Monks and Acharyas
Sage Nandishen
नंदीषेण मुनि · નંદીષેણ મુનિ
The monk whose kindness even the gods came down to test
- 4 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- For all ages
- Shvetambar telling
Indra praises a monk who serves the sick with endless patience, and one doubting god comes down to earth in disguise to see whether the praise is true.
What it teaches Service Patience Forgiveness
The opening of the children's telling
Long ago there lived a gentle monk named Nandishen. He loved to help other monks who were old or sick. He gave them water, cleaned them, and looked after them with a kind heart.
Up in the sky, the king of the gods said, "Nandishen is the kindest helper of all." One god did not believe it. "I will go and see," he said.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Real service stays gentle even when it is not thanked.
To talk about together
The old monk was rude, but Nandishen stayed kind. How can we stay kind when someone is grumpy with us?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.