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JAIN ART & LITERATURE
Jain Art: According to Dr. Guirenot art owes to Jainism a number of remarkable monuments and in
architecture their achievements are greater still.
According to Mr. Walhouse, the whole capital an canopy of Jain pillars are a wonder of light,
elegances, and a highly decorated stome work. Udaigigi caves of Orissa ad architectural finds
of Kushan age Mathura are Jain objects of rate beauty which have won worldly praise. In the words of
K.Narayan Iyengar Ag. Director of Archaeology , the Gomasteswara Colosus (heigh 56 ½ ft. Of 983 A.D.)
is not only a national heritage but it is also considered one of the wonders of the wonders of the
world. Splendid Jain temples of Abu are Marvelous. One of these, namely Adinatha, was built in 1031
by Vimalasha, minister of Bhimdeva, and another Semi Nath by Tejpal, minister in 1230 , are superfine
architectural wonders.
Palitana, in Gujrat, is known as the City of Temples, since it contains no less than 3000 Jain
Temples of Rsabha Deva’s temple at Ajmer which took twenty five years for the Jainpur artists
to build, is a specimen of the finest architecture. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru visited in the 1945
and said,
“It is museum of universal mind from which one can learn something not only about Jain philosophy and outlook, but also about Indian art.”
It is pity that trace of antiquity of Jainism are being systematically obliterated by the vandalism
of both Indian and foreign robbers. You visit Jubbulpore, you visit Gwalior fort and you will not fail
to notice what havoc people of rival faith have done to these rich relics.
Eluding detection by officials of Archaeological Deptt. and the dragnet of the police, an international gang of curio smugglers committee theft on an idol studded with precious stones, of a Jain Tirthankara, Padma Prabhu from a temple in Beethla village near Videha. The idol valued at several lakhs of rupees remains untraced till today.
It is high time that Jains and Government should guard such valuable relics.
Jain Literature: Jainism has experienced many vicissitudes in the past. Bitter persecution
of the Jain and the Budhists at hand of the devotees of the rival faiths characterised any
centuries of their past history. Jain scriptures were used to kindle the fires in the baths of
the foreign invading potentates. Those few left can still be seen in the old historical record
vastly scattered under the sand of Rajasthan.
A piece of news item dated Bikaner the 11th November, 1955 published in the HindustanTimes of
the previous date says that.
“ One Shri Agar Chand Nahata a historian of Rajastan , while inaugurating the Historical and Political Association of Dungar College Bikaner, disclosed that historians had colleted 60,000 manuscripts of great value mostly written on palm leaves, which concerned Jainism. Of these 30,000 palm leaves manuscripts were presented to the Prime Minister Mr. Nehru when he visited Jaiselmer in the year 1954. Mr. Nahata had 15,000 manuscsripts and 1,000 old paintings in his personal library”.
Dr. A.N. Upadhya rightly said,
“ Jain Bhandars are told,authentic and full of valuable literacy treasures
and deserve to be looked
upon as a part of our National wealth. These Manuscripts are such that they cannot be replaced it they
are once lost.
Jain Antiquity Vol. IX P. 20-29 & 47-60.
Prof. A. Chakravarti writes: “The contributions of Jain scholars to literature in different languages , particularly in Prakrit Sanskrit and Tmil are unrivalled and the pride of India and served as a model for later non-Jain writers. They also contributed richly in Dravadian, Kannada Gujrati,Hindi,English, Urdu and various other languages on all the important Subject of the day. Jain Antiquity Vol. IX page. 10.
What will be the condition of the Indian Sanskrit literature, if the contributions of
the Jains are
removed. The more i study the Jain literature, the more happy and wonderstruck I am.
Dr. Hertal (German)
The secred Books of the Jains are old, avowedly older than the Sanskrit literature, which we are accustomed to call classical. We can find no reason why should distrust sacred books of the Jain as an authentic source of their history.
Prof. Dr. Herman Jocobi Sraman Bhagwan Mahavira Vol. I, pp. 55-80.
Tirukural and Nalandiya- which are considered most precious have
influenced Tamil people far greater
than any other book in entire Tamil literature. In the opinion of Prof. Ramaswamy Ayengar the great
author of Tirukural was a Jain.
Shri V.G. Nair, Asstt. Secy.Sino-Indian Cultural Society. V.O.A.Vol. I part I p.8 amd part V, p. 5
Bhuvalaya: The most remarkable Kannada work called ‘Bhuvalaya’. The first part of which has been published by Sarvartha Sibhi Sangha of Bangalore, is attributed to Digambra sant Kumdendu. There can be little doubt that Kumudendu was a disciple of Virasena and contemporary of Jina-Sena and Amogha Varsa of Manyakheta. The Bhuvalaya is composed in the form of mathematical tables assigning the numbers 1-64 to the 64 letters of our alphabet, Kumumdendu mentions Jaya Dhanvla, Vijaya Dhavala, Atisaya, Dhavala, Maha Dhavala and Jaya Sila Dhavala (Aine Dhavalas) in ch, 10,209-212. These became the titles of Amogha-Uarsa also. (Ch. 9, 169- 172). Amogha Varsa Narapatunga’s Kanada work ‘Kaviraja Marga’ gives him the titles ‘Atisaya Dhavala’. Kumudendu by the Ankaksara method claims that the work Bhuvalaya can be read 718 languages, and includes 363 philosophical systems, 64 kalas and in fact all arts and sciences in the world. The work contains 6 lakhs of verses according to the poet, nearly siz times the size of Maha Bharata. It is not merely a freak or curiosity like a cross word puzzle or an acrostic but a veritable compendium of Indian culture in general and of Jainism in particular. Kumudendu , though a Digambara mentiones the Angas, Angabahira the works of Bhutabali, Kunda Kunda, Umasvati, Samanta Bhadra Pujyapada, Chudamani etc. many of them now lost but included in his Bhuvalaya. Similarly he gave the real Ramayan of Valmiki, he Jaya Khayana of Vyasn (the neuclus of the present Maha Bharata) and the Bhagvad Gita in five different languages. For a critical study of the Maha Bharat and the Gita Bhuvalaya seems to be indispensible. It is necessary therefore to exmine the authenticity of the parampara of Kumudendu. He gives the list of Sena Gana. Puspagachha down to Prabhavasena, Dharasena and Bhutabali. Then in the Sanskrit bandha:
