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srānika. Jayanti happened to be Udayana's paternal aunt. She was a follower of the sramana path and was well-known for her devotion and service to the monks. Any monk visiting the city came first to Jayanti's abode and lodged there for some time.
When Jayanti came to know that Bhagavān Mahavira had arrived, she came to him in the company of her son to pay her homage and obeisance. She attended the sermon and asked questions on which she desired to be enlightened, The discussion was as under:
Jayanti - "Bhante! How does a living being quickly acquire heaviness" ?
Mahāvira - "Jayanti'. There are 18 lapses or sins, and by practising these, a living being quickly acquires heaviness. These 18 are: slaughter, falsehood, usurpation, sexual relation, possession, anger, pride, deceit, greed, liking, dis liking, quarrel, non-acqusitiveness, malice, back-bitting, attachment-detachment, falsehood to deceive and wrong outlook".
Jayanti - "Bhante!! How does a living being become light"?
Mahāyira - "He becomes light by desisting from these (eighteen) starting with slaughter. Just as slaughter, etc., increase wordly life, give it a longer span and make one to be born again and again, so abstension from them reduces wordly life, shortens its span and cuts out rebirth".
Jayanti - "Bhante! Does one become entitled to liberation through his own exertion or by some inexorable law" ?
Mahāvira - "One acquires title to liberation through his own exertion, and not by some in exorable law".
Jayanti - "Bhante! Do all the souls who are to be perfected in this life attain liberation"?
Mahāvira - "That 's right. Whoever be perfected in this life must attain liberation".
