Jainism For Beginners Level 03

Author(s): Sayampurnashreeji
Publisher: Sayampurnashreeji

Page 92

jump into that space, & you decided to hold your foot up in order to save the rabbit. The fire raged for two & a half days during which you continued to hold your foot up out of compassion for the rabbit.
only due to our own Karmas. They are only temporary by their very nature. The everlasting happiness is achieved only upon liberation"
Stories During Bhagwan Mahavir's Life
At the end of the fire as the animals retreated, you tried to lower your foot. It was so stiff by then that you could not keep your balance & fell down. You felt agonizing pain & could not get up. You spent three days & nights suffering from severe pain. Ultimately you died & in your next birth you were born here as the prince of King Shrenik because of your compassion for the rabbit. If you could face that much distress for the sake of a rabbit & attain this priceless human life in return, how can you not face the accidental kicking & the dirt from the feet of your fellow monks ? Do you realize that by renouncing this worldly life & by becoming a monk you have taken the first step towards the long journey of liberation ? Remember that all this suffering & happiness are
Meghakumar was spellbound by the Lord's words & realized his mistake. He requested the Lord to reinitiate him since he had virtually broken his vow of monkhood by strongly desiring worldly life. The lord did so & Meghamuni, as he was called thereafter, started leading a rigorous austere life. Fasting for days at a time, he stayed in meditation most of the time in order to eradicate his Karmas. When his body became very weak & he could no longer observe the rigours of ascetic life, he decided to observe the fast until death. This vow is called Sanllekhana. He fasted for a month on mount Vaibhargiri near Rajgrihi. Upon death, he was born in heaven.
pon death, he was bo Bhagwan Mahavir has stated to Gautam Swami that at the end of the heavenly life, Meghakumar would be reborn as a human being & would attain liberation.
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