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city, and Dhanya's officers reported the fact to him. Then Dhanya was pleased, and went out with his three wives in a litter with great splendour, to do honour to Srívíra. Çálibhadra also went out with great magnificence, glittering with jewelled ornaments like a god, in order to take the vow. Then both of them left their litters and entered where the Jina was, and after worshipping him, they sat down in a suitable place and listened to his discourse on religion. When Çálibhadra had heard the discourse, he tore out his hair* himself, and with his eight wives took a vow. Then Dhanya also and his three wives took a vow; and after these two men had performed severe asceticism for a long time, they had recourse to starvation at the latter end of their lives, and were born as two gods in the Sarvarthasiddhi abode. Here ends the story of Dhanya, having reference to giving alms.
Strive ever after the performance of faultlessly correct conduct, the root of true religion, and that will be acquired by honouring the Tírthankara, and the congregation, and by other similar observances.
Now follows the story of Árámaçobhá, touching the honouring of the Jina and the congregation.
In this very land of Bharata, in the country of Kuçádhya, STORY OF ÅRÁMAÇOBAÅ AND there is a village named SthaláTHE GRATEFUL SNAKE
çraya. For a whole yojana round
it there are no trees--nothing, in fact, higher than grass. In it there lived & Bráhman named Agniçarman, and he had a wife named Jvalanaçikhá, and a daughter named Vidyutprabhá. When the girl was eight years old her mother died. From that time forth Vidyutprabhá performed the household duties. She got up early in the morning and milked the cow; she cleaned and polished up everything, and took the cattle out to the pasture ; in the middle of the day she drove the cattle home and gave her father his meal, and afterwards ate herself; then she went again to the forest to pasture the
* See Dr. Hoernle's . Uvásaga Dasáo,' appendix iii. p. 80.
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