Book Title: Jain Shwetambar Conference Herald 1915 Book 11 Jain Itihas Sahitya Ank
Author(s): Mohanlal Dalichand Desai
Publisher: Jain Shwetambar Conference
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TAMANNA AnnannnANNAARRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAnnnnnnnnnn.
Naraative Literature of the Jainas. 229 There are many versious of this story in India, especially amongst the Jainas. I shall enumerate them in my forthcoming German translation of Hemavijaya's Kathàratnakara. Presently I only want to give the two Buddhist versious of this tale. The first has been translated from the Tibetan of the Kah -Gijur into German by Prof. von Schiefner, and from the German into English by Ralston, Tibetan Tales, London 1906, p. 120. Here the story runs thus:
There was a householder in a hill-village who, after he had married in his own rank, remained without either son or daughter. As he longed earnestly for a child, he took unto himself a concubine. Thereupon his wife, who was of a jealous disposition, had recourse to a spell for the purpose of rendering that woman barren. But as that woman was quite pure, she became with child, and at the end of nine months bore a son. Then she reflected thus: “ As the worst of all enmities is the enmity between a wife and a concubine, and the step mother will be sure to seek for a means of killing the child, what ought my husband, what ought I to do ? As I shall not be able to keep it alive, I had better give it to her. »
After taking counsel with her husband, who agreed with her in the matter, she said to the wife, “ O sister, I give you my son; take him.” The wife thought, “ As she who has a son ranks as the mistress of the house, I will bring him up." . After she had taken charge of the boy the father died. A dispute arose between the two women as to the possession of the house, each of them asserting that it belonged to her. They had recourse to the king. He ordered his ministers to go to the house and to make inquiries as to the owner. ship of the son. They investigated the matter, but the day came to an end before they had brought it to a satisfactory conclusion. Iu the evening they returned to their homes. Visakha 1. again questioned Mrigadhara, who told her every.
1. This is the heroine of the frame-story.
