Court of Magadh
Shalibhadra and Dhanya
शालिभद्र और धन्ना · શાલિભદ્ર અને ધન્ના
One warm tear, one honest sentence, and a man who stopped talking and started walking
- 4 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- For all ages
- Shvetambar telling
Dhanna loves to say that a good thing should never be delayed. One morning his wife Subhadra asks him whether he could live by his own words.
What it teaches Vairagya Integrity Courage
The opening of the children's telling
In the city of Rajgruhi lived a man named Dhanna. He was kind and clever, and he loved to talk about being good. He often said, "If something is good, why wait to do it?"
Dhanna's wife Subhadra had a brother named Shalibhadra. One day Shalibhadra decided to become a monk. But he wanted to go slowly, saying goodbye to his wives one at a time, one each day.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Good words become good deeds only when we stop waiting.
To talk about together
Is there something good you keep saying you will do one day? What would happen if you began today?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.