Mahavir

great growth and prosperity from the time he appeared in his mother’s womb. Mahavir’s first name was Vardhamana, which means “ever growing”. He was later also known as “Sanmati”.

Even as a young prince, Mahavir was very virtuous. He used to constantly meditate and reflect on life. He learned the arts of music and literature. When Mahavir was very young, King Siddharth arranged for a teacher to instruct him in weapons. The teacher soon found out that his student knew more than what he could teach him.

Mahavir’s bravery impressed everyone. One day, a celestial god named Sangama, transformed himself into a large snake and came to frighten Mahavir. Instead of getting scared, Mahavir showed his compassion and took the snake in his hand in order to protect it from the others and let it go in the fields. He was not scared at all. While some believe that he got the name Mahavir (Great Hero) after this incident, there are many others who believe he was called Mahavir because he conquered himself, which is a far more difficult thing.

TURNING POINT

Mahavir lived a royal life as a prince of Bihar. He married Yashoda and had a daughter named Riyadarshana. By the time Mahavir turned thirty, he saw through his powers that he had many lives in the past. He started reflecting on the nature of soul and its purpose. He realized that all worldly things were temporary and that the soul was separate from the body. The soul was bonded due to the laws of karma, and the soul could only be freed when one got rid of karma. He realized that being born as a human was a great blessing, because it allowed him to meditate on the nature of the soul.

He was convinced that he had to leave home in order to progress spiritually. His mother tried to dissuade him, but he told her that it was impossible to get happiness in the material world, because it was the abode of disease, sorrow, pain and death.

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