Vijaydharmasuri

Author(s): A J Sunavala
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Page 45

YASHOVIJAYA JAINA PĀTHASHĀLĀ 39
C
Benares-the traditional seat of Brahmanic learning, the heart of Hinduism. The idea was, perhaps, more plausible than practicable. It was considered almost impossible for a Jain Sadhu to cross the vast stretch of land bare-footed, and found a Jain College in a place where Jainism was almost unknown and people were determinedly hostile. Those who knew him tried to dissuade him from his intentions and earnestly besought him to desist, but nothing could shake Dharma Vijaya's faith. He remained unmoved, strong and steady in his resolution; for nothing that can happen to the manifested world can shake the sublime serenity and peacefulness of him who has risen to the realization of the Self of all. It is better to try nobly and to fail than ignobly not to try at all'; that, in fact, is the great inspiration for him who has caught a glimpse of the highest. His own intelligence directed him; his own conscience guided him. The consent of the intelligence, the consent of the conscience, these were the true strength of the hero. He had chosen his highest, and he desired to follow it unflinchingly. He knew his own strength; he knew his own endurance. He was ready for the stones that would pierce his feet; he was ready for the thorns that would tear his flesh. Confiding in his faith, and confiding in the goodness of his cause, he set out for Benares, accompanied by six monks and a dozen pupils; and, overcoming all the difficulties of the road, he eventually reached the city, in the year 1903.