Shraman Mahavira

Author(s): Dineshchandra Sharma
Publisher: Mitra Parishad Calcutta

Page 61

AMONGST THE PRIMITIVES
43
The Lord thought-To stay in another's place is unpleasant, but to stay in a sequestered place can be equally unpleasant To retort violently can bread bitterness but the same bitterness is harvested by silence.
'What avails me to generate ill-will amongst others? It is a human-infested land Wheresoever I move, they chase me Some of them are curious about me My proneness to be silent peeves them Some come upon my haunts, in search of lonely spots My presence stultifies their attempt and they are angered Some of them are inquisitive and are attracted by the oddities of a sadhu Their bustle descecrates the tranquility of the place when I meditate unwinking my staring eyes frighten the youngsters Were it no better for me, then, to retire to regions where primitives live? There the habitation is sparing The villages are few and far between Solitary mountains and uncontaminated jungles bless these places. There neither my presence shall offend anybody nor any one pester me
The will of the Lord would take no time in turning into action If he willed something, the next moment saw its fulfilment Like a winged bird he turned toward wildernesses of such zones that culture had not contaminated He had no need to seek any body's advice for consent There was no burden to be shifted to some one else His property was a wick that constantly emitted light The container followed the wick
The present biographer had infinite questions thronging his mind What was the number of his visits to the primitive haunts? What places did he frequent? Where would he lodge himself during such sojourns and for how long? How did he find this experience? How did the primitives respond to him? Satisfactory replies did not come forth Lastly, a resort to abstract communication was had The biographer succeeded in conveying the questions to him for whom they were meant But the transmission of replies could not be correctly received at this end