________________
71. ATTANA, THE WRESTLER
Attana, the wrestler enjoyed the patronage of king Jitasatru of Ujjayini.
In his part of the country, he was the most formidable wrestler. On the western coast, the king of Sopäraka usually held wrestling matches and gave a lot of wealth to the wrestlers that won them. Attana almost regularly went to Sopāraka and won most of the prizes.
The king of Sopāraka did not quite appreciate the thought that a wrestler from another kingdom should win the honours every year. Therefore, he raised a fisherman to the level of a champion wrestler so that he could defeat Attana. The next wrestling season saw the fisherman wrestler triumph over Attana who as usual had come with great expectations. When he went back to his own residence, it was with a determination to train a young wrestler to compete with the fisherman.
He heard of one such promising young man in Saurastra. Attana went there and when he reached the village where this farmer was living, he felt impressed by his first sight of him. The farmer was carrying a big plough in one hand and picking o
and picking cotton by the other. Attana wondered what sort of food the young farmer ate but it was only rice that his wife brought to him for his lunch. Attana asked the farmer and his wife whether he could stay at their place overnight. At night, Attana told him who he was and the purpose of his visit. The farmer agreed to go with him and train himself as a wrestler in Ujjayini and when his wife demurred, Attana gave her the full price for her cotton and she was happy.
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
