Who was Mahavira?

Conscious TV

January 15, 2022

Mahavira was the 24th and last Tirthankara of the Jain religion. According to Jain philosophy, all Tirthankaras were born as human beings but attained a state of perfection or enlightenment through meditation and self-realization.

They are the gods of the Jains. Tirthankaras are also known as Jinas.

• Tirthankara - One who establishes the four orders of religion (monks, nuns, laymen and laywomen).
• Arihant - One who destroys his inner enemies such as anger, greed, passion, ego, etc.
• Jina - One who defeats his inner enemies such as anger, greed, passion, ego, etc. The followers of Jina are known as the Jainas.

Mahavira was born in 599 BC as a prince in Bihar, India. At the age of 30 he left his family and home, renounced his worldly possessions, including clothes, and became a monk. He spent the next twelve years in silence and meditation to conquer his desires and feelings. He went for long periods without eating. He spent the next thirty years traveling barefoot throughout India and preaching the eternal truth he had attained.

He attracted all kinds of people, rich and poor, kings and commoners, men and women, princes and priests, touchables and untouchables. In the end he attained perfect perception, knowledge, power and happiness. This realization is known as Keval-jnana.

He organized his followers into an order divided into four classes: monk (sadhu), nun (sadhvi), layman (shravak) and laywoman (shravika). They later became known as the Jainas.

The ultimate goal of their teachings is to achieve total liberation from the cycle of birth, life, pain, misery and death to attain the state of permanent bliss of the Self. This is also known as liberation, nirvana, absolute freedom or Moksha. He explained that every living being (soul) is subject to the law of karma, which records good and bad actions. Under the influence of karma, the soul becomes accustomed to seek pleasure in the enjoyment of material possessions. This is the cause of violent thoughts and actions, anger, hatred, greed and other vices, which accumulate more karma.

Mahavira preached that right faith (samyak-darshana), right knowledge (samyak-jnana) and right behavior (samyak-charitra) were key to attaining liberation.

The essence of the Jains' right behavior is based on the five vows they adopt:

• Non-violence (Ahimsa) - Not causing harm to any living being.
• Sincerity (Satya) - Always tell the truth.
• Non-stealing (Asteya) - Not to take anything not given to them.
• Chastity (Brahmacharya) - Refrain from seeking sensual pleasure.
• Renunciation of possessions and emotional detachment (Aparigraha).

These vows are essential in the life of the Jains. Monks and nuns strictly observe these vows, while lay people try to fulfill them as far as their lifestyle allows.

At the age of 72 (527 BC), Mahavira passed away and his purified soul left his body and attained complete liberation. He became a Siddha, a pure consciousness, a liberated soul, living eternally in a state of complete bliss. On the night of his salvation, his followers celebrate the Festival of Lights (Dipavali) in his honor.

Mahavira's teachings

The spiritual strength and moral grandeur of Mahavira's teachings impressed the masses. He made religion simple and natural, freeing it from complex rituals. His teachings reflect the natural impulse towards inner beauty and harmony of the soul.

Mahavira taught that "the living entity is not just an integration of flesh and blood, but the abode of the soul that potentially possesses perfect perception (Anant-darshana), perfect knowledge (Anant-jnana), perfect power (Anant-virya) and perfect bliss (Anant-sukha)". Mahavira's message represents the freedom and spiritual joy of living beings. Mahavira succeeded in eradicating from the human intellect the conception of God as creator, protector and destroyer.

He also denounced the worship of gods and goddesses as a means of salvation. He taught the supremacy of human life and stressed the importance of maintaining a positive attitude towards life. Mahavira also preached the gospel of universal love, stressing that all living beings, regardless of their size, shape and level of spiritual development, are equal and should be loved and respected. Jainism existed before Mahavira and his teachings were based on those of his predecessors.

Mahavira was more of a reformer and propagator of an existing religious order and not the founder of a new religion. He followed the established beliefs of his predecessor, the Tirthankara Parshvanath, however he reorganized the philosophical principles of Jainism to suit his time. He also preached five great vows, while Parshvanath preached four great vows. In terms of spiritual progress, Mahavira believed that men and women were on the same level.

The lure of renunciation and liberation also attracted women. Numerous women followed Mahavira's path and renounced the world to seek ultimate happiness. A few centuries after Mahavira's enlightenment, the religious order of the Jainas (Sangha) became much more complex. Differences arose on some minor points, although they did not affect the original doctrines preached by the Tirthankaras.