The Tirthankaras
Brahmadatta Chakravarti
ब्रह्मदत्त चक्रवर्ती · બ્રહ્મદત્ત ચક્રવર્તી
Two brothers through five lives, and the one wish that pulled them apart
- 5 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- Best shared with a grown-up
Chitra and Sambhut are born together again and again, as brothers, as deer, as swans. Then one of them makes a wish for worldly pleasure, and in the next life the two find themselves on very different paths.
What it teaches Attachment Nidan Friendship across lives
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago, there were two brothers named Chitra and Sambhut. They loved each other so much that they were born together again and again, sometimes as brothers, sometimes as little deer, and once as two white swans.
In one life they became wonderful singers. Later they became monks, quiet and kind.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Be careful what you trade your goodness for.
To talk about together
Chitra loved his brother deeply. Why could he still not change Brahmadatta's mind?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.