Lord Mahavira

Author(s): Boolchand
Publisher: Jain Cultural Research Society

Page 35

PERIOD OF PREPARATION.
Mahavira's Natural Bent of Mind.
All biographies of Mahavira are agreed upon one point, namely, tha he led he life of a householde : for thirty years. With wha mental atti ude this period of ife was lived, of that we have no certain knowledge. Certain Digambra books suggest that Mahavira lived his life as a house-holder in a normal manner, taking a healthy interest in his environment and enjoying the many opportunities of work and play afforded to him by his exal ed station in society, until all of a sudden in his thirtieth year he began to reflect and meditate and feeling disatisfied with the p ospect of an 'unending mundane existence made up his mind to renounce the world. The Svetambara accounts, on the other hand, depict Mahavira as having been an unusually reflective lad from the very beginning. Even in his early youth he seems to have thought of renouncing the world, but he was always prevailed upon by his affectionate parents o change his resolve. Nor did Mahavira desire to hurt his parents, if he could help it. It appears tha: Mahavira's parents were quite assiduous in mak ng attempts to engage the boy's mind in worldly things and in creating around him a luscious atmosphere of amusemen' and pleasure. Fairly early in life he was married to a charming princess, Yashoda, belonging to the Kaundinya gotra.
On the question of Mahavira's marriage there is a fundamental difference of detail between the Digambara and Svetambara accounts. While the Svetambara books distinctly mention that Mahavira lived married life for about 10 years and begot a daughter named Anojja or Priyadarsana, the Digambara books deny the fact of marriage altogether. But from a critical study of the several od biographies of Mahavira, it is possible to establish that the Digambara view is based