ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 03

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

Page 226

arrived in Campanagarī, Queen Kundanaprabhā had the entire town decorated with flowers. However as the prince and his entourage approached the town Campānagarī, the foul smell from their bodies overshadowed the fragrance of all the flowers. Seeing his son Śrīpāla and his entourage as lepers, she ordered them to leave Campānagarī and live elsewhere in a forest. Śrīpāla became very sad and in spite of his utmost persuasion and reminding his mother about the Jain monks blessings and prophecy, had to leave the town. Śrīpāla and his soldiers decided to live in a forest which was known to have trees with medicinal qualities. This forest was closer to Ujjaini also. The news of Śrīpāla's leprosy reached Ujjaini also and king Pahupāla asked his daughter Maināsundarī to forget Śrīpāla and marry someone else. However Maināsundarī, a firm believer in Jain doctrine of Karma and its path of spiritual purification, decided to be with Śrīpāla only. Her father tried his best to persuade her otherwise but in vain. She had very heated arguments with her father on the subject to the extent that the father lost his good values and conduct. So she left her father to be with Śrīpāla. On the other hand her elder sister married a prince Harivāhana of Kausāmbi, who was handsome but ill reputed and notorious for his vices. Harivāhana died within a month of his marriage after leaving his wife Surasundarī pregnant.
On seeing Maināsundarī, Srīpāla requested Mainā to return to her father as he was a leper and cannot provide any worldly comfort to her. They both had long arguments based on Jain doctrine and ultimately decided to be together as husband and wife. She was a firm believer of the following values taught to her by Jain monks.
Every soul has the capability to become super soul i.e. one can get rid of all his pains etc and achieve his highest objective. Body and soul are different entities. Soul is eternal. I am the soul and different from body or its states. Diseases are a part of body and both accrue as a result of our past karmas. They are momentary and can be eliminated completely. Karma can be extinguished completely or their results can be made less or more effective by pious conduct.
With full faith in the above values, Maina started taking care of Srīpāla, nursed his body by keeping it clean, giving some medicines from the forest trees, narrating Jain doctrine to Śrīpāla regularly. Besides she also started giving pure wholesome vegetarian food to Śrīpāla and his soldiers. Finally she organized a big puja under the auspices of a congregation of visiting Jain monks and had Śrīpāla and his soldiers also join the pūjā. At the end of the pājā, she had the sandalwood water collected after giving bath to Jain idols (called gandhodaka)
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