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Lord Mahâvîra His Teachings
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He felt greatly insulted, his pride got aroused, he took the cow in his hands and threw her far away. Decided as he was in his mind to retaliate by killing him in his next birth because as a monk he could not kill him in this very birth, in his birth as Triprstha Vasudeva he actually killed Visakhanandi who was born as a lion then. The enmity between the two continued for several births. This lion, after so many births, took birth as nagakumara. At that time Visvabhuti's soul was born as Mahâvîra. On account of that deeprooted enmity Nagakumara harrassed Mahâvîra who was travelling in a boat. But this time Mahâvîra had uprooted the enmity by his meditation and austerities. Thus ended the enmity between them. As regards the evil effects of sansual gratification or amorous sentiments also we have a good illustration in the life of Visvabhuti. Visvabhuti had the benefit of having the advice from a great person like Sreyamsa who was not an ordinary teacher but a Tirthankara, yet due to the evil effects he was not able to conquer his passions. He poured the heated lead in the ears of his night guard only because when Visvabhuti slept, the guard did not stop the singing as he wanted to hear it. Visvabhuti thought that only he had the right to hear the song performed for his sake. And as a result of this Visvabhuti in his birth as Mahâvîra had to suffer the revengeful attacks by that guard when he was in his meditation. This time the enmity was destroyed by Mahâvîra and so the series of revangeful actions and reactions ended.
Life of an ascetic was not new for Mahâvîra. In his birth as Priyamitra Cakravarti on seeing the clouds disappearing he realised that all these worldly possession are as transitory and worthless as those clouds. So, he immediately renounced the worldly pleasures and became a monk, but he could not destroy his passions. So he had to continue his Sadhana for moksa in the following births. As Mahâvîra he performed severe penances to destroy all the passions and as a result of this he became perfect one and attained summum bonum. This was his last birth.
In his birth of Nandana he performed such actions which made him Tirthankara in his last birth as Mahâvîra. These actions are:
1. Devotion to Arhat, 2. Devotion to Siddha, 3. Devotion to the Pravacana i.e. the Order of Law and the congregation of the holy persons, 4. Devotion to the Acarya-the head of the religious order, 5. Service of the old monks, 6. Service of the teacher, 7.
