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time ago King Mahabal ruled over
the city of Veetshoka in Maha-videha
region of Jambudvipa. King Mahabal had
six very close childhood friends. All seven of them were so close that they did everything together. Non of them did anything without seeking the advice of the others.
Once a well-known Acharya named Dharmaghosh-Suri came to Veetshoka city. King Mahabal and his friends went to listen to his sermon and were very impressed. Mahabal realized that extreme misery and pain exists in living a worldly life. He decided to renounce worldly life and shared his desire with his friends. His friends also agreed to renounce their worldly life along with him. King Mahabal and his six friends became monks and disciples of Dharmaghosh-Suri.
Asmonks, these seven friends observed austerities and restraints together. Unknown to his friends however, Mahabal had an intense desire to make every living being free from suffering and to guide them towards liberation. This desire leads to the acquisition of the Tirthankar-Nam-Karma. To achieve his objective, Mahabal secretly observed longer austerities. Because of this intense
LIFE SKETCH OF TIRTHANKARAS.
2. bhagawan
mallinath
penance, Mahabal acquired TirthankarNam-Karma. At the same time, because of this secrecy he acquired the karma that he would be born as a female in the future.
All of them continued to observe ever-increasing austerities throughout their lives. At the end of their lives, all of them attained a heavenly abode. After completing the heavenly life span, Mahabal and his six friends were born as human beings in different places. During this time, King Kumbha was ruling over the city of Mithila, India. He had a Queen named Prabhavati. She was pregnant and saw 14 pious dreams indicating the arrival of a Tirthankar soul. Since Mahabal had earned the Tirthanar-Nam-Karma and a female gender his soul descended into the womb of Prabhavati and was born as Princess Malli.
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