Bahubali and Bharata

Among the best-loved stories of Jain tradition, recorded in the Adipurana (canto 1), the ninth-century epic of Rishabhanatha's life, is the story of two brothers, Bahubali and Bharata, sons of the first Tirthankara, Rishabhanatha. Rishabhanatha, also known as Adinatha, was the first of the twenty-four Jain Tirthankaras. Tradition holds that he lived in a time when the world was still young and people needed guidance in the ways of civilization.

After ruling his kingdom for many years and teaching his people the arts of agriculture, writing, and governance, Rishabhanatha renounced his throne to become a wandering ascetic, seeking spiritual liberation. He divided his vast kingdom among his hundred sons, giving the largest and most important portion to his eldest son, Bharata, and a smaller but still significant territory to Bahubali, his second son.

Bharata, however, was not content with his share. He was ambitious and desired to be the sole ruler of the entire world, not just a portion of his father's kingdom. He set out on a campaign of conquest, defeating neighboring kings and bringing their lands under his control. When he had conquered all the other kingdoms, he turned his attention to his brother Bahubali, whose territory was the only one that remained independent. Bharata sent a message to Bahubali, demanding that he submit to his rule or face war. Bahubali, who was proud and strong, refused to bow to his brother's demands, and so the two brothers prepared for battle.

The conflict between the brothers was not to be a simple war of armies, however. In those ancient times, it was customary for disputes between rulers to be settled by single combat between the champions, or by duels of strength, sight, and water. In most tellings of the story, the brothers agreed to settle their dispute through a series of three contests: a wrestling match, a staring contest, and a contest of throwing water. Bahubali, who was immensely strong, won all three contests easily.

He lifted his brother high into the air, ready to dash him to the ground and end his life. But at that moment, a profound realization struck him. He saw that his brother, whom he had once loved, had become, in this contest, his enemy. He saw, too, that his own pride and anger had driven him to this point, close enough to killing his own brother that only a single choice separated the two. He understood that the kingdom he was fighting for was ultimately worthless, a fleeting thing that would not bring him lasting happiness even in victory. In that instant, he set his brother down gently rather than completing the blow, and he renounced his claim to the kingdom on the spot, choosing instead to follow his father's example and become an ascetic.

Bahubali then gave up all his possessions and went into the forest to meditate, seeking spiritual liberation. He stood in a single posture, motionless, for so long that vines grew up around his legs and anthills formed at his feet. He remained in this state of deep meditation for a full year by most accounts, his mind focused entirely on the nature of the self and the universe, untouched by hunger, weather, or the creatures that had begun to treat his stillness as part of the landscape itself.

Yet enlightenment did not come during that year, by most tellings. Many of his own younger half-brothers had taken Diksha, the vow of renunciation, before Bahubali did, and pride kept him from bowing to them as junior monks customarily bow to those ordained earlier — even now, alone in the forest, some last trace of the same pride that had nearly cost his brother's life still held him back.

It was his sisters, Brahmi and Sundari, sent by their father, who are said to have finally reached him with a single image rather than an argument: "You cannot attain enlightenment," they told him, "while still sitting on an elephant" — meaning the elephant of his own pride, which he was still riding even in his stillness. Only when Bahubali heard this and let go of that last, subtle pride entirely did he achieve enlightenment, kevala jnana, the state of perfect knowledge and liberation from the cycle of birth and death. The details of this final episode vary somewhat by region and text, but its central point does not: full liberation required Bahubali to surrender not only the throne but every last trace of the pride that had first driven the conflict, down to the pride he still carried in his own renunciation.

To honor Bahubali's great renunciation and his attainment of liberation, a massive statue was later erected in his memory. This statue, known as the Gommateshwara statue, stands on a hilltop in the town of Shravanabelagola in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is one of the largest monolithic statues in the world, carved from a single block of granite around 981 CE under the patronage of the Ganga dynasty minister Chavundaraya, and standing about 57 feet (17 meters) tall. The statue depicts Bahubali in a standing posture, completely naked, with his arms hanging straight down by his sides, symbolizing his complete detachment from worldly concerns. The vines and anthills that grew around him during his meditation are carved into the statue, reminding viewers of his long and arduous penance.

The Gommateshwara statue is a site of great pilgrimage for Jains, who come from all over the world to pay their respects. Every twelve years, a grand ceremony called the Mahamastakabhisheka is held, during which the statue is bathed with water, milk, and other sacred substances from a scaffold built around it. The story of Bahubali and Bharata serves as a powerful reminder of the dangers of pride and ambition, and the ultimate value of renunciation and inner peace. It teaches that true victory lies not in conquering others, but in conquering one's own desires and ego.