Tirthankar Mahavir and His Sarvodaya Tirth

Author(s): Hukamchand Bharilla, K C Lalwani
Publisher: Kundkund Kahan Digambar Jain Trust

Page 55

BHAGAVAN MAHAVIRA : PRESENT LIFE
on the highways, this was the only topic of discussion Someone was saying, “A bondage is a bondage so long as one feels it. Though outwardly the soul is in bondage inwardly it is free. From an infinite time, people have forgotten about the freedom of the soul, while they harp on its bondage. Thus people are tied by their feeling which is worse than the material bondage. If this bondage of feeling goes and if one feels that he is free. then even external bondage goes. The feeling of bondage, the remembrance of bondage, the thought of bondage makes one mean, lowly, their reverse makes one vigorous and powerful, and when one is conscious of his vigour, where does bondage stand ? The forgetfulness of Candana about her bondage became the cause of her liberation”
A second one said, "How is it possible to deny bondage when it is very much there and to say that one is free ?" Said a third one, “It is possible It is possible to declare oneself free Looked at objectively, things are also like that. The bondage is at the surface, inside the whole thing is free by nature There is no bondage in nature, and once this is admitted, the bondage on the categories start to drop The deepest feeling of freedom is possible in the midst of bondage because the being inside is free, and the freedom of this internal being is capable to cut the bondage of category"
In the course of his wanderings monk Vardhamana reached Ujjaini. There he assumed pratimā-yoga and went into a trance in a cremation ground called Atimuktaka Sthanurudra who was an exceedingly wicked fellow started creating great disturbances By dint of his power, he assumed fierce forms and made a futile effort to disturb him He started launching disturbances which are the habit of fierce animals, Bhilas and demons But in the monk's perseverance, Sthanurudra witnessed the real heroism He realised that heroism was freedom from fear and a state of firmness Heroism was not a category of violence, but non-violence itself His disturbances could not overwhelm the monk
In the case of the indifferent monks who are dedicated to the realisation of they self never experience favourable-adverse situa