Page 25 - Shilanyas2

All this make one pause and wonder: what’s so special about Siddhachalam? As times roll by and those with first-hand experience of being with Guruji gradually recede, is it possible that the significance of Siddhachalam to the modern history of Jainism might be lost to many? That would be unfortunate.

While on his way to Rajagraha from Surabhpura, Bhagwan Mahavira had to cross the river Ganga in a boat. Serpent prince Sudamstra bore a grudge against Bhagwan Mahavira, as the serpent prince – who was then a lion – was killed by Bhagwan Mahavira, in one of the previous births. In order to have his revenge, the serpent prince creates a terrible cyclonic storm by his magical powers. The boat is rocked by the huge waves of the river Ganga, the mast is broken and pandemonium prevails everywhere. But Bhagwan Mahavira remains seated calmly and serenely, deeply absorbed in mediation. Two gods of nether regions, Kambala and Sambala, knew it by their divine power and rushed to the spot. They drove away Sudamstra and the storm subsided. All aboard the boat bowed down to Him with great respect and gratitude, as they were convinced they owed their lives to the presence of the great saint. Plate 31, Tirthankar Bhagawan Mahavira Illustrated, Munishri Yashovijayji Ma Sa. Copyright Jain Chitrakala Nidarshan Samiti 1974. Reproduced with permission.

Notwithstanding references in literature to Bhagwaan Mahavira having crossed river Ganga by a boat, of Jain mendicants and scholars having traveled to distant lands in the first millennium after Bhagwaan Mahavira, and of ancient Jain temples in those lands, mendicants’ travel by vehicles was forbidden. It was a time-honored tradition. Jain mendicants routinely walked thousands of miles. The tradition resulted in many auspicious consequences, including the greater opportunity for mendicants to reflect, and of lay people to meet with them in their local surroundings.