Bhagvana Mahavira

Author(s): Tulsi Acharya
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati

Page 23

Thirty Years of Family Life
15
When Trišalā did not feel the foetus stirring in the womb, she became sad. Doubts possessed her. After some time she disclosed her condition to her attendants. The king also came to know what was happening to the queen. He too became gloomy. The entire household shared the anxiety and sadness of the royal couple.
The unborn child perceived what was happening in the external world. He saw sadness and anxiety pervading the whole atmosphere of the palace. He soon came to know the cause of the sudden change and reflected, "This world is really mysterious. That which is done for the good of mankind is regarded as a source of evil. I had stopped stirring out of compasion for my mother. This has caused distress to everyone. The world is accustomed to gross things only beyond which it is incapable of imagining anything." It decided to stir again. When Trišalā felt the stir in the womb, her face beamed with joy and the gloom changed into exaltation. The news reached the king also. Once again the palace became gay and assumed a festive appearance.
The child in the womb reflected upon the mental state and ambitions of its parents. Out of affection for them, it resolved not to become an ascetic after he had been born during the lifetime of his parents. The Wonderful Child
After all, Trisalā was delivered of the child. The birth was celebrated with universal excitement and joy. The mother was the happiest woman on that day. The dreams she had dreamt and the prophesies made by the sooth-sayers etc. began to float in her memory making her still more cheerful.
Trišalā had taken every care and practised discipline for the safety and good of the child she had conceived. She took very meagre meals during her pregnancy. She avoided all kinds of rich and harmful food. She lived on a balanced