are sanctified by the dust from the feet of Bhagavān Mahavira. If some day, my city Vitabhaya has a similar good-luck (i. e., if Bhagavan Mahavira is gracious enough to visit this city), I shall give up the life of ahouseholder and follow him as a monk'.
Bhagavan Mahāvīra was an omniscient personality.
He came to know at once the toughts of Udayana and turned his steps towards his country. It was a very long trek of 700 krosas. The way was uneven and exceedingly difficult. Some of the monks died on the way due to extreme hardship. (At last, the party of Mahavira reached Vitabhaya). The king was immensely delighted to receive Bhagvan Mahavira in his own city. He attended the congregation of Mahavira, and expressed his mental resolve of very long standing of joining the holy order as a monk. Said he,
"Bhante!
Till I come back after placing my son on the throne, please be not in a hurry to move out from here".
"But don't be careless and slow in this matter", advised the master in reply.
The king came back to his palace. On his way, he gave his mind to the arrangement he would make for the kingdom after he would be initiated into monkhood. He thought.
"If I place my own son on the throne, he would grow attachement for it, and continue gliding back and forth in wordly existences. (In other words, he would be a perpetual victim of rebirths). And I shall be the cause of his fetters. I can save him if, instead of placing him on the throne, I place my nephew on it. This will save the prince".
The king took a final decision on it and made it effective. Having completed the necessary rituals he moved out, and followed the footsteps of Mahavira as a monk (23).
