‘Vanadattā, with a graceful gait like the walk of an elephant, eventually reached the garden. Prince Tosala, his heart abandoned to the mighty feelings of passion that gripped him, indifferent to scandal, casting all sense of shame to the winds, not even caring if he lived or died, and having not a shred of fear, thought, “This is my chance!” Drawing his terrifying sword, his mind clouded by great delusion, he shouted, “Lady! If you care for your life, then give yourself to me. If you do not, I will take your life with one swift blow of my sword.” Her friends raised a hue and cry when they saw the turn of events. Suvarnadevā cried out to those who were there, “Help! Help! Come quickly, come quickly! Someone is about to slay my innocent daughter, as a hunter slays a deer in the forest!”
‘At that Mohadatta emerged from a bower, sword unsheathed. He cried, “Vile wretch! You whose name should not even be spoken! Shameless man! You dare to attack women? I will protect this lady. Show yourself to me.” When he heard this, Tosala rushed to confront Mohadatta. He struck Mohadatta with his sword. Mohadatta was a skilled swordsman and he deftly parried the blow. With a counter-strike he delivered Prince Tosala into the saw-like jaws of Death. Mohadatta then went towards Vanadattā. She accepted him as her husband, for he had just saved her life. Suvarnadevā rejoiced that her daughter was safe. Mohadatta said, “Lovely lady, rest easy. Stop trembling. Do not be afraid.” Mohadatta then took her in his arms and as he was about to consummate his love for her, he suddenly heard a deep and melodious voice.
‘“You have slain your father right before your mother’s eyes and now, O foolish one, you are about to make love to your very own sister.”
‘Mohadatta looked around him; there was no one there. When he heard the same voice three times in a row he began to have some doubts. His mind was filled with a mixture of astonishment and anger. Brandishing his sword, Mohadatta began to search everywhere in the garden. His eyes lighted upon a holy man, the very incarnation of Religious Practice, the best of renouncers. Thinking, “This lord of monks must have spoken those words,” Mohadatta bowed down at the feet of the Jain ascetic and then sat down a short distance from him. Suvarnadevā, Vanadattā and her friends did the same. Mohadatta declared, “Blessed One! Why do you say, ‘You have slain your father right before your mother’s eyes and now are about to make love to your sister?’ How is it that that man was my father? How is it that this woman is my mother? And this one is my sister?”
‘The lord of monks then clearly explained everything to them, starting with the events in Kośalā and ending with the death of Tosala. “The first sin that you committed was to kill your father, Tosala. Your second grave sin is that you desire your own sister. In every way one must condemn the workings of great delusion.’ When Suvarnadevā and Vanadattā heard these words, they both lowered their heads.
‘Mohadatta, disgusted by the very idea of sexual pleasure, thought of how human existence was filled with impurities. He was ready to walk the path of total withdrawal from this world. Mohadatta now said:
‘“Ignorance is the root of endless sufferings, which spring from it like so many trees from their own roots. Sin is nothing but ignorance; fear is nothing but ignorance.
‘“And so, Lord of monks, tell me what I must do, unlucky person that I am, so that I shall destroy all of my sins by their very roots.”’
‘The Blessed One replied,
‘“Abandon forever your wife, sons and friends. Abandon everything forever. Undergo ordination as a monk; ordination is the only boat that can take you safely across the ocean of rebirths.”
‘Mohadatta said, “Blessed One! Ordain me as a monk.” The ascetic replied, “I am a solitary wandering monk. I do not belong to any lineage. I cannot confer on you the monastic vows.
‘“Those who know the Jain doctrine proclaim that there is a mountain that is ten, eight and fifty furlongs in extent, in elevation, and around its base.
‘“There stayed the Glorious son of Nābhi, Rsabhadeva, the first Jina, who purified the three worlds. It is the crest jewel among mountains.
‘“Karma is active, driving people this way and that, just as long as they have not seen the Glorious son of Nābhi.
‘“It was on this mountain that the Glorious sage Pundarīka put an end to all his karma, as a fever destroys a mighty elephant; there, surrounded by five crores of other sages, Pundarīka attained Liberation.
‘“It was there on this mountain that Nami and Vinami, kings in the Vidyādhara line, along with two crores of sages, went to the Highest Place.
‘“There Glorious Rāma and Bharata and ten crores of the Valakhilyas, along with others, who numbered three crores, Prince Pradyumna and the like,
‘“There Nārada and the five Pāndavas, and many other distinguished ascetics, having destroyed their karma, all attained Final Liberation, the state that puts an end to all suffering.
‘“A place where even one person attains liberation is thereby holy; what need I say of this mountain where crores of monks attained Liberation?
‘“That mountain with its peaks made handsome by rows of trees seems to mock the other mountains, which have never experienced the touch of the feet of the Jina.
‘“That mountain seems to murmur to everyone around, with the sounds of its cascading waterfalls, ‘Why do you visit other holy places, when I am here?’
‘“I think that mountain must have some secret herb that brings women under its power; for the lady Liberation, devoid of any desire, has chosen this mountain for her lord.
‘“As I was flying through the sky, on my way to that mountain I have just described to you, Mount Śatruñjaya, I used my supernatural knowledge and came to know that you had killed your father. I thought to myself, ‘This person has committed a great sin. I must bring him to his senses before he commits yet another grave sin.’ Again I reflected, ‘He is a good soul, destined for release, but his mind is under the control of delusion and so he has done this terrible act. For:
‘“Even the Jinas, those great men, best in all the three worlds, on heaven, on the earth and in the netherworld, are subject to the dictates of karma.
‘“Even those great men, who without the slightest difficulty at all can make into a churning stick the Golden Mountain, which measures a lakh of furlongs;
‘“Even those great men, Lords of the Jinas, who can swim across the ocean Svayambhūramana without any trouble at all;
‘“Even those great men, who can hold aloft the entire earth with all its mountains, like an umbrella over their heads;
‘“Even those great men are subject to karma.
‘“What to say of you, Mohadatta, poor wretch?”
‘“And so I descended from the sky and awakened you.’”
‘Mohadatta declared, “Blessed One! How can I be ordained as a monk?” The sage said, “Go to Kauśambī. There, just south of the city in the garden that belongs to King Purandaradatta, you will see the Glorious Dharmanandana, the best of monks, head of his lineage, who is staying there preaching in the garden. You need not say a word; that most excellent leader of monks will know your story and will ordain you.’ With these words, the monk flew back into the sky, which was blue like the leaves of a lotus.’”
Dharmanandana continued, ‘O King Purandaradatta! Hearing those words, Mohadatta renounced life as a householder and came here looking for me.’
When Mohadatta heard this, he said, ‘Blessed One! Everything you have said is true. Now allow me to receive ordination.’
And so the Master Dharmanandana, worthy of the greatest respect, conferred the ordination proclaimed’by the Jinas on Mohadatta, whose mind was pure since all delusion had left it. He conferred on him ordination, which leads to that place in which all happiness is achieved.
(from the Kuvalayamālūkathā of Ratnaprabhasūri, p.24)
18
SANATKUMÁRA
The story begins as follows. In the continent of Bharata, in the city Viśoka was a king named Anantavīrya. He had a queen named Sitā. T
heir son was Sanatkumāra, the fourth World Emperor. Sanatkumāra had conquered the earth with its six divisions; he possessed the nine treasures and the fourteen jewels that signify lordship over the world. He reigned over his kingdom with great splendor. One day during his reign, the king of the Saudharma gods was sitting in his court and talking with his courtiers about the nature of physical beauty among men. The gods asked him, ‘Lord, it there any mortal in the continent of Bharata who has such great beauty or not?’ The king of gods replied, ‘The physical beauty of the World Emperor Sanatkumāra on earth is not to be found even among you gods in heaven.’
Now when they heard that, two of the gods, Manimālin and Ratnacūla, decided to go and see for themselves just how handsome this Sanatkumāra was. The Emperor was in the midst of his bath and so they could see his natural beauty that was like the beauty of the gods; the magnificence that pervaded his every limb struck wonder in their hearts. And when they saw his beauty they shook their heads in astonishment and said, ‘Such beauty is not to be found even among the gods.’
Manimālin and Ratnacūla then made themselves visible to mortals at the gate of the king’s palace. They spoke to the gatekeeper, ‘Ho! Gatekeeper! Tell the Emperor, “Two gods have come from heaven to see your beauty!” Now when the Emperor heard this, he adorned himself in all his regal finery; he sat on his throne and called the two gods into his presence. But when they saw him this time, they were totally dejected. “Alas! The beauty that we beheld when we hid ourselves in the bath chamber is no longer. Everything is impermanent. Nothing lasts for ever!”’
Now when they heard these words, the servants responsible for decking the king out in his finery spoke up. ‘We don’t see a mite of difference between the king’s appearance now and his appearance earlier.’ At this, the two gods were determined to prove to those servants that indeed the king’s beauty had faded. They had a vessel full of water brought in and placed before the king. They showed the full vessel to the servants and then told them to go outside. As the Emperor looked on, they removed one drop of water from the pot with the tip of a blade of grass. Then they called the servants back in and showed them the pot. They asked them, ‘How would you compare the pot now to the pot you saw a moment ago?’ And the servants replied, ‘The pot is full of water, exactly as it was before. There is no difference at all.’ When they heard this response, the two gods said, ‘King! Just as these men do not notice that a drop of water has been taken out of the pot, so they cannot perceive how your beauty has faded ever so slightly.’
The Emperor, on hearing these words, lost all interest in the pleasures of the world and was seized with a desire to renounce the world. He gave the kingdom to his son Devakumāra and began to practice religious austerities under the guidance of the Jain monk Trigupti. He practiced the most severe penances and carried out all the five-fold duties of a monk, renouncing violence towards living beings, renouncing lying, renouncing taking what is not given, renouncing sexual desires, and renouncing attachment to all possessions. But because he ate the wrong foods, numerous diseases, including skin rashes, began to afflict his body. Nonetheless, he paid no mind to what was happening to his body, for he had reached the pinnacle of non-attachment to all things, including the body. He continued to fulfil his vows as a monk with total single-mindedness.
Now it so happened that this time the king of the Saudharma gods, seated in his court, was discussing the five-fold religious conduct of Jain monks. The god Madanaketu asked him, ‘Lord, is there anyone in the continent of Bharata who actually practices the kind of religious life you describe?’ The king of the gods replied, ‘The World Emperor Sanatkumăra, who gave up lordship over the earth with its six divisions and is totally indifferent to his body, practices to perfection the vows of a monk.’
When he heard these words Madanaketu went to see for himself. He came upon the monk Sanatkumāra practicing difficult austerities in the deep jungle. His body was overcome by numerous diseases. In order to test the firmness of this indifference to the body that Sanatkumāra displayed, Madanaketu took on the form of a physician and said to the monk again and again, ‘I can cure each and every one of your diseases and make you a divine body free from any taint of illness.’ He walked to and for in front of the blessed monk, saying these words, when the monk asked him, ‘Who are you? And why are you making all this ruckus here in the jungle where there is no one to listen?’ At that Madanaketu replied, ‘I am a physician and I can cure all of your diseases and give you a body that is as radiant as an ingot of gold.’ The monk said, ‘If you can cure diseases, then cure this disease of mine, which consists of my repeated rebirths in the cycle of transmigratory existence,’
When he heard that request, Madanaketu said, ‘That is something I cannot cure. Only you can cure the disease that is transmigratory existence. I can only cure bodily ills,’ The monk said, ‘What good would it do me to have the ills of my body cured, when my body is by nature impure, without any merit, and impermanent, destined to perish? I have no need to seek out a doctor to cure my bodily ailments. I can cure them by the mere touch of my spit.’ And no sooner had he said this than the monk spat, and with that saliva he cured himself of his physical ailments. He showed the god his arm, which was like a golden bar. At that the god withdrew his disguise and bowed down to the monk, saying, ‘The king of the Saudharma gods had praised your perfect religious conduct one day in his court, singling out the way in which you are indifferent to your body. And now, having come here for myself, I see with my own eyes that it is exactly as the king has described. Fortunate indeed are you to have such virtue! You have truly made your human birth worthwhile.’ After praising him in this way and bowing down to him, Madanaketu went back to heaven. And for his part the monk Sanatkumāra, totally disinterested in the pleasures of this world, practiced the five-fold vows of the monk. Displaying to all the greatness of the religious life, he eventually rid himself of his destructive karmas. These karmas had once caused him to fail to understand the true nature of the soul and to be subject to hatred, passion, anger, pride, deceit and greed. With this he attained Omniscience. In time he exhausted the rest of his karma that kept him alive and achieved final release.
(from the Kathākośa of Prabhācandra)
19
THE PRINCE WHO LOVED SWEETMEATS
In the glorious city of Rājagṛha reigned the wealthy and righteous King Sumitra. He protected his subjects so well that they all dwelt in peace and happiness. His beloved wife Padmā gave birth to a most wonderful son on the night of the dark half of the month of Jyesthā. The birth of this son had been announced to her in a dream, in which she beheld an elephant entering her mouth. The God Indra first performed the festivities to celebrate the child’s birth, and then his father did the same and gave his son the name Muni Suvrata. In time the son became a Jain monk and cast off all of his karma. He achieved perfect Omniscience and became the Jina Muni Suvrata.
Glorious Muni Suvrata, having enlightened many who were ready to receive the truth on earth, went to Mount Siddha, where he preached to a combined assembly of all creatures, including holy men and gods. When everyone had taken his and her proper place in that gathering, the Glorious Muni Suvrata preached the law to all those worthy souls. Here is what he preached:
‘In the city of Kalyāna, King Bhānu’s wife Rukminī gave birth to a most excellent son, who was endowed with every auspicious mark. The king, having performed the festivities to celebrate his son’s birth, gave him the name Rūpa, “Handsome”. He handed the baby over to a group of nurses, including a wet nurse, who raised him by giving him her own milk. The son was taught various things and eventually grew to be a young man. His father arranged his marriage to the daughter of King Bhīma, and with his new wife Rūpa began to enjoy a life devoted to the pursuit of sensual pleasures.
‘Now this prince was particularly fond of rich sweets, to the exclusion of just about everything else. He became known in the world as “The Sweet-freak”. One spring day, Sweet-freak wo
ke up bright and early. He summoned his male dancers to him and had them dance for him along with the dancing girls. When midday came, the prince’s mother sent him some fabulous rich sweets. He first gave some of them to his retinue and then he ate a bunch himself. For as it is said:
A person never comes to harm by associating with the noble, conversing with the wise and being friends with those who are not greedy.
Sitting around a fire in the cold season, eating rich cream, receiving honor from the king, seeing someone you love, all of these are as nourishing and sustaining as the drink of immortality.
To return to the story. The prince, having made those sweets his evening meal too, dismissed all the dancers and retired for the night along with his retinue. The prince recited to himself a hundred times the prayer to the five beings worthy of honour in the Jain tradition, the Jinas, those who have attained liberation, the leaders among the monks, the teachers among the monks, and the entire monastic community. The prince then fell asleep, arid no sooner had he drifted off than he began to fart. When that offensive smell penetrated his nostrils, Sweet-freak immediately realized that all things are equally impure. In the body even the most delicious sweets turn to shit and even the drink of immortality turns into piss. Who would ever commit a sin for the sake of a body like that? The body is the abode of blood and lymph, flesh and fat, bones and marrow, entrails, semen and faeces, all these impure substances. How could the body ever be considered to be pure? That the body, which drips disgusting ooze from all its nine openings, is something beautiful—such a notion can only be the greatest delusion. (Here the storyteller should recite some verses on the impurity of the body.)
The Forest of Thieves and the Magic Garden: An Anthology of Medieval Jain Stories (Penguin Classics) Page 17