Life of Mahâvîra, Lecture 4

Jaina Sutras, Part II (SBE22), tr. by Hermann Jacobi, [1884], at sacred-texts.com

Life of Mahâvîra, Lecture 4

When the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ, having seen these fourteen illustrious, great dreams, awoke, she was glad, pleased, and joyful, &c. (see § 5, down to) rose from her couch, and descended from the footstool. Neither hasty nor trembling, with a quick and even

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gait like that of the royal swan, she went to the couch of the Kshatriya Siddhârtha. There she awakened the Kshatriya Siddhârtha, addressing him with kind, pleasing, amiable, tender, illustrious, beautiful, lucky, blest, auspicious, fortunate, heart-going, heart-easing, well-measured, sweet, and soft words. (47)

Then the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ, with the permission of king Siddhârtha, sat down on a chair of state inlaid with various jewels and precious stones in the form of arabesques; calm and composed, sitting on an excellent, comfortable chair, she addressed him with kind, pleasing, &c. (see last paragraph), words, and spoke thus: (48)

'O beloved of the gods, I was just now on my couch (as described in § 32), &c. (see § 5), and awoke after having seen the fourteen dreams; to wit, an elephant, &c. What, to be sure, O my lord, will be the happy result portended by these fourteen illustrious, great dreams?' (49)

When the Kshatriya Siddhârtha had heard and perceived this news from the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ, he glad, pleased, and joyful, &c. (see § 5, down to) firmly fixed the dreams in his mind, and entered upon considering them; he grasped the meaning of those dreams with his own innate intelligence and intuition which were preceded by reflection, and addressing the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ with kind, pleasing, &c., words, spoke thus: (50)

'O beloved of the gods, you have seen illustrious dreams, &c. (see § 9, down to) you will give birth to a lovely, handsome boy, who will be the ensign of our family, the lamp of our family, the crown ¹ of our family, the frontal ornament

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of our family, the maker of our family's glory, the sun of our family, the stay of our family, the maker of our family's joy and fame, the tree of our family, the exalter of our family; (a boy) with tender hands and feet, &c. (see § 9, down to the end). (51) And this boy, after having passed childhood, and, with just ripened intellect, having reached the state of youth, will become a brave, gallant, and valorous king, the lord of the realm, with a large and extensive army and train of waggons. (52) Therefore, O beloved of the gods, you have seen illustrious, &c., dreams, &c. (see § 9).'

In this way he repeatedly expressed his extreme satisfaction.

When the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ had heard and perceived this news from king Siddhârtha, she glad, pleased, and joyful, &c. (see § 12, down to) and spoke thus: (53)

'That is so, O beloved of the gods, &c. (see § 13, down to) as you have pronounced it.'

Thus saying she accepted the true meaning of the dreams, and with the permission of king Siddhârtha she rose from her chair of state, inlaid with various jewels and precious stones in the form of arabesques. She then returned to her own bed, neither hasty nor trembling, with a quick and even gait like that of the royal swan, and spoke thus: (54)

'These my excellent and pre-eminent dreams shall not be counteracted by other bad dreams.'

Accordingly she remained awake to save her dreams by means of (hearing) good, auspicious, pious, agreeable stories about gods and religious men. (55)

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At the time of daybreak the Kshatriya Siddhârtha called his family servants and spoke thus: (56)

Now, beloved of the gods, quickly make ready, or have made ready, the exterior hall of audience; see that it be sprinkled with scented water, cleaned, swept, and newly smeared, furnished with offerings of fragrant, excellent flowers of all five colours, made highly delightful through curling scented fumes, &c. (see § 32, down to) and turned, as it were, into a smelling box; also erect my throne, and having done this quickly return, and report on the execution of my orders.' (57)

When the family servants were thus spoken to by king Siddhârtha, they--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c. (see § 12, down to) on their heads, and modestly accepted the words of command, saying, 'Yes, master!' Then they left the presence of the Kshatriya Siddhârtha, and went to the exterior hall of audience, made it ready, and erected the throne (as described in the last paragraph). Having done this, they returned to the Kshatriya Siddhârtha; joining the palms of their hands so as to bring the ten nails together, laid the folded hands on their heads, and reported on the execution of their orders. (58)

Early at the wane of the night, when the bright morning disclosed the soft flowers of the full-blown lotuses and Nymphaeas, rose the sun: he was red like the Asoka, the open Kimsuka, the bill of a parrot or the Guñgârdha; of an intense redness like that of the Bandhugîvaka ¹, the feet and eyes of the turtle dove, the scarlet eyes of the Indian cuckoo, a mass of China roses, or vermilion. He, the thousand-rayed maker of the day, shining in his radiance, awakened

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the groups of lotuses. When in due time the god of the day had risen and by the blows of his hands (or rays) the darkness was driven away, while the inhabited world was, as it were, dipped in saffron by the morning sun, the Kshatriya Siddhârtha rose from his bed, (59) descended from the footstool, went to the hall for gymnastic exercises, and entered it. There he applied himself to many wholesome exercises, jumped, wrestled, fenced, and fought till he got thoroughly tired: then he was anointed with hundredfold and thousandfold refined different kinds of oil, which nourished, beautified, invigorated, exhilarated, strengthened, and increased all senses and limbs. On an oiled hide he was shampooed by clever men with soft and tender palms of the hands and soles of the feet, who were well acquainted with the best qualities of the practices of anointing, kneading, and stretching; well trained, skilful, excellent, expert, intelligent, and never tiring. When by this fourfold agreeable treatment of the body the king's bones, flesh, skin, and hair had been benefited, and his fatigues banished, he left the hall for gymnastic exercises, (60) and entered the bathing-house. The pleasant bathing-room was very agreeable, and contained many windows ¹ ornamented with pearls; its floor was decorated with mosaic of various jewels and precious stones. On the bathing-stool, inlaid with various jewels and precious stones in the form of arabesques, he comfortably sat down and bathed himself with water scented with flowers and perfumes, with tepid water and pure water, according to an excellent method of

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bathing, combined with healthy exercises. When this healthy excellent bathing under many hundredfold pleasures was over, he dried his body with a long-haired, soft, scented, and coloured towel, put on a new and costly excellent robe, rubbed himself with fresh and fragrant Gosîrsha ¹ and sandal, and ornamented himself with fine wreaths and sandal-ointment. He put on (ornaments) of jewels and pearls, hung round his neck fitting necklaces of eighteen, nine, and three strings of pearls, and one with a pearl pendant, and adorned himself with a zone. He put on a collar, rings, and charming ornaments of the hair, and encumbered his arms with excellent bracelets: he was of excessive beauty. His face was lighted up by earrings, and his head by a diadem; his breast was adorned and decked with necklaces, and his fingers were, as it were, gilded by his rings. His upper garment of fine cloth contained swinging pearl pendants. H e put on, as an emblem of his undefeated knighthood, glittering, well-made, strong, excellent, beautiful armlets, made by clever artists of spotless and costly jewels, gold, and precious stones of many kinds. In short, the king was like the tree granting all desires, decorated and ornamented; an umbrella, hung with wreaths and garlands of Korinta flowers, was held above him. He was fanned with white excellent chowries, while his appearance was greeted with auspicious shouts of victory. Surrounded by many chieftains, satraps, kings, princes, knights, sheriffs, heads of families, ministers, chief ministers, astrologers, counsellors, servants, dancing masters, citizens, traders, merchants, foremen of guilds, generals, leaders of caravans,

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messengers, and frontier-guards, he--the lord and chief of men, a bull and a lion among men, shining with excellent lustre and glory, lovely to behold like the moon emerging from a great white cloud in the midst of the flock of the planets and of brilliant stars and asterisms--left the bathing-house, (61) entered the exterior hall of audience and sat down on his throne with the face towards the east. (62)

On the north-eastern side he ordered eight state chairs, covered with cloth and auspiciously decorated with white mustard, to be set down. Not too far from and not too near to himself; towards the interior of the palace, he had a curtain drawn. It was adorned with different jewels and precious stones, extremely worth seeing, very costly, and manufactured in a famous town; its soft cloth was all over covered with hundreds of patterns and decorated with pictures of wolves, bulls, horses, men, dolphins, birds, snakes, Kinnaras, deer, Sarabhas, Yaks, Samsaktas, elephants, shrubs, and plants. Behind it he ordered to be placed, for the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ, an excellent chair of state, decorated with arabesques of different jewels and precious stones, outfitted with a coverlet and a soft pillow, covered with a white cloth, very soft and agreeable to the touch. Then he called the family servants and spoke thus: (63)

'Quickly, O beloved of the gods, call the interpreters of dreams who well know the science of prognostics with its eight branches, and are well versed in many sciences besides!'

When the family servants were thus spoken to by king Siddhârtha, they--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.--laid the folded hands on their heads and

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modestly accepted the words of command, saying, 'Yes, master!' (64)

Then they left the presence of the Kshatriya Siddhârtha, went right through the town Kundapura to the houses of the interpreters of dreams, and called the interpreters of dreams. (65)

Then the interpreters of dreams, being called by the Kshatriya Siddhârtha's family servants, glad, pleased, and joyful, &c., bathed, made the offering (to the house-gods) ¹, performed auspicious rites and expiatory ² acts, put on excellent, lucky, pure court-dress, adorned their persons with small but costly ornaments, and put, for the sake of auspiciousness, white mustard and Dûrvâ grass on their heads. Thus they issued from their own houses and went right through the Kshatriya part of the town Kundapura to the front gate of king Siddhârtha's excellent palace, a jewel of its kind. (66)

There they assembled and went to the exterior hall of audience in the presence of the Kshatriya Siddhârtha. Joining the palms of their hands so as to bring the ten nails together, they laid the folded hands on their heads and gave him the greeting of victory. (67)

The king Siddhârtha saluted and honoured the interpreters of dreams, made them presents, and received them with respect. They sat down, one after the other, on the chairs of state which had been placed there before. (68) Then the Kshatriya Siddhârtha placed his wife Trisalâ behind the curtain, and taking flowers and fruits in his hands,

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addressed with utmost courtesy the interpreters of dreams: (69)

'O beloved of the gods, the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ was just on her couch, &c. (see § 32, down to the end). (70 and 71) What to be sure, O beloved of the gods, will be the result portended by these fourteen illustrious great dreams?' (72)

When the interpreters of dreams had heard and perceived this news from the Kshatriya Siddhârtha, they--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.--fixed the dreams in their minds, entered upon considering them, and conversed together. (73)

Having found, grasped, discussed, decided upon, and clearly understood the meaning of these dreams, they recited before king Siddhârtha the dream-books and spoke thus:

'O beloved of the gods, in our dream-books are enumerated forty-two (common) dreams and thirty great dreams. Now, O beloved of the gods, the mothers of universal monarchs or of Arhats wake up after seeing these fourteen great dreams out of the thirty great dreams, when the embryo of a universal monarch or an Arhat enters their womb; (74) viz. an elephant, a bull, &c. (75) The mothers of Vâsudevas wake up after seeing any seven great dreams out of these fourteen great dreams, when the embryo of a Vâsudeva enters their womb. (76) The mothers of Baladevas wake up after seeing any four great dreams out of these fourteen great dreams, when the embryo of a Baladeva enters their womb. (77) The mother of Mândalikas wake up after seeing a single great dream out of these fourteen great dreams, when the embryo of a Mândalika enters their womb. (78) Now, O beloved

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of the gods, the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ has seen these fourteen great dreams, &c. (see § 51, down to the end). (79) And this boy, &c. (see § 52, down to) the lord of a realm with a large and extensive army and train of waggons, a universal emperor or a Gina, the lord of the three worlds, the universal emperor of the law. (80). Therefore, O beloved of the gods, the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ has seen illustrious dreams,' &c. (see § 9). (81)

When king Siddhârtha had heard and perceived this news from the interpreter of dreams, he--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.--spoke to them thus: (82)

That is so, O beloved of the gods, &c. (see § 11, down to) as you have pronounced it.'

Thus saying he accepted the true meaning of the dreams, and honoured the interpreters of dreams with praise and plenty of food, flowers, perfumes, garlands, and ornaments. He made them a present in keeping with their station in life ¹ and dismissed them. (83)

After this the Kshatriya Siddhârtha rose from his throne, went to the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ behind the curtain, and addressed her thus: (84)

Now, O beloved of the gods, you have seen these fourteen great dreams, &c. (see §§ 79, 80, down to) emperor of the law.' (85, 86) When the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ had heard and perceived this news, she--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.--accepted the true meaning of the dreams. (87) With the permission of king Siddhârtha she rose from her chair of state which was decorated with arabesques of various jewels and precious stones,

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and returned to her own apartments, neither hasty nor trembling, with a quick and even gait like that of the royal swan. (88)

From that moment in which the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra was brought into the family of the Gñâtris, many demons ¹ in Vaisramana's service, belonging to the animal world, brought, on Sakra's command, to the palace of king Siddhârtha, old and ancient treasures, of which the owners, deponers, and families to whom they originally belonged were dead and extinct, and which were hidden in villages, or mines, or scot-free towns, or towns with earth walls, or towns with low walls, or isolated towns, or towns accessible by land and water, or towns accessible either by land or by water only, or in natural strongholds, or in halting-places for processions or for caravans, in triangular places, or in places where three or four roads meet, or in courtyards, or squares, or high roads, or on the site of villages or towns, or in drains of villages or towns, or in bazaars, or temples, or assembling halls, or wells, or parks, or gardens, or woods, or groves, or burying-places, or empty houses, or mountain caves, or hermits' cells, or secret places between walls, or in houses on an elevation, or houses for audience, or palaces. (89)

In the night in which the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra was brought into the family of the Gñâtris their silver increased, their gold increased; their riches, corn, majesty, and kingdom increased; their army, train, treasure, storehouse, town, seraglio, subjects, and glory increased; their real valuable property, as riches, gold, precious stones, jewels,

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pearls, conches, stones, corals, rubies, &c., the intensity of their popularity and liberality highly increased. At that time the following personal, reflectional, desirable idea occurred to parents of the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra: (90)

From the moment that this our boy has been begotten, our silver increased, our gold increased, &c. (see § 90, down to) the intensity of our liberality and popularity highly increased. Therefore when this our boy will be born, we shall give him the fit name, attributive and conformable to his quality--Vardhamâna ¹.' (91)

Now the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra, out of compassion for his mother, did not move nor stir nor quiver, but remained quiet, stiff, and motionless. Then the following, &c. (see § 90, down to) idea occurred to the mind of the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ: 'The fruit of my womb has been taken from me, it has died, it is fallen, it is lost. Formerly it moved, now it does not move.' Thus with anxious thoughts and ideas, plunged in a sea of sorrow and misery, reposing her head on her hand, overcome by painful reflections, and casting her eyes on the ground she meditated. And in the palace of king Siddhârtha the music of drums and stringed instruments, the clapping of hands, the dramatical performances, and the amusements of the people ceased, and mournful dejection reigned there. (92)

Then the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra, knowing that such an internal, &c. (see § 90, down to) idea had occurred to the mind of his mother, he quivered a little. (93)

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Feeling her child quivering, trembling, moving, and stirring, the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ--glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.--spoke thus: 'No, forsooth, the fruit of my womb has not been taken from me, it has not died, it is not fallen, it is not lost. Formerly it did not move, but now it does move.' Thus she was glad, pleased, and joyful, &c.

Then the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra, while in her womb, formed the following resolution: 'It will not behove me, during the life of my parents, to tear out my hair, and leaving the house to enter the state of houselessness.' (94)

Bathing, making offerings to the house-gods, performing auspicious rites and expiatory acts, and adorning herself with all ornaments, the Kshatriyânî Trisalâ kept off sickness, sorrow, fainting, fear, and fatigue by food and clothing, perfumes and garlands, which were not too cold nor too hot, not too bitter nor too pungent, not too astringent nor too sour nor too sweet, not too smooth nor too rough, not too wet nor too dry, but all just suiting the season. In the proper place and time she ate only such food which was good, sufficient, and healthy for the nourishment of her child. She took her walks in places which were empty and agreeable as well as delightful to the mind; her desires were laudable, fulfilled, honoured, not disregarded, but complied with and executed; she most comfortably dozed, reposed, remained, sat, and laid on unobjectionable and soft beds and seats, and thus most comfortably carried her unborn child. (95)

In that period, in that age the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra ¹--after the lapse of nine months and

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seven and a half days, in the first month of summer, in the second fortnight, the dark (fortnight) of Kaitra, on its fourteenth day, [while all planets were in their exaltations, the moon in her principal conjunction, and the sky in all its directions clear, bright, and pure; while a favourable and agreeable low wind swept the earth; at the time when the fields were green and all people glad and amusing themselves] ¹ in the middle of the night while the moon was in conjunction with the asterism Uttaraphalgunî--(Trisalâ), perfectly healthy herself, gave birth to a perfectly healthy boy. (96) ²

End of the Fourth Lecture.

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Footnotes

239:1 Vadimsaya (avatamsaka) is here rendered by sekhara.

241:1 Pentapetes Phoenicea.

242:1 Gâla, windows formed by flat stones which are perforated so as to produce a network of more or less intricate design.

243:1 Gosîrsha is a superior kind of sandal.

245:1 Balikarman.

245:2 Pâyakkhitta = prâyaskitta. The commentators explain it by pâdakhupta, touching their feet in order to avoid the wicked eye.

247:1 Or a life annuity.

248:1 Gambhaya = Grimbhaka; what they are is not said in the commentaries.

249:1 I.e. 'the increasing one' not as we should expect, and Stevenson translated, the Increaser.

250:1 The whole passage is in some disorder; for the subject is she (Trisalâ) and the object is 'boy,' yet 'the Venerable Ascetic Mahâvîra' p. 251 is also put in the nominative. It seems that the author or the copyists added the three words Samane Bhagavam Mahâvîre because they usually followed the beginning: tenam kâlenam tenam samaenam. The same disorder occurs in all corresponding passages which we shall meet with later on.

251:1 The passage in brackets seems to be a later addition; for it is wanting in my oldest MS., and the commentator says that it was not seen in many books. The occurrence of the astrological term exaltation (ukka = ὕψωμα) in this passage proves it to be inserted after 300 A.D. For about that time Greek astrology had been introduced in India, as I have shown in my dissertation: De Astrologiae Indicae 'Hora' appellatae originibus, Bonn, 3872.

251:2 Cf. Âkârâṅga Sûtra II, ¶5, § 6.