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Bhagawan Mahavir ]
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deeds. Goodness or straight-forwardness after becomes a cause of trouble, and Chanda-Kaushika now welcomes this goodness. He thought that his beneficence lay only in atoning for his evil deeds by means of straight-forwardness. By this time the boys felt pity on him. They ceased to beat him and ran away to the villagers to inform them of this occurrence.
As soon as the villagers heard of this, they hurried to see the Snake and the Lord standing there in meditation. They thought to themselves that this wonder was worked by the same ascetic for no one else had the courage even to come near that place. Talking among themselves that the hermit was really powerful to lower down the pride even of poisonous snakes, they returned from that place. The path which had been lying waste for years, and which was closed till yesterday, was now opened for general traffic, and people were pouring to see the Lord in that vicinity. They were all attracted there and began to love and worship him. The ghee-seller women who passed that way offered their love to him, and worship him with ghee. Chanda Kaushika did not move lest he might strike awe in the hearts of his worshippers. This ghee-worship of the Snake continued for sometime until the ants began to be attracted by the ghee that stuck to his body. When the worshippers saw that the ants were biting the Snake on account of ghee, they stopped to pour it on his body; but the ants had bitten him so much that his body had become like a sieve. This time the Snake showed extra-ordinary patience. At other times, he could move his body this way and that but now for fear of killing any ant under his body, he had completely ceased to move.
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