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56
KUVALAYAMĀLĀ
making me almost unconscious, seeing her dying thus on account of my separation, as they put it. They sought my advice as to what should be done. It was day-break by this time. They decided to finish her funeral, and faggots of sandal tree etc. were gathered together. As her body were consigned to flames, they fell into a swoon; I consoled them; but, in a fit of lamentation (239.30-33), they jumped into the flames of the funeral pyre. Even before I could dissuade them, they were reduced to ashes. I was shocked and plunged into remorse: I too decided to enter the same flames. Just then I heard. å Vidyadhara couple conversing on the propriety of an action like that which I was about to do, and changed my decision. For funeral offerings, I entered a lovely lake, and lo! I sank in a well; and when I came up, I saw a surprising scene: everything appeared magnified, and men were five hundred bows in height. It was a strange land. The well was converted into a Vimana; and getting down from it, I started moving about. I met two boys, in whose presence I looked like a worm, an ant; they wondered about my human speech, and from their talk I gathered that it was Apara-videha. They took me on their palm and, to my pleasure, reached the Samavasaraṇa of Sīmamdharasvamin with a view to inquiring my antecedents. In reply to Gautama's question, Mahāvīra explained about the udaya, kṣaya and kṣayopasama of the Karmas (§ 371). Then I offered prayers to Jina, attracting the attention of all there. To a questionnaire from the audience, Mahāvīra gave out the details about me. He disclosed that as I was an addict to women, a couple of Vidyadhara youths, dressed as females, tempted me away like that and played on me that joke of entering the funeral pyre. When I was ready to enter the fire, that very Vidyadhara couple arranged to bring me here in this form. Among the five souls agreed to enlighten one another, I was one: Mohadatta > God > Pṛthvīsāra > God > and, now finally, Kāmagajendra, to be enlightened here to attain final liberation. The lord also explained the peculiar conditions in the Aparavideha (243.13-22) contrasted with those in the Bharata-kṣetra. I offered prayers to Jina; and when I lifted my head, I found myself back here." The queen told Kamagajendra that all this sounded like a miracle, beyond spatial, temporal and sequential proportions; but he assured her that all that was really experienced by him; and Sīmamdhara was still in his heart. It was got verified from Mahāvīra as true, next morning. Kāmagajendra realized the vanity of worldly ties and pleasures, put his son Diggajendra on the throne, and accepted renunciation. Mahāvīra told him the whereabouts of the Five colleagues: one in heaven, with a short life now, and the rest on the earth here (enumerated 244.24 f.); and that he would attain liberation in this very life (Pages 232.23-244.28: *76.29- *79.40).
VAJRAGUPTA AND HIS RENUNCIATION: When Mahāvīra reached Kākandī with his Samavasaraṇa, he expounded there, in reply to a specific question of Gautama, how, in the same activity, different souls, according to their passional intensity, incur the bondage of different Karmas, as illustrated by the theory of six Lesyas (§ 376); this carried great conviction upon the audience. Just then, there arrived a striking prince and inquired whether what was recited by a divine voice was true, blessed or not. Getting Mahāvīra's reply in the affirmative, he went away bent on doing according to the instructions,
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