Book Title: Jain Legend Vol 2
Author(s): Hastimal Maharaj, Shuganchand Jain, P S Surana
Publisher: Hastimal Maharaj Shugan C Jain P S Surana
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Jamb Kum ra continued his explanation, “Prabhava! Forget about past lives. I will recount an incident where in the same birth, many relationships are formed and how a calamitous chain of events occurred due to one's ignorance”.
The narration about Kuberadatta and Kuberadatt
“Once there lived a courtesan Kuberasen in the city of Mathura. When she became pregnant for the first time, she had a severe pain in her stomach. A physician was summoned. After examining he said, "She is carrying twins and hence is feeling inconvenient. There is nothing to worry".
Kuberasen 's mother tried to convince her to get rid of the pain by taking some medicine and terminating her pregnancy. But Kuberasen did not agree. In due course she gave birth to twins – a son and a daughter. She named them Kuberadatta and Kuberadatt respectively.
One day Kuberasen 's mother said, “Because of your children you will lose your patrons. Therefore it is better that you should abandon them at some deserted place”.
After being repeatedly pressurised by her mother to abandon the children, Kuberasen finally gave in. She got made two finger-rings with the names of children engraved on them. When the children were eleven days old she put the rings in a thread and tied them around their necks. She then placed each child in a small boat-shaped wooden basket along with a bundle of precious stones and set them afloat at night in the river Yamun.
The two baskets drifted and reached Sauripura by dawn. There two wealthy merchants came to bathe in the river. They noticed these two floating baskets and immediately pulled the baskets out of the river. They felt very happy to see the two children, the rings with their individual names engraved on them and the bundle of jewels. After discussing with each other, they took one child each to their respective homes. The two merchants and their wives brought up the children as if their own with love and care, providing them with all comforts; they were imparted with education and made able.
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