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| Lord Mahavira and Goshala
fusty and stale rice. Goshala thought it to be an insult of him, and began to rain abuses on Upa-Nanda. Upa-Nanda got furious and ordered his maidservant to throw the rice over his head. She obeyed his master and hurled the rice pot over him. Goshala was furious with anger at this misbehaviour. It was quite improper for an ascetic like Goshala to lose his temper like this. He got angry with Upa-Nanda and said, 'If I am a disciple of a great ascetie, let this house of Upa-Nanda be burnt to ashes this very moment." As soon as he pronounced this curse, the Vyantara deities, in order to prove the greatness of the name of Lord Mahavira, though misused, set fire to the house of Upananda, which was reduced to ashes in a moment. Goshala did not act wisely when he pronounced this curse in anger. He misused his ascetic power for a bad purpose instead of using it for doing good to others. Indeed he was yet far from being a true ascetic, otherwise he would not have thus got enraged. Lord Mahavira now resumed his Vihara and came to Champapuri towards the beginning of the Rainy season. The people of Champapuri requested him very earnestly to pass his rainy season at their place and Lord Mahavira gave his consent accordingly. This was the third Chaturmasa. Lord Mahavira decided here to observe lasts of two month's duration each. When he commenced his austere penances, people came to see him. They were greatly surprised and delighted, while some of them wept to see his life of hardships. They blamed themselves when they compared their own mood of living with that of Lord Mahavira. At the end of the rainy season, Lord Mahavira left that place and went to Kollaka.
After performing meditation in a solitary place at
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