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The auspicious event of the chyavan of Bhagwan Mahavira took place on the midnight of 6th day of the bright half of the month of ashadh in the 544th year before the Vikram Era (600 B.C.) as His soul descended from the 10th devlok - Pranta. King Siddhartha and Queen Trishla were blessed with the great fortune of being the parents of Bhagwan Mahavira. On the beautiful moonlit night, when Queen Trishla conceived Bhagwan, she saw 14 auspicious dreams - 1) an elephant, 2) a bull 3) a lion, 4) Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, 5) a garland of flowers, 6) the moon, 7) the sun, 8) a flag, 9) a jar filled with water, 10) a lotus-lake, 11) an ocean, 12) a celestial, aerial car, 13) a heap of jewels, 14) smokeless fire. The dream interpreters proclaimed that the dreams augured the birth of a Great One, a Tirthankar.
Mahavir Jayanti or Mahavir Janam Kalyanak occurs on the 13th day of the rising moon of Chaitra and is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Mahavira, the twenty fourth Tirthankara according to Jain mythology.
Chronologically, Mahavira’s birth is in 599 B.C.E. Lord Mahavira was the son of Lord Siddhartha and Queen Trishla. It is believed that when Lord Mahavira was in the womb of his mother Trishla, she had fourteen auspicious dreams symbolizing the birth of a Thirthankara her child. It is also said that when Lord Mahavira was in the womb of his mother, the whole kingdom faced happiness and the kingdom was free from any kind of diseases because Mahavira was about to be born. It is said that Lord Indra himself bathed Mahavira when he was born because it was a ritual that was to be followed when any Thirthankara is born.
Lord Mahavira is said to be the founder of Jainism and it is said that he is the one who laid down the basic principles of Jainism. The five principles of Jainism as laid down by Lord Mahavira are : Satya or truth, Ahimsa or non- violence, Achaurya of not stealing anyone else’s possessions, Bramhacharya or non-indulgence in sexual intercourse and Aparigraha meaning not assembling unnecessary goods.
Lord Mahavira was married initially but he left his kingdom to seek greater truth and attain Nirvana. Lord Mahavira was a kind-hearted person and had to face a number of hardships in his life before he could attain Nirvana. His ears were pinned, a vigorous snake bit him but he never complained because he said that all our sufferings are the result of the pain which we once gave to others.
