3. SYMBOLIC INCIDENTS FROM THE TWENTY-FIVE PRECEDING LIVES OF BHAGAVAN MAHAVIRA

3. SYMBOLIC INCIDENTS FROM THE TWENTY-FIVE PRECEDING LIVES OF BHAGAVAN MAHAVIRA

Jainism does not restrict the right of attaining perfection to any one individual. An individual, irrespective of his caste of creed, can aspire to this status provided he has the will to follow the path. But samyaktva or righteousness must first be born in him. It may well be that the soul has to pass through a series of births before this lamp of spiritual discretion is kindled, but once it is kindled, the march of progress is assured, though it may be frequently hampered and impeded by numerous obstacles. The illustration depicts the twenty-five preceding lives of Bhagavan Mahavir. The first group depicts the life of Nayasara which marks the acquisition of samyaktva. Lives numbered as 16, 18, 20, 22, 23 and 25 and the life of Marici from the second group. A divine aerial car (Deva-vimana) is shown in the center and a demon, symbolic of life in hell, is also shown. The twenty-first birth, that of Tridandi, is shown at right. Lives numbered 5, 6 and 8 is at extreme left and lives 12 and 14 are depicted at extreme right.