Chitrabhanu Man with Vision

Author(s): Clare Rosenfield
Publisher: Jain Meditation International Centre New York

Page 53

"O, being the son of the great Adinātha, the saintly one, what am I doing here competing with my own brother? For what am I raising my hand? Let me instead use this hand to bless myself and become a muni like my father.” And he lowered his hand to his own head and plucked out his hair in the manner of a monk.
Bharat saw this and fell at his brother's feet. “O brother, I was doing everything in ego and ignorance. Now I realize that I too am a son of Adinātha."
Bāhubali told him, “You must be the king. Now I know I want only peace."
Meanwhile, without waiting to see the outcome of the contest between Bharat and Bāhubali, the younger brothers ran off to ask their father what was to be done. "Should we also fight?"
Adinātha answered, “Fight with your own inner enemies and weaknesses, not with your brother."
So they became monks along with their father. When Bahuball heard that his younger brothers had become munis before he had, he realized that if he went home, he would have to bow down before them. Instead, he made up his mind to stay in the forest until he became Enlightened.
According to the legend, he stood in one single spot meditating for such a long time that vines grew up around his legs and arms, and birds made nests in his ears. And yet he was unable to reach his goal; that ego which prevented him from bowing before his younger brothers also deterred him from Enlightenment.
In his infinite wisdom and compassion, Adinātha knew of his son's veil of ignorance and of his tenacity to reach his goal without anybody's guidance. So he sent his two daughters, Brahmi and Sundari, who were nuns, to shake their brother from his slumber and unawareness.
“Come down off your elephant!" they cried out to him.
“What elephant?” He looked about. Suddenly he understood — his ego was his elephant. He took a step — to go and bow down before his father and younger brothers, and in that step, he was Enlightened.
Surrendering to wisdom, he became wisdom. Removing
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