Mahavir Prince Of Peace

Author(s): Ranchor Prime
Publisher: Mandala Publishing

Page 96

CALM AMIDST a STORM
The Travelor expected the boat to exparse at a moment but Mahavira remixed brangit and fearless, understanding that the storm was the work of an angry spirit.
NA PREVIOUS BIRTH on his journey toward spiritual wisdom, Mahavira had lived as a nobleman named Triprustha. He had been a powerful man who was always anxious to defend his community, but on one occasion he had killed a lion. The unfortunate creature had come out of the jungle and entered the paddy fields where the villagers worked. Being frightened of the lion they dared not venture into the fields to harvest their rice. Triprustha heard of their predicament and hunted down the lion, killing it with his arrows. After this the spirit of the lion, who had died in fear and anger, was unable to rest, being overcome with the desire to seek revenge. This mischievous spirit used to haunt a particular stretch of the Ganges where travelers would cross by ferry. There it waited for the soul of the former Triprustha to pass that way so it could retaliate
Meanwhile, not far from there, two very different beings lived as bullocks in the care of a devout householder and his wife. They were peaceful animals who enjoyed listening to the sacred hymns recited by their master, who loved them dearly. When they died he prayed over them and they were reborn as benevolent guardian spirits who protected travelers at the same ferry crossing.
One day Mahavira desired to cross the Ganges and reached that very place. A crowd of travelers were waiting to board the ferry and he joined them. The ferryman helped them aboard his boat, which was soon packed with passengers. As he was preparing to depart, an owl, perched in the branches of an overhanging tree, hooted loudly. This unusual omen dismayed the passengers, for to hear an owl during daytime was believed to be the portent of disaster. However, they all noticed the saintly figure who sat quietly in their midst, who seemed oblivious to any danger, and they felt that so long as this man was with them they would be safe.
The oarsman began to row and soon the heavily laden boat was in the middle of the swiftly flowing