Trishala, also known as Videhadatta, Priyakarini, or Trishala Mata (Mother Trishala), was the mother of Mahavira, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism, and wife of the Gaṇa Mukhya, Siddhartha of Kundagrama, of present-day Bihar.
Life
Trishala was born as a
princess of the Licchavi Republic. The Jain text Uttarapurāṇa details the life of all Tirthankaras and other
Salakapurusa. It is mentioned in the text that
King Chetaka of
Vajjika League had ten brothers and seven sisters. His sister Priyakarini (Trishala) was married to Siddartha.
As per Shvetambara texts and Indologist
Hermann Jacobi, Vardhamana
Mahavira's mother Trishala was sister of Consul Chetaka. His third wife,
Kshema, was a daughter of the chief of the
Madra tribe of
Punjab.
[Krishna, Narendra. (1944) History of India, A. Mukherjee & bros. p. 90.] Trishala had seven sisters, one of whom was initiated into the
Jain monasticism while the other six married famous kings, including
Bimbisara of Magadha. She and her husband Siddhartha were followers of
Parshvanatha, the 23rd Tirthankara according to the second chapter of the Śvētāmbara Ācārāṅga Sūtra. According to Jain texts, Trishala carried her son for nine months and seven and a half days during the 6th century BC. However, Shvetambaras generally believe that he was conceived by Devananda, the wife of a
Brahmin Rishabhadatta and the fetus was transferred to Trishala's womb by
Indra because all Tirthankaras have to be
.
All this is mentioned in the Shvetambara text,
Kalpasutra, which is primarily a biography of the Tirthankaras.
Auspicious dreams
According to the Jain scriptures, the mother of
Tirthankaras see a number of auspicious dreams when the embryo is enliven through the descent of the life (soul) in the mortal body. This is celebrated as
Garbha Kalyanaka.
According to the
Digambara sect, the number of dreams is 16. While the Shvetambara sect believe them to be only fourteen. After seeing these dreams, she woke her husband Consul Siddhartha and told him about the dreams. The next day Siddhartha summoned the scholars of the court and asked them to explain the meaning of the dreams. According to the scholars, these dreams meant that the child would be born very strong, courageous, and full of virtue.
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Dream of an elephant (Airavata)
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Dream of a bull
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Dream of a lion
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Dream of Laxmi
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Dream of flowers
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Dream of a full moon
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Dream of the sun
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Dream of a large banner
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Dream of a silver urn (Kalasha)
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Dream of a lake filled with Nelumbo nucifera
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Dream of a milky-white sea
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Dream of a celestial vehicle (Vimana)
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Dream of a heap of gems
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Dream of a fire without smoke
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Dream of a pair of fish (Digambara)
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Dream of a throne (Digambara)
Legacy
Today members of the Jain religion celebrate the event of the Dreams. This event is called
Swapna Darshan and is often part of "Ghee Boli".
The parents of Tirthankaras and their mothers in particular are worshipped among Jains and are frequently depicted in paintings and sculpture.
See also
Citations
Sources
External links
