In Jain tradition, when we say “Mahavir Bhagwan ka pehla bhav,” we usually mean: the first recorded special birth (out of 27) from which his spiritual journey as a future Tirthankar is traced. That first bhav is as Nayasar (also written Naisar / Naysar).

Below is a simple version of that story:

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1. Who was Nayasar?

• In his first bhav, Mahavir Bhagwan’s soul was born as a man named Nayasar.
• He lived in a village, is described as a gram‑neta / village elder or forester, respected by the people.
• He was not yet a monk or Tirthankar, but he had good qualities:

- very kind and soft‑hearted - had deep respect for sadhus and sadhvijis - tried to live with dayā (compassion) and sīmita bhog (limited wants)

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2. The turning point in Nayasar’s life

One day, a group of Jain sadhus came near his village:

• They were doing hard tapasya, walking bare‑foot, observing ahimsa, and living with almost nothing.
• Nayasar saw their shānti (peace) and tej (spiritual glow).

This touched his heart very deeply.

Nayasar:

• Welcomed them with full shraddhā
• Arranged pure food, water, and a clean place for them
• Served them with vinay (humility), without pride or show

The sadhus accepted only what was according to their maryādā (rules), but they blessed Nayasar from their heart.

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3. Birth of samyaktva (right vision) seed

Because of:

• his devotion to sadhus,
• true respect (non‑selfish), and
• his compassionate nature,

the scriptures say that in Nayasar’s heart the first seed of samyaktva (right faith / right vision) was sown.

From this bhav onward:

• His soul starts moving strongly upward on the spiritual path.
• This is considered the starting point of his journey towards becoming Mahavir Tirthankar in the 28th bhav.

Jain acharyas explain that:

• A soul can wander in countless lives,
• but when, like Nayasar, it starts respecting true sadhus, serving them, and developing dayā, vinay and dharma‑bhāva,

then its direction completely changes, and it moves steadily towards moksha.

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4. Digambar and Shwetambar view

• Both traditions accept that Mahavir Bhagwan’s soul had 27 special previous births before becoming Mahavir.
• In both, the first important bhav is as Nayasar (name‑spellings and small story details may vary).
• The spiritual essence is the same:

from Nayasar’s birth begins the clear, rising spiritual ladder that finally ends in Mahavir Bhagwan’s keval‑jnān and moksha.

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5. What we should learn from Nayasar’s bhav

From Mahavir Bhagwan’s first bhav as Nayasar, we learn:

1. Sevā of true sadhus done with vinay is extremely powerful.
2. Dayā, vinay, and shraddhā can change the direction of our soul.
3. Even a gṛhasthi / village person can start the journey towards Tirthankar‑pad by:

- avoiding himsā as much as possible, - helping others, - respecting and supporting saadhus and dharma.

If you want to read more about the 27 bhavs of Mahavir Swami, there is a detailed explanation here