Monks and Acharyas
Four Monks in the Cold
ठंड में चार मुनि · ઠંડીમાં ચાર મુનિ
Four old friends made one promise together, and kept it through the coldest night of winter
- 4 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- Best shared with a grown-up
- Shvetambar telling
Four merchant friends from Rajagriha become monks together and make a strict promise about where they will stop each evening. When a bitter winter comes, the promise is tested on the hill of Vaibhar.
What it teaches Endurance Keeping a vow Friendship
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago, in the city of Rajagriha, there were four best friends. They did everything together.
One day they heard a wise monk speak about kindness and peace. All four friends felt the same thing in their hearts. "Let us become monks," they said. And so they did, together.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
A promise kept in hard times is worth more than a hundred kept in easy ones.
To talk about together
The four friends could have broken their promise just once. What helps you keep a promise when it becomes hard?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.