Meet the 12-year-old who renounced everything to become Jain monk
What's the story
A 12-year-old boy in Surat, the son of a diamond merchant, gave up all material comforts and worldly happiness on Thursday to become a Jain monk. Bhavya Shah used to like expensive cars and stylish sunglasses. But not anymore. He took vows of monkhood from Acharya Rashminratnasuri in a grand ceremony in Surat on Thursday. Here are the details.
Reasons
Why would a young boy take up monkhood?
"Life's full of sins. My parents have taught me to lead a life of truth. I am happy to renounce the world and take the path of truth. My parents are happy with my decision," Bhavya told ANI. Notably, Bhavya isn't the family's first child to take up monkhood. In 2014, his elder sister had also renounced the world at the age of 12.
Reaction
Bhavya's parents hope his younger brother also becomes a monk
Instead of being heartbroken over losing another child to monkhood, Bhavya's deeply religious parents are ecstatic. "I and my wife feel like we have given away part of our heart. But their choices are right. Deep down, we feel happy that two of my three children have adopted the path of truth," said his father Dipesh Shah. They hope their third son also becomes a monk.
The ceremony
450 Jain monks, 7000 people attended his 'deeksha' mahotsav
Bhavya's glitzy "deeskha" mahotsav on Thursday was attended by about 450 Jain monks and 7000 people in Surat. A day before it, his family organized an on-chariot public procession for him, much like the ones shown in the blockbuster film Baahubali. Bhavya wore a bejeweled sherwani and his favorite sunglasses.
Context
Jains were recognized a national minority in 2014
In Jainism, deeksha is the process of renouncing worldly temptations, distractions, passions and emotions to live a simple life of faith and truth. Varshil Shah, a 17-year-old boy from Ahmedabad adopted monkhood last year after emerging as Gujarat's Class-12 topper with a 99.9 percentile. Jains were recognized as a national minority by the government in 2014. In Gujarat, they are divided into four sub-sects.