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Jainism: The Cosmic Vision
in Pavapuri was steeped in sorrow. After a silence of twelve long years the saviour had spoken. Not after two or five hundred years, not even after one or two hundred years, not after seventy five years, but only after seventy two years Lord snapped the bond that had stood in the way of his complete liberation. However sweet the moonlight may be, this cannot change the fact of its being an aspect of the black night.
Worshippers now thronging around Lord Mahavira. Rishis were blowing conch-shells. Indra, the chief among gods, was busy making preparation for the nirvana celebration. But the hearts of gods and of human beings were full of grief. For they knew that Lord Mahavira's divine self would now no longer be visible and his pious words would no longer be heard. The great god Indra also wished that Bhagwan should put off his nirvana.
The great god Indra said to Bhagwan, "This constellation suggests an inauspicious fate. Would you please not put off your nirvana for a while? This is very easy for you who are omniscient and omnipotent."
Mahavira realized Indra's illusion. He said, "Indra, your love for my physical self makes you speak so. All things, the cause of my birth, the function of my body and the aim of my life have ceased to be. Let alone a moment of my life, even a fraction of a moment is burdensome."
Some people thought that whatever Bhagwan might say, he would not accept nirvana so soon. Maharshi Gautama, the prime disciple of Mahavira, had gone elsewhere to deliver a sermon. They thought that Bhagwan would not pass away when his prime disciple was away. But breaking the subtle
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