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Lord Mahavira renunciation and entered upon the ascetic life. The Jaina legends say that in his later life an Ashoka tree grew wherever Mahâvîra had preached.
The Jainas speak of five degrees of knowledge that lead to Omniscience. Mahâvîra, they say, was born with the first three, Matijnana (Knowledge by cogitation), Shrutajnana (Knowledge by hearing), and Avadhijnana ( Knowledge by feeling). Immediately after initiation he gained the fourth kind of knowledge, Manahparyaya jnana, by which he knew the thoughts of all sentient beings of five senses in the two-and-a-half continents and it only remained for him to obtain the fifth degree of knowledge, that of Kevala jnana or Omniscience, for which Mahâvîra now embarked on a life of intense ascetic practices for twelve years and a half.
During this period Mahâvîra meditated always on the Self, the Atman, and walked sinless, self-controlled and determined in thought, word and deed. According to Jaina tradition during this period he fasted for 4166 days, ate only for 349 days, and slept for 48 minutes. He took secret vows of austerity (Abhigraha) which were miraculously fulfilled. During this period, he was beaten mercilessly. Nails were driven through his ears. He was even hanged but the rope broke lcose. He was tempted, and honouerd. Mostly he lived like a wandering ascetic, only spending the monsoons in a particular place. Eleven such monsoons he spent at Rajagriha, and other rainy seasons at Nalanda, Shravasti, Vaishali and Mithila. But tortures or temptations equally failed to break his determination for the attainment of Omniscience in this very life. Centuries later the Uttaradhyayana Sutra wrote of Mahâvîra saying, “A wise man who knows that women are a slough, as it were, will get no harm from them, but will wander searching the Self”.5 The Jaina scripture Kalpa Sutra writes about this period of his life:
As water does not adhere to a copper vessel, or collyrium to mother of pearl (so sins found no place in him); his course was unobstructed like that of life; like the firmament he wanted no support; like the wind he knew no obstacles, his heart was pure like the water (of rivers or tanks) in autumn ; nothing could soil him like the leaf of a lotus ; his senses were well-protected like those of a tortoise ; he was single and alone like the horn of a rhinoceros; he was free like a bird; he was always like the fabulous
