________________
THE LIFE OF MAHAVIRA
47
appointment of the poor Brāhman lady Devānandā, which was due, they say, to her evil karma. In a previous incarnation Devānandā and Trisalā had been sisters-inlaw, and Devānandā had taken advantage of their intimacy to steal a priceless jewel from Trisalā, and so, by the automatic working of the law of karma, which invariably makes the punishment fit the crime, her jewel of a son was removed from her and given to the woman she had wronged.