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24 MAHĀVĪRA : HIS LIFE AND TEACHINGS
He abstained from indulgence of the flesh, though never attacked by diseases. Whether wounded or not, he did not desire medical treatment. In the cold season he meditated in the shade. In summer he exposed himself to the heat. He lived on rough food rice, pounded jujube, and jujube Using these three kinds of food, he sustained himself eight months. Sometimes he did not drink for half a month or even for a month. Sometimes he did not drink for more than two months, or even six months. Sometimes he ate only the sixth meal, or the eighth, the tenth, the twelfth Sometimes he ate stale food. He committed no sin himself, nor did he induce others to do so, nor did he consent to the sin of others
He meditated persevering in some posture, without the smallest motion He meditated in mental concentration on the things above, below, beside. He meditated free from sin and desire, not attached to sounds and colours, and never acted carelessly.
Thus, as hero at the head of a battle, he bore all hardships, and remaining undisturbed, proceeded on the road to deliverance Understanding the truth and restraining the impulses for the purification of the soul, he finally liberated'
1 Ācārānga-Sūtra, 1,8 9; Jaina-Sūtras, Part I, pp 79-87
