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SHRAMAN MAHAVIR
the character of Chellana Vividly do I see how chaste and noble is her character And still suspicion seeks to eclipse her moon-like virtue'
The blunder of the king was brought home to him He rushed back to the female apartment The fire that was to reduce everything to ashes was put out by the waters of wakefulness The king congratulated himself for his redeemed wisdom
The moments of spiritual awareness are the moments that grant purpose and sustenance to human life Whatever endows, uplifts and ennobles human existence is a reward of such worthy moments
During his meditation the Lord realised that the self is like a wakeful, refulgent sun Life and death have no access to it There exists neither a craving for life nor shrinking from death A coincidence of body and vitalbreath lends this self a living physical frame The moment the two are snapped, the self quits the body, resulting in death
The self is ever-present whether in life or death. Why then the craving for life and shrinking from death? The Lord probed this enigma and revealed that the self is shorn of cravings Craving is its oblivion The self is shorn of fear Its oblivion itself is fear The word of the Lord is echoed even today, 'One who has thrown vigilance to winds is exposed to fear from all sides The one grounded in eternal wakefulness has nothing to fear '1
Once the Lord summoned Gautam and the monks to himself. They approached him
He questioned them, 'May you live long, shramanas! Will you tell me what the individual self is scared of?'
Said Gautam, 'My Lord! We fail to grasp the purport of the question Pray, enlighten us regarding your own query We are all ears for your preaching' ' 'Worthy saints! The individual self is scared of pain'
1 'Ayaro', 3/75.
