Lord Mahavira Vol 02

Author(s): S C Rampuria
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati Institute

Page 11

Lord Mahâvîra
March 30, 599 B.C. Both Digambara as well as Svetambara do not differ on this date.
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The childhood of Lord Mahâvîra is full of strange and adventurous episodes. He was endowed with a sharp intellect, high sense of discipline, obedience and other qualities we find in great men even in their childhood. His very mission of life was to be an example of an ideal noble life and thus to teach the people to be good. Many remarkable incidents took place in his early childhood. When Mahâuîra was only eight years old, he was admitted into a primary School. The teachers and others got bewildered to see his sharp intellect and witty remarks. There are many incidents5 showing his miraculous power. One day while playing with his friends in the garden of his father, Mahâvîra saw a big elephant coming towards him who was mad and ferocious. Rut was flowing from his temples. All his companions, boys as they were, awe-stricken and afraid of the impending danger deserted him and fled away. Without losing a moment, Mahâvîra went towards the elephant, caught hold of his trunk with his mighty hands and overpowered him and thus demonstrated his unlimited valour (ananta virya). Lord Mahâvîra was also called Sanmati." One day, two monks who had doubts about the existence of tattva were passing through the road where child Mahâvîra was playing. After seeing the spark of innocence on his face their doubts vanished and they were fully satisfied of its existence. They named him as Sanmati. And thus Lord Mahâvîra's childhood was spent in a dignified way.
Mahâvîra was related to almost all the royal families of that? time. The maternal grandfather of Mahâvîra, Cetaka, was chief of the Licchavi republic. His mother's first sister Prabhavati was married to king Udayana of Vatsa, her second sister Padmavati to Dadhivahana, king of Campa, and the third sister Siva to king Canda Pradyota of Ujjayini. Thus Mahâvîra had his maternal relation with the royal families of Anga, Vatsa, Avanti, Videha and Magadha.
About his adult life, Jaina scholars differ. The Digambaras are of the view that Mahâvîra was never married and led the life of a Brahmcari Qtill his death, and was disgusted with the ways of the world from his very childhood. On the contrary, Svetambaras assert that he was married to a lovely and beautiful princess