________________
100
JAINA STORIES
By sheer chance, the two ladies were pregnant about the-, same time Meti gave birth to a male child and the scth's wife as usual to a dead one As per her previous comnutment, Meti passed on her child to the seth's wife, to the latter's immense joy She celebrated the occasion with great pomp and festivity The boy was named Metarya
"Metarya was not sixteen years old. He acquired. many arts Preparations were rhen set afoot for his .. marriage He was betrothed to eight beautiful damsels - from well-to do business families A suitable date was fixed for wedding Just a day before the wedding, a . friendly god came to him and said, 'Why are you getting Entangled in mundane life? You can very well adopt the path of renunciation But once you step in into the mundane life, it will be no easy job for you to get out of it'
"For one who has fascination for worldly life no counsel - would strike root He has his gaze fixed on it, and he never turns away from it So the words of the god did not appeal to Metarya, and he said in reply, “Sır, how do you think I can be indifferent to worldly life till I bare knownwhat worldly joys are So please do not stand in my way' Thus Metarya refused the god's suggestion in most unmistakable terms but the god was not prepared to accept - defeat He started thinking about some alternative stratagen
“The god decided to make use of Meti on the wedding day. He effected a necessary change in her mind, On the appointed day, as preparations were being made for the wedding, Meti suddenly broke in and made every thing topsy-turvy She started shouting, "The boy is mine I carried him in my womb I gave birth to him I shall settle him in marriage wherever I please' So saying, to the surprise of everybody, she dragged Metarya to her own home'
