Lay Followers
Sukumalika
सुकुमालिका · સુકુમાલિકા
A princess who became a nun, lost her way, and found it again
- 4 min full story
- 2 min children's telling
- Best shared with a grown-up
- Shvetambar telling
A beautiful princess follows her two brothers into the life of renunciation, but a strange turn of events carries her far from the path. Years later, two monks come to her door for alms.
What it teaches Repentance Renunciation Brotherly love
The opening of the children's telling
Once there was a princess named Sukumalika. She had two big brothers, and they loved each other very much.
One day the brothers heard a wise teacher speak, and they decided to become monks. Sukumalika said, I want to follow the same path. So she became a nun, and wore simple white clothes. She learned prayers and walked from village to village with the other nuns.
Read the whole story See plans
To carry into the day
Losing the path is human; returning to it takes courage.
To talk about together
Have you ever stopped doing something good and then started again? How did it feel?
Retold for JainStory from the traditional narrative and checked against published Jain sources. Details vary between tellings.