Lord Mahavir was walking from one village to another. On the way a cowherd stopped him and said, “Do you know that there is a hermitage named Kanakhal on this route and there lives a ferocious snake. Its name is Chandkaushik and this snake even has venom in its eyes.  Just one look from the snake, and the victim will immediately burn up and die.”

However, even after hearing this, there was not an iota of fear on Lord Mahavir’s face. He walked ahead.

The cowherds stopped Lord Mahavir again and pleaded, “Before you take another step, first listen to what we have to say:

‘In his previous birth, an ascetic named Kaushik was the keeper of the hermitage. He was a very angry man. Children used to come and play in the garden of the hermitage. Kaushik did not like it when the children were mischievous. He would chase them with a stick. The children would run away terrified.

To tease Kaushik the children gave him a nickname, ‘Chand-kaushik’. Chand means hot-tempered.

One day when Kaushik was not around, the children came and caused havoc in the garden. When Kaushik saw the garden in utter ruin, he became very angry. He picked up an axe that was lying on the ground and ran after the children to punish them. There was a deep pit on the side of the path.  The ascetic did not see it and fell into the pit. His own axe fell onto his head and the ascetic died there and then. He was reborn as a ferocious snake and now he does not spare anyone who comes in his way.”  The cowherd finished narrating his story.

Lord Mahavir looked at him with love and continued walking ahead. In a little while he arrived at the hermitage. Chandkaushik picked up the scent of a human. He looked at the Lord with its venomous gaze. To his surprise, the Lord stood before him strong and fearless. He had not flinched a bit.

            Chandkaushik could not bear this. He fiercely bit the Lord’s toe. A fountain of blood, white as milk*, gushed from his toe. Lord Mahavir’s face was full of compassion. The ferocious Chandkaushik was stunned to see this. Then Lord Mahavir spoke and his words were like rain falling on parched land.

“Chandkaushik, wake up, wake up! The one who is fearless and also does not cause fear in others, is the real brave one. The nature of anger is to burn. First you burn and then you burn others, just like fire. You have wasted so many lifetimes losing to anger. But today, Chandkaushik, you can win by losing.”

The Lord’s language of true love melted the snake’s stone cold heart. He saw his past lives and realised that due to anger he had ruined so many lifetimes.

Chandkaushik asked for forgiveness from the Lord, “Please forgive me, O compassionate One! I poisoned you,and yet you have made me drink the nectar of true knowledge and saved me.”

* The blood of a Tirthankar Lord is white.