Jain Journal 1985 04

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 22

APRIL, 1985
123
opinion, Anjana should be received and sheltered, at least till the prince comes back. Queen Ketumati is well-known at mischief-making and should not be taken very seriously. Considering the girl's future, I urge, you change your mind."
But the king's mind was a closed chapter and the minister's words made no impression on him. Justifying his stand, he said,
“Queen Ketumati could have told a lie. After all, it touched her own family. But it is well-known that Pavananjaya had no relation with Anjana. He never came to her even once during long twelve years. And at the time of his going out, he insulted her in public. How can it be that all on a sudden, he changed his mind and came to her apartment ? I am, therefore, not prepared to listen to any argument on this point. I cannot shelter a sinful creature. She may be turned out from where she is. I do not want to see her face.”
When one's evil stars are up, everyone turns his back on him or her. This happened to Anjana. Her parents did not receive her ; her brothers and their wives turned their back on her and did not as much care as to look at her. So the two ladies once again returned to the forest and took shelter there.
Days passed in this way. One day, they met a great monk and Anjana expressed a curiosity to know about her past. Revealing this, the monk said,
"Kanakaratha was the king at Kanakapuri. He had two queens named Kanakodari and Laksmivati. Kanakodari gave birth to a son, but somehow Laksmivati stole the new-born child and kept it in hiding. Kanakodari was very much in distress at the loss. Now, a pious neighbour reasoned with Laksmivati that she had done a very wrong thing in hiding the child from the mother. And after twelve hours, she returned the child in an angry mood. But Laksmivati was not inherently bad. She propitiated the gods, preceptor and religion, and so after death she was born in Saudharma-kalpa. Having exhausted her life-span in that celestial abode, she is born now as Anjana. But the karma of her previous birth was affixed on her soul. It has now attained maturity, and so twelve hours have become twelve years.'