||STULIBHADRA SWAMI ||
|| स्थूलिभद्र JAIN DHARM||
|| जैन धर्म कहानी STHULIBHADRA SWAMI ||
||JAIN RELIGION स्थूलिभद्र||
The kingdom of Magadha, in the state of Bihar, possessed a long and rich history. During Mahavir’s time, it was ruled by King Shrenik of the Shishunag dynasty. This dynasty ended with the death of Shrenik’s great-grandson Udayi. Magadha then passed into the hands of the Nanda dynasty. Nine generations later, Dhananand ascended the throne. This was around 300 BCE, about 200 years after Lord Mahavir’s nirvana.
The greedy Dhananand was far from being a just and noble ruler. He had heard a legend about hidden treasure that belonged to one of his predecessors and was desperate to get his hands on it. Unfortunately, he had no idea where this treasure was hidden. However, he knew that the old Prime Minister Shaktal, who had served his father, had knowledge of the treasure’s whereabouts. Dhananand therefore tried everything he could to get the information from the prime minister and locate the treasure, but Shaktal refused to provide any information about the whereabouts of this treasure. The King therefore forced him to retire and the administration was entrusted to other ministers.
As time passed, things began to look grim for Dhananand’s reign. The citizens of Magadha witnessed major political upheavals and turmoil. People felt dissatisfied with the current regime and looked for the end of the Nanda dynasty. King Dhananand felt insecure and was suspicious of all his ministers and advisors, including Shriyak and his father Shaktal.
Aware that the King was very suspicious of him, Shaktal became worried about the political future of his younger son. Shaktal therefore decided to sacrifice his life in order to provide proof of Shriyak’s loyalty to the King. He requested his son, Shriyak, to kill him in the presence of the King and other ministers. This way, the King would have proof that Shriyak was a very loyal minister. Prior to the execution, he explained to Shriyak that he would swallow some poison so that Shriyak would not truly (morally and religiously) be responsible for his father’s death. Meanwhile, the King would feel that Shriyak was very loyal to him because he had seemingly killed his own father for the King. Thus, Shaktal died seemingly at the hands of his own son in order to prove his son’s loyalty.
When Sthulibhadra learned about that tragic event, he was taken aback. By that time, he had spent twelve years with Kosha and had never cared for anyone else. His father’s death opened his eyes, and he started reflecting on his past. “Twelve long years of my youth! What did I get during this long period?” Sthulibhadra realized that in his youth he had not acquired anything that would endure. The tragic death of his father brought home the reality that all life comes to an end. “Is there no way to escape death?” he asked himself. “What is the nature of life after all? Who am I, and what is my mission in life?”
Thinking deep into these questions, he realized that the body and all worldly aspects are transitory and physical pleasures do not lead to lasting happiness. He looked at his image in the mirror and noticed the unmistakable marks of a lustful life. Having realized that he was wasting his youth, he decided to search for lasting happiness. He left Kosha and went straight to acharya Sambhutivijay, the sixth successor to Lord Mahavir. Surrendering himself to the acharya, he said that he was sick of his lustful lifestyle and wanted to do something worthwhile with his life. The acharya considered his request carefully. Here was a young man of thirty who seemed to have lost the vigor of youth. The lustful life he had led had taken a toll on his body, but the brightness inherited from his illustrious father still glowed on his face. Seeing Sthulibhadra’s determined and humble state, the learned acharya saw in him a great future for the religious order and accepted him as his pupil.
Sthulibhadra quickly adjusted to the new pattern of his life. The ambition that he had lacked in his youth soon emerged in his adulthood. Keen to make up for lost years, he devoted all of his energy to spiritual upliftment. He worked diligently, and in no time gained the confidence of his guru. He had successfully overcome his senses of attachment and lustfulness and gained control over his inner enemies. It was time for his faith to be tested.
The monsoon season was approaching and the monks had to settle in one place during the rainy season which generally lasted four months in the Indian climate. Sthulibhadra and three other sadhus who had attained a high level of equanimity wanted to test their faith and determination by spending this time under the most adverse conditions. Each one chose the most adverse conditions for themselves. One of them requested permission from his acharya to stay at the entrance of a lion’s den. Another wanted to spend the time near a snake’s hole. The third wanted to spend the four months on top of an open well. The acharya knew that they were capable of withstanding these hardships and permitted them to do this. However, Sthulibhadra humbly asked to spend the monsoon in the picture gallery of the residence of Kosha. The acharya knew how difficult this test would be for Sthulibhadra, but he also knew Sthulibhadra’s determination and felt that spiritually, the monk would not progress any further without passing this test. Therefore, he permitted Sthulibhadra to spend the monsoon at Kosha’s house.
Sthulibhadra approached Kosha and asked her for permission to stay in the picture gallery during the monsoon season. Kosha was surprised to see him. He had left her in such an ambivalent state that she had not been sure if she would ever see him again. By this time, she was missing him and was happy to see him again, not knowing the true purpose of his return. For that monsoon season, both had different goals. Kosha endeavored to win him back into her life, using all her seductive skills. She felt that having him live in her picture gallery was to her advantage. In contrast, Sthulibhadra’s goal was to overcome the strong temptation of Kosha’s beauty. Who would win? Sthulibhadra’s strong faith and determination served him well during this test. He focused his mind on spiritual meditation, contemplating the transitory nature of life and the need to break away from the cycle of birth and death. Ultimately, Kosha realized the wastefulness of her life and became his disciple. Sthulibhadra emerged spiritually stronger from this experience.
At the end of the monsoon all the monks returned and described their experience. The first three monks described their success and they were congratulated. But when Sthulibhadra reported the success of his test, the acharya actually rose from his seat in all praise and hailed Sthulibhadra for performing a formidable task. The other monks became jealous. Why was Sthulibhadra’s feat so much more impressive than theirs? After all, they had endured physical hardships while he had spent the monsoon in comfort and security. The acharya explained that it was an impossible feat for anyone else. The first monk then boasted that he could easily accomplish the same task the following monsoon. The acharya tried to dissuade him from his intent, knowing that it was beyond his capability. The monk, wanting to prove his spiritual strength to the acharya, persisted and was reluctantly given permission for the next monsoon season.
The next monsoon, the monk went to Kosha’s place. The immodest pictures in the gallery were enough to excite him. When he saw the glamorous Kosha, his remaining resistance melted away and he begged for her love. After seeing the pious life of Sthulibhadra, Kosha had learned the value of an ascetic life. In order to teach the monk a lesson, she agreed to love him only if he gave her a diamond-studded garment from Nepal, a town 250 miles north of Patliputra. The monk was so infatuated that he left immediately for Nepal, forgetting that monks were not supposed to travel during the monsoon. With considerable difficulty, he procured the garment and returned to Patliputra, confident of receiving Kosha’s love. Kosha accepted the beautiful garment, wiped her feet on it and threw it away in the trash.
The monk was stunned. He asked, “Are you crazy, Kosha? Why are you throwing away the precious gift that I have brought you with so much difficulty?” Kosha replied, “Why are you throwing away the precious life of monkhood that you have acquired with so much effort?” The humbled monk realized his foolishness and returned to his acharya to report his miserable failure. From that day onwards, there was immense respect for Sthulibhadra throughout the community.
Sthulibhadra played a major role in later years preserving the oldest Jain scriptures, known as the twelve Anga agams and the fourteen purvas. Jain history indicates that acharya Bhadrabahu, the successor of acharya Sambhutivijay as the head of the religious order, was the last monk to have complete knowledge of all the Jain scriptures. Both acharya Sambhutivijay and acharya Bhadrabahu had been the disciples of acharya Yashobhadra.
In those days, the Jain scriptures were memorized and passed down orally from guru to disciple. They were not documented in any form. Under the leadership of acharya Bhadrabahu, Sthulibhadra thoroughly studied eleven of the twelve Anga agams. However, an extended famine prevented Sthulibhadra from studying the twelfth Anga agam, known as Drashtivad, which contained the 14 purvas. During the famine, acharya Bhadrabahu-swami migrated south with 12, 000 disciples. acharya Sthulibhadra succeeded him as the leader of the monks who stayed behind in Patliputra. The hardships of the famine made it difficult for the monks to observe their code of conduct properly. In addition, many of the monks’ memories failed them and many parts of the Anga agams were forgotten.
The famine lasted for twelve years. After the famine, Sthulibhadra decided to recompile the Jain scriptures. A convention was held in Patliputra under the leadership of acharya Sthulibhadra. Eleven of the twelve Anga agams were orally recompiled at the convention, but none of the monks at the convention could remember the twelfth Anga agam and its 14 purvas. Only acharya Bhadrabahu swami had this knowledge; he had left southern India and was now in the mountains of Nepal to practice a special penance and meditation. The Jain sangh therefore requested Sthulibhadra and some other learned monks to go to acharya Bhadrabahu-swami and learn the twelfth agam.
Several monks undertook the long journey, but only Sthulibhadra reached Nepal. He began to learn the twelfth Anga agam and its 14 purvas under acharya Bhadrabahu.
Once, Sthulibhadra’s sisters, who were nuns, decided to visit him in Nepal. At this time, Sthulibhadra had completely learned 10 of the 14 purvas. He wanted to impress them with the miraculous power he had acquired from learning the 10 purvas and knowledge from the twelfth agam. Therefore, he transformed his body into a lion and waited for them to arrive. When his sisters entered the cave, they found a lion instead of their brother. Fearful of what may have happened to him, they went directly to Bhadrabahu swami. acharya Bhadrabahu realized what had happened and asked the sisters to go back to the cave again. This time, Sthulibhadra had resumed his original form and the sisters were joyful to see him alive and well.
However, Bhadrabahu swami was disappointed because Sthulibhadra had misused his special powers for such a trivial purpose. He felt that Sthulibhadra was not mature enough in his spiritual progress and therefore refused to teach him the remaining four purvas. A chastised Sthulibhadra tried to persuade him to reconsider, but Bhadrabahu swami was firm. It was only when the Jain sangh requested acharya Bhadrabahu to reconsider his decision that Sthulibhadra was allowed to learn the remaining four Purvas. But acharya Bhadrabahu attached two condi tions for Sthulibhadra:
He would not teach Sthulibhadra the meaning of the last four Purvas
Sthulibhadra could not teach those four purvas to any other monk
Sthulibhadra agreed and learned the remaining four purvas.
Since Jain scriptures were not written down and acharya Sthulibhadra made significant efforts to save them after the famine, his name stands very high in the history of Jainism. Even today, his name is recited next to Lord Mahavir and Gautam swami by the Shvetambar tradition.
The greedy Dhananand was far from being a just and noble ruler. He had heard a legend about hidden treasure that belonged to one of his predecessors and was desperate to get his hands on it. Unfortunately, he had no idea where this treasure was hidden. However, he knew that the old Prime Minister Shaktal, who had served his father, had knowledge of the treasure’s whereabouts. Dhananand therefore tried everything he could to get the information from the prime minister and locate the treasure, but Shaktal refused to provide any information about the whereabouts of this treasure. The King therefore forced him to retire and the administration was entrusted to other ministers.
 |
| Kumar Sthulibhadra enjoying Kosha’s dance |
Shaktal was a wise, highly respected person in the kingdom. Many scholars and high ranking officials admired him and were eager to consult him on important matters. However, they avoided communicating with him because they feared that the King would not approve.
Shaktal had seven daughters and two sons, Sthulibhadra and Shriyak. Sthulibhadra was smart, brilliant, and handsome, but unambitious. From a very young age, Sthulibhadra had watched the performance of a beautiful dancer named Kosha in Patliputra, the capital city of Magadha. Eventually, they fell in love. Though his family disapproved, Sthulibhadra was deeply in love and left home at the young age of 18 to live with Kosha. He was infatuated with her and abandoned all interest in his career and other family members. King Dhananand had intended to appoint him to a high position in the court, but Sthulibhadra declined the offer. The King therefore appointed his younger brother, Shriyak, to the position.As time passed, things began to look grim for Dhananand’s reign. The citizens of Magadha witnessed major political upheavals and turmoil. People felt dissatisfied with the current regime and looked for the end of the Nanda dynasty. King Dhananand felt insecure and was suspicious of all his ministers and advisors, including Shriyak and his father Shaktal.
Aware that the King was very suspicious of him, Shaktal became worried about the political future of his younger son. Shaktal therefore decided to sacrifice his life in order to provide proof of Shriyak’s loyalty to the King. He requested his son, Shriyak, to kill him in the presence of the King and other ministers. This way, the King would have proof that Shriyak was a very loyal minister. Prior to the execution, he explained to Shriyak that he would swallow some poison so that Shriyak would not truly (morally and religiously) be responsible for his father’s death. Meanwhile, the King would feel that Shriyak was very loyal to him because he had seemingly killed his own father for the King. Thus, Shaktal died seemingly at the hands of his own son in order to prove his son’s loyalty.
When Sthulibhadra learned about that tragic event, he was taken aback. By that time, he had spent twelve years with Kosha and had never cared for anyone else. His father’s death opened his eyes, and he started reflecting on his past. “Twelve long years of my youth! What did I get during this long period?” Sthulibhadra realized that in his youth he had not acquired anything that would endure. The tragic death of his father brought home the reality that all life comes to an end. “Is there no way to escape death?” he asked himself. “What is the nature of life after all? Who am I, and what is my mission in life?”
Thinking deep into these questions, he realized that the body and all worldly aspects are transitory and physical pleasures do not lead to lasting happiness. He looked at his image in the mirror and noticed the unmistakable marks of a lustful life. Having realized that he was wasting his youth, he decided to search for lasting happiness. He left Kosha and went straight to acharya Sambhutivijay, the sixth successor to Lord Mahavir. Surrendering himself to the acharya, he said that he was sick of his lustful lifestyle and wanted to do something worthwhile with his life. The acharya considered his request carefully. Here was a young man of thirty who seemed to have lost the vigor of youth. The lustful life he had led had taken a toll on his body, but the brightness inherited from his illustrious father still glowed on his face. Seeing Sthulibhadra’s determined and humble state, the learned acharya saw in him a great future for the religious order and accepted him as his pupil.
Sthulibhadra quickly adjusted to the new pattern of his life. The ambition that he had lacked in his youth soon emerged in his adulthood. Keen to make up for lost years, he devoted all of his energy to spiritual upliftment. He worked diligently, and in no time gained the confidence of his guru. He had successfully overcome his senses of attachment and lustfulness and gained control over his inner enemies. It was time for his faith to be tested.
The monsoon season was approaching and the monks had to settle in one place during the rainy season which generally lasted four months in the Indian climate. Sthulibhadra and three other sadhus who had attained a high level of equanimity wanted to test their faith and determination by spending this time under the most adverse conditions. Each one chose the most adverse conditions for themselves. One of them requested permission from his acharya to stay at the entrance of a lion’s den. Another wanted to spend the time near a snake’s hole. The third wanted to spend the four months on top of an open well. The acharya knew that they were capable of withstanding these hardships and permitted them to do this. However, Sthulibhadra humbly asked to spend the monsoon in the picture gallery of the residence of Kosha. The acharya knew how difficult this test would be for Sthulibhadra, but he also knew Sthulibhadra’s determination and felt that spiritually, the monk would not progress any further without passing this test. Therefore, he permitted Sthulibhadra to spend the monsoon at Kosha’s house.
Kumar Sthulibhadra’s life from falling in love with Kosha, spending
12 years of his youth with her and later being able to spend a
monsoon at her house with total detachment
At the end of the monsoon all the monks returned and described their experience. The first three monks described their success and they were congratulated. But when Sthulibhadra reported the success of his test, the acharya actually rose from his seat in all praise and hailed Sthulibhadra for performing a formidable task. The other monks became jealous. Why was Sthulibhadra’s feat so much more impressive than theirs? After all, they had endured physical hardships while he had spent the monsoon in comfort and security. The acharya explained that it was an impossible feat for anyone else. The first monk then boasted that he could easily accomplish the same task the following monsoon. The acharya tried to dissuade him from his intent, knowing that it was beyond his capability. The monk, wanting to prove his spiritual strength to the acharya, persisted and was reluctantly given permission for the next monsoon season.
 |
| The monk was unable to stay detached seeing Kosha’s beauty and forgot his vows in the hope of receiving Kosha’s love |
The next monsoon, the monk went to Kosha’s place. The immodest pictures in the gallery were enough to excite him. When he saw the glamorous Kosha, his remaining resistance melted away and he begged for her love. After seeing the pious life of Sthulibhadra, Kosha had learned the value of an ascetic life. In order to teach the monk a lesson, she agreed to love him only if he gave her a diamond-studded garment from Nepal, a town 250 miles north of Patliputra. The monk was so infatuated that he left immediately for Nepal, forgetting that monks were not supposed to travel during the monsoon. With considerable difficulty, he procured the garment and returned to Patliputra, confident of receiving Kosha’s love. Kosha accepted the beautiful garment, wiped her feet on it and threw it away in the trash.
The monk was stunned. He asked, “Are you crazy, Kosha? Why are you throwing away the precious gift that I have brought you with so much difficulty?” Kosha replied, “Why are you throwing away the precious life of monkhood that you have acquired with so much effort?” The humbled monk realized his foolishness and returned to his acharya to report his miserable failure. From that day onwards, there was immense respect for Sthulibhadra throughout the community.
Sthulibhadra played a major role in later years preserving the oldest Jain scriptures, known as the twelve Anga agams and the fourteen purvas. Jain history indicates that acharya Bhadrabahu, the successor of acharya Sambhutivijay as the head of the religious order, was the last monk to have complete knowledge of all the Jain scriptures. Both acharya Sambhutivijay and acharya Bhadrabahu had been the disciples of acharya Yashobhadra.
In those days, the Jain scriptures were memorized and passed down orally from guru to disciple. They were not documented in any form. Under the leadership of acharya Bhadrabahu, Sthulibhadra thoroughly studied eleven of the twelve Anga agams. However, an extended famine prevented Sthulibhadra from studying the twelfth Anga agam, known as Drashtivad, which contained the 14 purvas. During the famine, acharya Bhadrabahu-swami migrated south with 12, 000 disciples. acharya Sthulibhadra succeeded him as the leader of the monks who stayed behind in Patliputra. The hardships of the famine made it difficult for the monks to observe their code of conduct properly. In addition, many of the monks’ memories failed them and many parts of the Anga agams were forgotten.
The famine lasted for twelve years. After the famine, Sthulibhadra decided to recompile the Jain scriptures. A convention was held in Patliputra under the leadership of acharya Sthulibhadra. Eleven of the twelve Anga agams were orally recompiled at the convention, but none of the monks at the convention could remember the twelfth Anga agam and its 14 purvas. Only acharya Bhadrabahu swami had this knowledge; he had left southern India and was now in the mountains of Nepal to practice a special penance and meditation. The Jain sangh therefore requested Sthulibhadra and some other learned monks to go to acharya Bhadrabahu-swami and learn the twelfth agam.
Several monks undertook the long journey, but only Sthulibhadra reached Nepal. He began to learn the twelfth Anga agam and its 14 purvas under acharya Bhadrabahu.
Once, Sthulibhadra’s sisters, who were nuns, decided to visit him in Nepal. At this time, Sthulibhadra had completely learned 10 of the 14 purvas. He wanted to impress them with the miraculous power he had acquired from learning the 10 purvas and knowledge from the twelfth agam. Therefore, he transformed his body into a lion and waited for them to arrive. When his sisters entered the cave, they found a lion instead of their brother. Fearful of what may have happened to him, they went directly to Bhadrabahu swami. acharya Bhadrabahu realized what had happened and asked the sisters to go back to the cave again. This time, Sthulibhadra had resumed his original form and the sisters were joyful to see him alive and well.
However, Bhadrabahu swami was disappointed because Sthulibhadra had misused his special powers for such a trivial purpose. He felt that Sthulibhadra was not mature enough in his spiritual progress and therefore refused to teach him the remaining four purvas. A chastised Sthulibhadra tried to persuade him to reconsider, but Bhadrabahu swami was firm. It was only when the Jain sangh requested acharya Bhadrabahu to reconsider his decision that Sthulibhadra was allowed to learn the remaining four Purvas. But acharya Bhadrabahu attached two condi tions for Sthulibhadra:
He would not teach Sthulibhadra the meaning of the last four Purvas
Sthulibhadra could not teach those four purvas to any other monk
Sthulibhadra agreed and learned the remaining four purvas.
Since Jain scriptures were not written down and acharya Sthulibhadra made significant efforts to save them after the famine, his name stands very high in the history of Jainism. Even today, his name is recited next to Lord Mahavir and Gautam swami by the Shvetambar tradition.
It is never too late to set high goals in life, and with determination, there is no adversity too difficult to overcome. Though he was 30 at the time and had wasted 12 years of his life, Sthulibhadra renounced the world and successfully pursued an austere spiritual life. With resolve, he also conquered his biggest inner enemy, desire, by returning to the place where his desire had previously gotten the best of him. Ultimately, he became a famous Jain saint whose name is still repeated in prayers for his great religious work
CLICK ON THE LINKS BELOW IF YOU ARE INTERESTED.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN LIST OF ALL THE SONGS TO DOWNLOAD JUST CLICK THE BELOW HIGHLIGHTED BUTTON TO DOWNLOAD FROM GOOGLE DRIVE
to download it
JAINAM JAYATI SHASHNAM
No comments:
Post a Comment