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JAINISM ABROAD
Abyssinia and Ethopia: The Greek historian Herodotus mentioned the existence of Gymnosophist in Abyssinia & Ethopia. The term gymnospophist according to the Encyclopaedia Brittannica 11th Edition, Vol.XV. Page 128, denotes the nude Jain recluses.
Egypt : Sir Flinders Petrie of the British school of Egyptian Archaeology discovered at Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt, some statues of Indian type. Such discoveries prove the existence of an Indian colony in ancient Egypt about 500 B.C. One of the statues represents an Indian yogi sitting crossed legs in deep meditation, the well known Jain posture.
Arya Masafir, Lekh Ram in his book Kulyat-i-Arya Musafir confirms that he saw images
comparable to those inGirnar on a certain hill in Egypt.
The religious dogmas of the Egyptians were also mostly like those of the Jains. They
had no belief in the creator of universe, and further
like the Jains they professed and preached plurality of Gods, whom they described as
infinitely perfect and happy.*
They accepted the existence of an immortal soul and extended it even to the lower animal
world** They observed the
rules of abstinence, and never took flesh and vegetables like radish, garlic etc. in their diet***
The feeling of Ahimsa was so manifest in them that they did not even wear shoes other than those made
of the plant papyrus.4 They also made nude images of their God Horus.5
*Mysteries of Freemasonay page. 271.
**2) to 5) the Story of Man pages 187, 29, 187 to 191 respectively.
Even now there are lacs of Jain immigrants form Gujrat and elsewhere, who have settled in Kenya
and other parts of East Africa. They have their temples, schools, and libraries there. In the city
of Mombabs their number is big that the locality in which they reside in called “Jain Street”.*
Rakastan: The tract of land down the Egypt was called ‘Rakastan’ by the ancient
Greeks, which means the abode of Raksasas these Raksasas are described as Vidyadharas or
scientists, in the Jain Puranas. In the present time this tract of land is comprised of sudan,
Abyssinia,and Ethopia.
Afghanistan: Afghanistan was once the part of Bharat Varsha and so their
is nothing strange if
Jainism like other religious spread there.
Shri T.N. Ramcharandran Joint Director-General Archaeological Department, Government of India while
leading an expedition of Afghanistan says.
“I had occasions to verify the records of Yuan chwang (Hien Tsan-600-654A.A.), who said, ‘ There are many Tirthankas heritics** here, who worship the Ksuna Deva {q.knsok Those who invoke him with faith obtan their wishes.......The Tirthankas by subduing their minds and mortifying the flesh get from the spirits of heaven sacred formulae with which they control desires and recover the sick.
*Taken from anArticle by Dr. Kamta Prasad Jain Ph.D. D.L.M.R.A.S., reproduced in Vardhman Mahavir of
Shri Digambar Dass Mukhtar, Saparanpur.
**Heretics: One who errs in religious faith, people professing faiths other than Jainism something
dubed the Jains as heretic for Jainism does not believe in God as creator of the universes and manager
of the affairs of human beings.
***Pantheon: Pan-theon. n.a. temple in Rome dedicated to all the Gods; here it refers to the Jain faith in the plurality of Gods
“ksuma Deva or Sinna Deva }kq.knsok meaning a naked God,Shri Ram Chandra proceeds on the remar, was probably Tirthankara that illumined the pantheon*** of Jainism”.
The savants of Alexandra found Jaino-Budhism strongly in the ascendant through out Oviana and all
the passes to and from Afghanistan. (“Science of comparative
Religious” by Maj. Gul G.R.Finelong P. 40 1897.)
Arabia: On the advent of Islam ,
Idols of Alat Manat,Azzah, and Habbal were destroyed in Arabia. Possibly , these idols were of Adhnath
for the letter ‘da’ n having got changed with letter ‘la’ y, and n or u being dropped. Adinath ,
the other name of Lord Rsabha, foundr of Jainism in the present cycle of time, came to be pronounced
as Al’at. Manat appears to be a contraction of Nem Nath, the twenty second Jain Reformer and Professor
of the true religion.
Habbal stands for Bahubali, the second so of Rsabha or Adinath. Azzah is from Ajitnath.
His Successor, for the letter t ‘Ja’ very closely resembles with t+ pronounced ‘Jha.’
Adinath scholer Professor, Dr. Helmuth Von Glassenapp Ph.D. supports the view saying
tha Jain teachers went toArbia to
preach Jainism there before Hazzrat Mohammad Sahib.
According to Jain tradition this was done by Samprati, the Maurian Samrat, the grand-son
of Ashoka, who established
centres of Jainculture in Arabia and Persia and himself in various ways and practised
Jain rules in his after life.*
The existence of a Shivalinga insdie the Ka’aba in Mecca was brought to the notice of the
Lok Sabha in November 23,
59 by a member from Assam,Shri N.C. Barooah to which, through the minister for Scientific
Research and Culture Affairs.
Mr. Humayun Kabir, said that the
*Smith’s early History of india Pages 202-203
minister for Scientific Research and Cultural Affairs, Mr. Humayun Kabir, said that the
overnment had no knowledge,*
the fact remains that there is strong belief in Hindu mind in India that piece of stone
placed there and kissed by
the devout Muslims, who claim to be non-idolators is a representation of Lord Siva,
who as shown elsewhere in this
book was none else than Lord Rsabha.
Islam repeatedly says that it is not new religion. In all countries and in all nations
there have been knowers of
the secret. It taught that men were professors of one religion only at first and they
deserted after words.**
Formely the Jains were very numerous in Aabia, but about 2500 years ago a terrible
persecution took place at Mecca bt
orders of a king named Parshiva Bhattark, which forced a great number to come to South
India.**
Ceylon: There have existed cultural relations between India
and Ceylon and the big island is
called by the name of
Lanka, Sinhala or Ramadvipa, where once Jainism was a prevalent religion. This claim of the Jains
is confirmed by the
Budhists. It is said in Mahavansha that the king Pandu-Kabhaya, who ruled over Ceylon in the
beginning of the second
century after Budha from 367-307 B.C. built a temple and a monastery for two Niganthas
i.e., Jains at his capital
Anuradhhpur. The temple and a monastery continued to exist up to Vattagamini (38-10 B.C.),
who somehow getting
offered by the inhabitants, caused them to who getting offered by the inhabitants,
caused them to be destroyed.
These Jain monuments stood there for the reign of 21 kings, but afterwards they were
converted into Budhist Sangharama.
Jainism so to say, lost its hold in Ceylon, but it has left a lasting trace of its
influence in the Ahimsa morale of
the people.
*Indian Express Dated 24/11/59.
**Al Quran by Sale Page 284.
***Asiatic Research Vol. XVI pp. 83 85.
However, even in latest periods Jain monks have had cultural contacts with the rules of Ceylon, who honoured them. It seems that Muni Yash Kirti visited the island in the early centuries if Christian era and preached Jainism there.
Burma: Burma was known to Jainas as Swarnadvipa. The famous Kalakacharya and his disciples
lived in Burma & preached Jainism From there in the adjoining countries.2
China and parts of Russsia: It was long prior to Parsava and Mahavira,
that India was the fruitful Centre
of religion from 7th century B.C. and inwards. The Trans-Himalayan, Oxiana, religious views and practices
as Indian Jain and Budhists claim and almost historically show that above a score of their saintly leaders
perambulated the Eastern world long perior to the 7th century B.C. We may reasonably believe that
Jainism was very anciently preached by them from China to Kaspiana. It existed in Oxiana and north
of the Himalaya 2000 years before Mahavira.*
Central Asia. Prof. Yuri Zadneprovsky of the Leningard
Institute of Archaelogy said at a press conference
at New Delhi on June 20, 1967 that there had been contacts between India and Central Asia for about 100000
years “from as early as the stone age,” and naturally traces of Jainism were there.**
Central Asia. Mr. J. A. Dubai, the author of
“The Description of Character, Manners and Customs of the
People of India and English by the East India Company in 1817 from French, writers in the preface :
“There was atime when Jainism flourished right from the Caspian Sea to the Bay of Kamachatka. Not only this, its followers could be found in Europe or even Africa.
*Science of Comparative Religions Page 28, 1897 by Major General
J. G. R. Furlong.
**Indian Express wed. June 21, 1967
Likewise Major-General J.G.R. Furlong in the introduction of this book “Short studies in the Science of Comparative Religion 1887. Introduction, informs:
“ Oksina, Kaspia, Cities of Balka and Samarkand were early centres of this (Jain) faith.
Indonesia Java etc: Indian philosophy and religion architecture
and literature, music and medicine
were the important contribution of the Indian to the cultural history of that group . the earl y Indian
immigrants to these is lands were headed by a personage, Kanndinya, which name played a very important
role in the Jain narrative legends.*
The Jain accounts of the voyages of
the Jain merchants to Java-dvipa.
Maha dvipa, and many other such islands is so lively and accurate that scholars have traced in them the
sense of historicity. In the early medieval period when Indian settlers migrated of Indonesian islands
from South India, Jaininsm was in ascension there, and it is but natural that Jainism should have been
taken over to these islands Java, ad Malaya Dr.Sylven Levy expressed his view in affirmative in theis
respect and recently Dr. Bjanraj Chattopadhya has produced a remarkable book on te subject from which
Prof. J.P. Jain has deduced te following points, requiring special study.
1.The first royal family of Indian Origin of Kanty was connected with the nages, and we have early
and extensive mention of these people in the Jain literature.
3. In the island of Kamboj, Jave,Malay etc. the Indians settlers were strictly vegetarians and never offered animal sacrifices.
4.The word Java was used as synonymous of Budha,
5- (i) The image which have been found there, bear resemblance to the image of Tirthankaras. They are in nude posture having no signs of jnopavitta thread.
(ii) The numerical significance of some chaityalas, as being 52 seems to bear a remarkable reference to Jain traditions in which 52 chatyalas of Nandishwardvipa are worshipped thrice a year during Ashtanhika festival.
6.An inscription belonging to about 9th century A.D. refers to Lord Parswanaiha, the 23rd Tirthankara. It mentions also the Jain work on medicine called Kalyana Karaka.
7. Some opening verses of devotion in certain inscription betray the Jain mode of obeisance.
8. The sculptured legends of Ramayan and Mahabharat agree more with Jain legend than Hindu.
Some inscription also refer to the Jinas & the Tirthankaras. The opening verses of devotion in certain inscriptions and stotras bettary the Jain more of obeisance. In the following stanze the description of the Dharma-Chakra in the Mahaprattharya and Chaitya is strickingly like a Jain . It runs as follows:
