Monks and Acharyas
Harishen the Monk
हरिषेण मुनि · હરિષેણ મુનિ
An emperor who had everything, and one quiet thought that changed it all
- 4 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- For all ages
Harishen is born to a king and queen of Kampilya after fourteen great dreams, and grows up to rule the whole land of Bharat as an emperor. In the middle of all his glory, one clear thought about where his good fortune came from sends him down a very different road.
What it teaches Detachment Merit Renunciation
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago, in a city called Kampilya, a queen named Mera had fourteen beautiful dreams in one night. Soon a baby boy was born. His name was Harishen.
Harishen grew up kind and clever. He learned music, painting, riding and many other things. When he grew up, he became king. Then fourteen magic jewels came to him, and he became an emperor, the ruler of the whole land. Everyone in the kingdom loved him, because he was fair and gentle with all.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Good fortune is saved goodness; spend it on doing more good.
To talk about together
Harishen thought of his good luck like a box of saved coins. What good thing could you add to your box today?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.