I Am Mahavira - Book Summary | JainGPT

Here is a comprehensive summary of the Jain text "I am Mahavira" by N. L. Jain, based on the provided pages:

Book Title: I am Mahavira Author: Dr. N. L. Jain Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith, Varanasi Series: Parshwanath Vidyapitha Book Series -138 Occasion: 2600th Mahavira Birth Anniversary Year, 2002

Overall Purpose and Style: "I am Mahavira" presents the life and teachings of Lord Mahavira in a concise and engaging manner, utilizing an autobiographical literary style. The book aims to make Mahavira's principles easily understandable for both young and adult audiences, incorporating illustrative diagrams to enhance attractiveness and readability. The author's intent is to foster a deeper understanding of life's processes and the positive impact of even seemingly negative principles, as recognized by psychologists. The book draws inspiration from "Mahavira Ka Antastala" by Swami Satyabhakta and "The Story of Jesus" by E. Graham.

Key Sections and Themes:

1. From the Dreams into the World:

The book begins by setting the historical context of 2600 years ago, describing a society with social inequalities, where women and men were treated as property.
It introduces Mahavira's birth in Kṣatriya Kundagrāma, a village republic ruled by King Siddhartha and Queen Trisala, who was the daughter of King Cetaka of Videha.
Mahavira's mother, Trisala, experienced numerous auspicious dreams before his conception, which were interpreted by royal astrologers as signs of his future as a great spiritual teacher who would establish a path of peace and wisdom.
The book details the auspicious events surrounding Mahavira's birth, including celestial phenomena and public festivities, which led people to believe his birth was supernatural.

2. My Childhood:

Mahavira's horoscope, prepared by astrologers, predicted he would either become a great emperor (Cakravarti) or a world teacher.
He was named Vardhamana (growing) but later received other names like Sanmati, Vira, Ativira, and most famously, Mahavira, based on his qualities and deeds.
Mahavira is described as exceptionally intelligent, fearless, and a natural leader from childhood.
Anecdotes illustrate his courage and strength, such as subduing a serpent and a mad elephant, and winning a challenging game against a juggler, fostering his self-confidence.
The text notes his early completion of studies in Vedas and archery by the age of sixteen, signifying his mastery of both worldly and spiritual knowledge.
A footnote provides key dates in Mahavira's life, including conception, birth, initiation, enlightenment, and liberation.

3. My Journeys:

As he grew older, Mahavira felt the need for life experiences to complement his knowledge. He began traveling and observing society.
His journeys revealed the suffering and oddities in the world, including the practice of animal sacrifice in Yajnas, which he questioned due to its cruelty.
He witnessed the caste system's discrimination when a low-caste worker, Sivakesi, was beaten for listening to Vedic recitations, highlighting the disconnect between religious scriptures and actual practice.
These experiences solidified his belief that the world was filled with suffering caused by desires and selfishness, prompting him to consider renunciation and spiritual practices to find a path for universal love and peace.

4. Leaving the Home:

Mahavira's contemplation of renunciation led him to re-study scriptures, focusing on non-violence (Ahimsa) and the path of knowledge (Jñānayoga). He recognized non-violence as the key to bringing love and peace to the world.
He decided to first practice non-violence within his own home by becoming a common man and alleviating the distinction between prince and commoner.
His parents' death intensified his resolve for spiritual practices. After a period of consideration and fulfilling his brother's request to wait two years, he sought permission for initiation.
Royal priests approached him, lamenting the societal ills and urging Mahavira to guide humanity towards non-violence. This reinforced his mission.
He received a royal farewell and proceeded to the Jñātri forest, where he renounced his worldly possessions and commitments, keeping only a divine piece of cloth, and began his path as a common man. He even gave half of his cloth to his uncle, demonstrating detachment.

5. In the Path of Spiritual Practice or Sadhana:

Mahavira embarked on twelve years of rigorous spiritual practice and wandering.
He experienced various forms of hardship and persecution, including being wrongly accused by a farmer, having his ears nailed, and facing taunts from village women.
He learned to minimize external attachments, even using his own hand-bowl for meals.
He encountered people's belief in demons and spirits, and even faced them himself in temples, remaining steadfast. He was attacked by a demigod (Yakşa) but remained undeterred, leading to the demigod's surrender.
He faced a fierce serpent, Candakaushika, and remained calm, realizing that such creatures are only dangerous to the violent.
He experienced a boat storm, maintaining his composure amidst others' fear and superstitions.
He was unjustly tortured by border police on multiple occasions but was recognized and saved.
He witnessed and disapproved of erotic and voluptuous celebrations in temples and observed the degradation of women's status in society, resolving to rectify these issues.
In Lādha country, he endured significant physical abuse, including stones and hounds, from people who hated nude ascetics, classifying twenty-two types of inflictions.
He noted society's greater regard for wealth and status over knowledge, as seen with the boatmen honoring an army commander.
He detested slavery and deliberately accepted food from slave women, leading to their liberation and the eventual release of many enslaved women, including Candana, daughter of King Cetaka.

6. Realization of True Path:

After twelve years of dedicated practice and introspection, at the age of forty-two, Mahavira achieved spiritual enlightenment under a Sal tree by the river Rjukula.
He received a "divine light" that resolved all his internal and external problems, doubts, and fears.
He realized the true inner light he had been searching for, which offered a path to universal happiness.
This realization was symbolized by the vision of a lion and a she-goat drinking water together, signifying ultimate harmony and peace.

7. Wanderings and Sermons:

Following his enlightenment, Mahavira delivered his first sermon in Jrmbhika village.
He realized the need for scholarly disciples to help disseminate his teachings effectively. He gained eleven notable scholars as disciples, including Indrabhūti Gautama, who became his chief disciple.
His sermons were then made accessible to the public in the popular language of Ardhamagadhi, with the assistance of his disciples.
He traveled extensively throughout India for thirty years, delivering sermons in various regions and to all strata of society, including kings, householders, and common people.
Many kings were impressed and some even took initiation. Foreign visitors from Persia and Greece also listened to him.
His followers established a large order comprising 14,000 monks, 36,000 nuns, and over 230,000 householders.
He empowered and uplifted slave women, making his teachings instrumental in forming a new society based on spiritual welfare.

8. The Mango Tree:

Mahavira narrated a parable of a mango tree loaded with ripe mangoes to King Śreņika, illustrating different levels of human mentality and desires.
The parable described six people approaching the tree, with their desires ranging from cutting the entire tree to taking only ripe mangoes from the ground.
The first three represent violent or selfish mentalities, while the last three represent non-violent, considerate mentalities that lead to the welfare of others.
He introduced the concept of "aureoles" or "colorations" (Leśyās) – six mental states (black, blue, gray, yellow, red, white), emphasizing the need to abandon the inauspicious first three and cultivate the auspicious last three for societal well-being.

9. Who is Enemy?

Mahavira explained to King Cetaka that true bravery lies not in defeating external enemies, but in conquering internal enemies like anger, pride, greed, and prejudice, which cause societal discord.
He taught that winning over these internal foes through restraint and spiritual practice is far more difficult and crucial for personal and kingdom welfare.

10. The Elephant and the Blind Men:

Mahavira used the parable of six blind men touching different parts of an elephant to explain the concept of Anekāntavāda (poly-viewism or multi-faceted truth).
He illustrated that truth is one but appears differently depending on one's perspective. Disputes arise from absolutistic views that insist on only one aspect of reality.
He emphasized that understanding all facets of an entity is essential for true cognition and that substituting "only" with "also" in our judgments can resolve disputes and promote liberal thinking.
He further used the example of different relationships a single man holds to illustrate that reality is multifaceted.
He also addressed academic disputes, advising that logic alone can deceive if not balanced with practical wisdom and self-awareness.

11. The Farmer and the Fisherman:

Mahavira clarified the concepts of violence (Himsa) and non-violence (Ahimsa), distinguishing between mental volitions (psychical violence) and physical actions.
He argued that psychical violence, or the intention to harm, is more detrimental than physical acts.
He used the farmer (who unintentionally kills soil organisms) and the fisherman (who actively traps fish) to illustrate that the intention behind an action is crucial in judging its violence.
He highlighted that violence is judged by "what you think" and mental dispositions.
He advocated for the abandonment of "determinate, premeditated or intentional violence" (psychical violence) for a healthier society.
He defined non-violence as the mother of love and brotherhood, and described it as the natural affection a father has for his son, extending this to societal relationships.
He linked non-violence to practical vows: truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy, and non-attachment. He considered celibacy essential for societal improvement.
He stressed that mere thought of non-violence is insufficient; practice is key, echoing the sentiment that non-violence is the best religion.

12. The Queen Mrgavati and the Goldsmith:

Mahavira narrated a story about a goldsmith and his 500 wives to illustrate the law of Karma and rebirth. The goldsmith's cruelty led to his death and repeated rebirths in suffering, while his wives were reborn as males who suffered further.
He emphasized that bad actions lead to bad consequences and good deeds lead to good effects, and that one can improve their destiny through virtuous actions.
He advised men to treat women respectfully, acknowledging their equal potency.
His teachings encouraged Queen Mrigavati to renounce worldly life and dedicate herself to spiritual practices.

13. Fate or Exertion?

Mahavira challenged the concept of fatalism, prevalent among people, which he believed fostered indolence and hindered societal progress.
He used the example of a potter and his pots to demonstrate that effort (exertion) is essential for creation and that fate is a consequence of past actions.
He argued that humans are responsible for their own fate through their actions and that exertion leads to positive outcomes.
He stressed the importance of individual exertion for societal prosperity and character development, advocating for a focus on present actions.
He concluded that actions themselves are neither good nor bad; it is human imposition of these labels. The key is to act well, leading to individual happiness and societal prosperity.

14. Confluence:

Mahavira explained the object of life as achieving health, wealth, and happiness, both externally and internally, through harmony and contentment.
He stressed that individual happiness is linked to the well-being of society and that true happiness comes from compassion and alleviating the suffering of others.
He introduced the concept that knowledge alone is insufficient; it must be coupled with right actions and behavior.
The parable of the blind man and the lame man illustrated that the combination of knowledge (the lame man) and action (the blind man) is crucial for salvation.
He highlighted the psychological aspect of healing, emphasizing faith and belief alongside knowledge.
He defined self-realization as a "confluence of faith, knowledge, and conduct."
He outlined the five great vows (Mahavratas): Non-violence, Truth, Non-stealing, Celibacy, and Non-possession, explaining how they control mind, speech, and body and lead to universal welfare.

15. The Queries of Gautama:

Mahavira discussed the nature of the universe with his chief disciple, Gautama, explaining it as eternal, beginningless, and infinite, operating on natural laws without a creator.
He described the universe's three-tier structure (lower, middle, and upper worlds) and its composition of living and non-living entities.
He elaborated on the five kinds of living beings and the role of Karma in their existence.
He emphasized the interdependence of all beings and the importance of maintaining ecological equilibrium.
He reiterated that his teachings aim to increase happiness, leading to ultimate liberation.

16. My Contemporaries:

Mahavira briefly discusses eight significant contemporary religious and philosophical figures:
1. Mankhali Gośāla: An Ājivika proponent of determinism, who was an associate of Mahavira but later differed and declared himself a Jina.
2. Jāmāli: A relative and disciple who propounded a doctrine of "being done" is "not done."
3. Buddha: A senior contemporary, founder of Buddhism, who taught momentariness and non-soulism. Mahavira acknowledges their separate paths and lack of personal meeting.
4. Ajita Kesakambali: A materialist who believed in neither soul nor rebirth.
5. Sañjaya Belatļhiputta: An agnostic who neither affirmed nor denied the existence of the afterlife.
6. Pūraņa Kassapa: A proponent of the theory of non-action, denying the concepts of sacred and sin.
7. Pakuddha Kaccāyana: Believed in seven permanent elements that could not be destroyed.
8. Tishya Gupta: Advocated the "Last Point Theory" regarding the soul.
Mahavira notes that most contemporary doctrines are absolutistic and contrasts them with his relativistic approach.

17. Let All Enjoy Welfare:

In his final days, Mahavira offered his last teachings to his disciples, emphasizing the importance of respecting teachers and adapting principles to changing times, regions, and countries, while maintaining fundamental concepts.
He clarified that spiritual knowledge can be attained both through renunciation (living in forests) and by householders like Ananda, stressing the importance of internal purity and energy.
He criticized the disconnect between knowledge and practice in his time, urging monks to bridge this gap.
He viewed titles like "dictator" and "revolutionary" as positive qualities for a teacher.
He defended the evolution of religion, citing his own additions and modifications to his predecessor Pārśvanātha's teachings, such as the fifth vow of celibacy and the theory of poly-viewism.
He reiterated the principle of non-violence as the recognition of human equality and the condemnation of discrimination based on birth or livelihood.
He encouraged his disciples to awaken the concepts of self-sufficiency and equality.
He defined spiritual practice not as escaping the world but as a path for heroes who become universal through optimism, leading to the betterment of all.
He identified affection, sympathy, and conscientious conduct as true austerities and the path to universal happiness.
His prayers were not for personal welfare but for the universal well-being of all humanity, a prayer fitting for a "Great Hero" (Mahavira).
The book concludes with Mahavira bidding farewell to his chief disciples after assuring them of their commitment to promoting his teachings.