JAINISM IN SOUTH INDIA
By Mr. T.K.Tukol
There may not be any other
religion in India which is as much misunderstood and mis-represented as Jainism.
Many scholars have asserted that it is an off-shoot of Buddhism and a revolt
from Hinduism. Even an eminent historian like Arnold Toynbee has asserted that
Bhagavan Mahavira is the "founder of Jainism" and that the Jainas were
"amongst the fossilized relics of similar societies now extinct." He
has also said that the Jainas of India could be seen to be fossils of Indian
society developing under the Mauryan Empire. Mrs. Sinclair has opined that `both
Buddhist and Jaina orders arose about the same time, the sixth century B. C., a
period when constant wars between various little kingdoms must have made the lot
of the common people hideous with suffering and oppression; and a man might well
have longed to escape from all fear of rebirth into such a sorrowful
world..."
Popular opinions like these have been oblivious to the advances that have been
made by numerous research scholars, both Eastern and Western. The Vedas, which
according to Hinduism are a relation, contain verses in adoration of Surya,
Indra and Agni. Jainism rejects the authority of the Vedas but the Vedas,
however, refer to some of the Tirthankaras. The Rigveda contains references (astak
2, Varga 17 to Arishtanemi, the twenty-second Tirthankaras while the Yajurveda
refers to three Tirthankaras; Rshabha, Suparsva and Neminath (cantos 25 and 92).
Dr. S. Radhakrishna accepts the tradition of the Jainas who ascribe the origin
of their system to Rshabhadeva who lived many centuries back. He also mentions
that the Bhagavat Purana endorses the view that Rshabhadeva was the founder of
Jainism. The Manusmrti contains a verse which states that in the beginning of
the age (yuga) was born the first Jina to Marudevi from the eighth Nabhi Manu,
who was the hero of action, saluted by the Gods and demons and propagated the
rules of ethics. Besides mentioning these facts, the Bhagavat Purana gives
details of advice which Rshabha gave to his sons; that advice is consistent with
the principles of Jainism.
The finds in the excavations at Harappa and Mohanjadaro offer convincing support
to the view that Jainism is an ancient religion, quite independent of any other.
Sir John Marshall's monumental works refer to the seals found during the
excavations of Mohanjadaro. The figures on plates xii
and cxviii have been studied and are found to resemble Jaina yogis in the
Kayotsarga posture. Prof. Prana Nath Vidyalankar has said that the inscription
on Indus seal No 449 reads according to his decipherment as "Jinesharah/"
These excavations are said to be more that 4000 years old. "There can be
little doubt' observed Sir C. V. Umarswami Sastriar, the Chief Justice of the
Madras High Court, "the Jainism as a distinct religion was flourishing
several centuries before Christ." One can, therefore conclude, without fear
of contradiction that Jainism is a pre-vedic religion which flourished in India even before the advent of the Aryans to this country.
While the aforesaid conclusion is unassailable, there is not that convincing
evidence about the existence of Jains in the South even
prior to the advent of the Aryans. Dr. P. B. Desai, while writing about
the existence of `Jainism in South India" has mentioned that literary tradition in the Andhra Desa testifies to the visit of Lord Mahavira in the 6th
century B. C. to the northern frontiers of Andhra
Pradesha, then known as Kalinga desa for the propagation of his gospel.
Nayasena, a Kannada poet who composed his Dharmamitra in 1112 A. D. had referred
to Dhanada, a Jain prince of the Ikshvaku family, ruling over the Vengi Mandala
which is identified with the territory of the Andhra Pradesha lying between the
rivers Godavari and Krishna. There is evidence to show that Samprati, the
grandson of Ashok had sent Jaina missionaries to preach their religion to this
part of the country. The Satavahanas who ruled over the Andhra Pradesh were
known to be patrons of Jains. There are many legends and traditions
characteristic of Jaina faith attributed to this period of history.
Mahavamsa which is a Buddhistic work expressly refers to the prevalence of
Jainism in Ceylon during the 4th century B C. There is no reason to doubt the
veracity of the references in the book. The inevitable conclusion to be drawn
from these references Is that the followers of the Jaina faith must have
migrated to the South much prior to the 4th century B. C. and also settled in
Ceylon. That the Jainas migrated in large numbers is further strengthened by the
fact that Bhadrabahu migrated to the South alongwith his royal disciple
Chandragupta Maurya and about 1200 monks and nuns, when he foresaw with his insight that there was to be a severe famine in the North. An inscription of the
6th century A. D. found on the Chandragiri Hill at Sravanabelgola reads as
follows : "Success, be it well. Victory has been achieved by the venerable
Vardhamana, the establisher of the holy faith and the embodiment of the nectar
of happiness resulting from the perfection attained, who has acquired supreme
honor in the world by his inconceivable greatness and has attained the great
position of an Arhat by the abundance of his religious merit which procured for
him the name of Tirthankara... Now indeed, after the sun of Mahavira... had set,
Bhadrabahuswami, of a lineage rendered illustrious by a succession of greatmen
who came in regular descent from the venerable supreme rishi Gautamaganadhara,
his immediate disciple Loharya, Jambu, Vishnudeva, Aparajita, Govardhana,
Bhadrabahu, Visakha, Proshthila, Krittikarya, ayanama, Siddhartha, Dhritishena,
Budhila, and other teachers,-who was acquainted with the true nature of the
eight-fold great omens and a seer of the past, present and future, having learnt
from an omen and foretold in Ujjayani a calamity lasting for a period of twelve
years, the entire sangha (or Community) set out from the North to the South and
reached by degrees a country counting many hundreds of villages and filled with
happy people, wealth, gold, grain and herds of cows, buffaloes, goats and
sheep... Then separating himself from the Sangha, an acharya Prabhachandra by name, perceiving that but little time remained for him to live and desiring to
achieve samadhi, the goal of penance associated with right conduct, on this
high-peaked associated with right conduct, on this high-peaked mountain-which
forms an ornament to the earth and bears the name Katavpra...bade farewell with
the herds of boars, pathers, tigers...dismissed the sangha in its entirety, and
in the company of a single disciple, mortifying his body on the wide expanse of
cold rocks accomplished samadhi. And in course of time seven hundred rishis
similarly accomplished Samadhi...Victorious be the doctrine of Jina."
The hill acquired the name of Chandragiri on account of association with
Chandragupta Maurya. The oldest temple on the hill is called Chandragupta basti.
here is a cave in which there are foot-prints carved out and is known as
Bhadrabahu cave. There are thirty-one inscriptions on this hill which refer to
Bhadrabahu and Chandragupta. These inscriptions cannot be brushed aside as
referring to a fictitious incident. Vincent Smith, who has written a history of
ancient, India, admits the historicity of this event as having a "solid
foundation in fact." While subscribing to this view, Prof. S. R. Sharma
states that it was "a period of vigorous prosperity." B. L. Rice R.
Narasmihacharya and Dr. S. A. Saletore have accepted the trustworthiness of the
historical events as recorded in the inscriptions at Sravanabelgola. It would be
most reasonable to infer that there must have been good population of Jains in
South India to welcome Bhadrabahu, his twelve hundred disciples as also his
royal devotee. Bhadrabahu would not have thought of the South in case he wanted to save the Sangha from starvation and hardship. There must have been sufficient
number of religious-minded and rich Sravakas and Sravakis who could look after
the munisangha.
It is expressly stated in the inscription at Sravanabelgola that many of the
saints in the Sangha went further to the South. Like Asoka, his grandson
Samprati spread the Jaina religion by construction of temples and stupas. We
find inscriptions in the Brahmi script in the caves of Ramanad and Tinnavalli situated within state of Tamilnadu.Even the
Tamil literature establishes the existence of Jainism in this part. since
ancient times. The last lamented Prof. Chakravarti held the view that the most
famous book Tirukkurul was composed by Kundakundacharya. Tolkappiyam another old book in Tamil literature bears
the
most striking impress of Jaina concepts of religion and the universe. Dr. P. B.
Desai has observed that another Tamil work Naludiar is couched in Jaina
associations. According to tradition, this work is a composite composition of eight thousand Jaina
monks departing
from the Pandyan kingdom against the wishes of its ruler who was attached to
their faith, as stated by Prof. Chakravarti in his book on Jaina Literature in Tamil.
Even to this day, we find numerous remniscences of Jainism speaking of its glory
in the Tamilnadu. King Pandukabhaya who ruled this part in the fourth century B.
C. constructed in and round about his capital Anuradhapura many caves and rest
houses for the Nirgrantha munis, as borne out by the Prakrit inscriptions. He also erected a temple in the
city. This is an important landmark in the history of Jainism. Rajawalikathe, a
Kannada composition of Devachandra, contains a number of collections of legends
and traditional accounts of the Chola and Pandyan rulers of ancient Tamilnadu.
There is epigraphic evidence to show that Visakhacharya visited this part of the
country along with his disciples, as directed by Bhdarabahu and preached the
tenets of Jainism to the inhabitants who were already familiar with the
doctrines of that religion. This shows that even in the third century B. C.
there were people who were followers of the Jaina religion. The research
scholars of the Ephigraphist's office at Madras have discovered many caves on various hills; those caves contain beds carved out in rocks. Such caves are to
be found in the hilly regions of Pudukottai, Madura and Tinnevelly districts of
the state. Such caves are to be found in the hilly regions of Pudukottai, Madura
and Tinnevelly districts of the state. Such caves are to be found in the hilly
regions of Pudukottai, Madura and Tinnevelly districts of the state. There are
water facilities near the caves, thus implying that ascetics must have lived in
seclusion in these caves. Near the caves found on the hills like Annamalai, Marugaltalai and
Sittannavasal, there are inscriptions carved in the Brahmi script but the
language Paisachi Prakrit.
Dr. P. B. Desai has noted that near the caves at Tirupparankuram, there are
naked figures with cobra hoods indication that they must be of Parsvanath
Tirthankara. In the caves of Muttupatti, there are sculptures of Jaina deities
on the boulders sheltering the beds. Many Jain idols have been sculptured in the rocks on the Poygaimalai Hill. Three are
many other hills which abound in Jaina relics of early age. There are many such
relics on hills in the districts of Arcot, Madura and other districts.
Kanchi and the area round about seem to have been the resort of Jainas under the
Pallava kings. Near Kanchi, there was the monastery of a Jaina monk by name
Dharmasena; there are two temples dedicated to the Tirthankaras Vrshabhadeva
Vardhamana, which are supposed to have been installed by Mahendravarman I, the
Pallava King at the instance of his teachers Mallishena and Vamana. At a
distance of two miles from Conjeevaram, we have a place called the Jaina Kanchi
where there is the big idol of Bhagavan Vardhamana popularly called
Trailokyanathswami. There is a large number of Jaina icons preserved in this place. One strange feature is that in this area there are many figures
of Yaksha and Yakshinis carved out in many temples, leading to he inference that
the worship of these guarding deities was current in 800 A. D. or so.
Tirumalai hill hear Polur is a famous centre of Jaina antiquities. The village
has a number of Jaina families. They are in possession of a number of Jaina
families. They are in possession of a number of Jaina scriptures on palm leaves
in original Samskrit or Prakrit with Tamil commentary; Trailokya Chudamani,
Tattvarthasutram, Jeevandharacharitamu, Gunabhadra's Mahapurana etc. There are
epigraphs which relate to the period of Krishna III of the Rashtrakuta period (957 A. D.). Ponnur appears to have been an important centre
where there is big idol of Adinatha Tirthankara; there are many icons of which
the notable icon is that of Jwalamlini. A Dravida monk by name Helacharya is
reputed to be the originator of the cult of Yaksha and Yakshini worship which is more popular in the South
than
in the North. There are many places in the North Arcot, South and Chingelput Districts where Jains are found in good numbers.
Of all the States in the South, the Karnataka State is undoubtedly the richest
from the points of Jaina Art, Architecture and literature. Sravanabelgola which
was hallowed by the visit of Bhadrabahu in third century B. C later became the centre of pilgrimage when
Chamundaraya erected the monolithic statue of 57.5 ft. in height on the
Vindhyagiri Hill in about 981 A. D. It is unique from the point of its
magnificence, grandeur and divine expression of smile on its face. A similar
statue of Bahubali measuring 41.5 ft. is to be found at Karkala installed in
1432 A. D. while a third one measuring 35 ft. in height at Venur was erected in
1604.
It is worthy of notice that each of the three has been carved out of a single
rock and "commands respectful attention by their enormous mass and
expression dignified serenity." They are all colossal statues of unrivalled
dignity, as if preaching the Jaina message of Ahimsa and truth from the hilltops to the entire world. Kannada poets, ancient
and modern, have sung the glory and grandeur of their monolithic calm and
perfect harmony. The facial expression of each of these statues is one of deep
contemplation. They however differ in the degree of perfection attained by the artist, the one at
Sravanabelgola being
superb in every respect.
The Jaina temples erected all over the South India are another contribution of
Jainism to the architecture of India, if not, of the world. The manasthambhas or
the tall standing pillars in front of most of the temples are wonderful
conception. "In the whole range of Indian art", observes Smith,
"there is nothing, perhaps, equal to these Kanara pillars for good
taste", and decorative sculpture. The temples at Mudabirdi have left a
permanent impress on Indian architecture. Fergusson who is an authority on Indian architecture has
observed
that "nothing can excel the richness or the variety with which they are
carved. No two pillars are alike, and many are ornamented to an extent that may
almost see fantastic. Their massiveness and richness of carving bear evidence to
their being copies of wooden models. The Tribhuvanatilaka Jinalaya temple is a
marvel of Jaina architecture". There are temples of exquisite beauty at
Coorg. The temples at Sravanabelgola, Jananathpura, Hansoge and Halebeedu are spacious with individuality of their own. The pillars in the
Shantinath Temple at Halebeedu have been so polished that the reflections of the
individuals looking at them convey different figures both in size and posture.
Similarly, the pillars of the temple at Belgaum are highly polished and strongly
magnetic. The Chaturmukha-bastis at Mudabirdi Laxmeshwar and Gersoppa are the
best models of four-faced temples.
There are numerous temples at Aihole, but today there are Jaina images only in
three temples, the Meguti temple being the most famous. The temple at the darga
area of Bijapur has the idol of Bhagavan Parsvanath with a thousand-hooded
Cobra. Banavasi and Bhatkal which were ones ruled by Jaina Kings have exquisite temples. At a
distance of ten miles from Bhatkal, which were ones ruled by Jaina kings have
exquisite temples. At a distance of ten miles, from Bhatkal, there is a place
called Haduhalli deep in the midst of hills surrounding the area, there are three temples; one of them has beautiful images
of twenty-four Tirthankaras with the most beautiful carved images of Dharnendra
and Padmavati. Perhaps, the images seem to have been carved by the same
sculpture who made identical images at Sriranagpatna situated at a distance of
ten miles from Mysore.
In a short article like this, it would be impossible to give details of the
numerous temples to be found in Karnataka and Tamilnadu. The temple adjoining
the Math at Sravanabelgola and the cave temple at Badami bear witness to the
wall-paintings which are clearly visible on the walls inspite of the lapse of
hundreds of years. In the former, we have a picture of a Samvasarana with
Bhagavan Parsvanath preaching the eternal doctrines of Jainism. The others
illustrate the Jaina concept of lesyas of samsara and other puranic stories.
There are some wall paintings at Kanchipuram and Tirumalai in the State of
Tamilnadu.
Aparat from these wall-paintings, we have manuscripts of Kalpasutra and of
Bhaktamarastotra which illu trate the subject by means of paintings on the
palm-leaves.
All the unique art and architecture would not have flourished in the South or
the Dakshinapatha if it had not been the stronghold of Jainism "since a
hoary antiquity." Nandas, Mauryas and Satavahanas were rulers of the Deccan
who patronized Jainism and promoted its spread. The Kadambas and Gangas were
Jaina Kings. The Kadambas of Banavasi and the Chalukyas who succeeded Pallavas,
were undoubtedly Jains. It is noteworthy that Simhanandi who was a famous Jaina
Acharya was the Guru of the Ganga Kings, Madhava and Dadiga. Their capital was
Kuvalalapura which is identifies with modern Kolar in Karnataka. They ruled in about 250 A. D.
Harivarma, the grandson of
Kongunivarma
(or Madhava) shifted his capital to Talakadu. Avinita, who hailed from this dynasty, was a great ruler of learning and earned a name for his just
administration. Vijayakeerti who was wellversed in the Jaina scriptures was his Guru and adviser. Avinita's
son
Durvinita ruled in 482 A. D. under the guidance of the famous Jaina Acharya
Pujyapada. Gangas were also a famous Jaina dynasty of Kings who ruled over
Karnataka for about 300 years and had extended their kingdom as far as Nepal.
Marasinha-II was a
famous ruler whose
prowess finds description in the inscriptions at Sravanabelgola in 866 A. D.
(No. 38). He was a brave king and defeated the Chera, Chola and Pandya kings. He
was not only learned in the Jaina scriptures but also became a monk by being
initiated into sanyasa by Guru Ajitasena who resided in the temple at Bankapura
which is still standing as a monument in memory of the great Acharya and of the
death by Sallekhana by Marashima II in 975 A. D. as testified to by an
inscription.
Chamundaraya was the Prime Minister of Marashimha and served the latter's son Rachamalla in that capacity of a general. Anybody who has read the Ephigraphia
Caranatica Vol. II will know how much Chamundaraya has been extolled for his
valour, generosity and statesmanship. It is he who got the image of Bahubali at Sravanabelgola
carved
out. His Guru Nemichandra who is famous as a Siddhant-Chakravarti wrote a book on a Jaina philosophy which he named as
Gommatasara. Chamundaraya was himself a
learned scholar and the purana that he wrote is known as Chamundaraya Purana. He
also wrote a book in Samskrit known as Charitrasara. His contribution to Jaina
art, culture, religion and philosophy is unique, not equalled by any other
political figure in history.
The Chalukyas who ruled from 419 to 1156 A. D. were great patrons of Jainism in Karnataka. Among them Pulakesi I is very famous in history. He is also called
Satyasraya and was the patron of Ravikirti whose famous inscription in Samskrit
found at Aihole is noted for its diction, poetic grandeur and linguistic excellence, comparable only with that
of Kalidasa. Vikramaditya II of this family is also famous in history. His queen
Jakaladevi was a Jaina and built a temple at Ingalagi. It is this dynasty that
patronized Pampa, the great poet and author of Adipurana.
The Hoysala Kings were also Jainas. The first king Poysala studied under a Jain
monk by name Sudatta. Vinayaditya II was the most powerful king of this dynasty
and Shantideva Muni was his Guru. Ballala was another king of this line.
Bittideva who was a famous king was converted to vaishnavism by Ramanuja but his famous queen Shantaladevi
who continued to remain a Jaina was the patron of art and literature. She built
temples at Sravanabelgola and Halebeedu with the blessings of her Guru
Prabhachandra. She adopted the vow of Sallekhana and died at Shivaganga as is
borne out by an inscription at Sravanabelgola, though Shri K. V. lyer has
wrongly stated in his novel entitled Shantala that the committed suicide.
Bittideva's general and prime minister Gangaraja was a Jaina who under the
guidance of his Guru Subhachandra did many acts of piety and religion to advance
the cause of Jainism. One of his generals was a Jaina lady by name Jakkiyabbe who was compared to Sita and
Rukhmini. The treasures was Hulla who built the
famous temple Bhadrachudamani at Sravanabelgola, having installed idols of 24
Tirthankaras. He granted many lands in charity to the temples at Sravanabelgola, Koppal and
Bankapur.
The period of Rashtrakutas (757 A. D. to 973 A. D.) was a glorious period in the
history of Karnataka Jainism. Amoghavarsha was a Jaina. He was also called
Nrpatunga. His book Kavirajamarga which is the first work in Kannada, mentioning
the earlier writers. The Jayadhavala-tika was written by Virasenacharya under his patronage.
Jinasena,
the author of Parsvabhyudaya, was his Guru and has blessed his royal pupil at
the commencement of his book. Amoghavarsha is credited with authorship or
Ratnamalika and has been praised by his co-pupil Gunabhadra for his wisdom and learning. Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar has stated
that "of all the Rashtrakuta kings, Amoghavarsha was the greatest patron of
Jainism..."There are many other kings of this dynasty who ruled in
different parts of Karnataka.
Among the Kalachuri kings that ruled (1156-83 A. D.) over Karnataka, mention
must be made of Bijjala. He was a king of great religious tolerance and had
Basaveshwar of the Veerssaiva faith as his minister. In a contest between Jainas
and Lingayats at Ablur, Bijjala is credited to have given a decision in favour
of the latter. He ruled at Kalyana which is today named as Basava-Kalyana. It is
most unfortunate that Bijjala was murdered and a large number of Jainas were
converted into Virasaivas. The Ratta kings were another dynasty of Jaina rulers
who have left their mark at Suandatti, Huli and Belgaum where they constructed
some temples. The inscriptions traced from this area speak of their faith. Under
the Vijayanagar Kings, there were many Jaina ministers and generals. During the periods of Ramanuja in Karnataka and of Saivas in the
Tamilnadu, there were many
persecutions of Jains who were converted to Vaishnavism or Saivism.
As Dr. Maurice Winternitz has observed, "It would take a fairly big volume
to give a history of all that the Jainas contributed to the treasures of Indian
literature. "The most noted writer in South India is Kundakunda whose
numerous works on various aspects of Jaina philosophy, metaphysics, epistemology
and logic number more than 84. Umaswati's Tattvarthasutra is known as the Jaina
Bible. Pujyapada, Akalanka, Vidyananda, Prabhachandra and Srutasagara are some
of the Jaina commentators from the South on Tattvarthasutra. Samantabhadra's
Ratnakardanda-Sravakachara is a popular work on Jaina ethics. He has written many other books. Prabhachandra and Vidyananda are the other
writers in
Samskrit whose name must mentioned with respect. Jinasen's Adipurana is quite popular.
Dr. Saletore has stated that "the Jaina teaches, as the intellectual
custodians of the Anhdradesa, the Tamil land, and Karnataka most assiduously
cultivated the vernaculars of the people, in wrote in them great works of
abiding value to the country. Almost all the early Jaina writers were profound scholars in Samskrit and the Renowned classics
in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada were produced by them. "So far as Kannada
literature is concerned, R. Narshimhacharya who has written three volumes of
Kannada literature, has called the period of Jaina writers "as the Augustan Age of Kannada literature". I
have already referred to the earliest work : Kaviraja-marga which is the only
work that mentions the boundaries of Karnataka as having spread from Godavari to
Kaveri. The author has mentioned the names of earlier writers who were also
Jainas. Pampa, Ponna and Ranna are called the Ratna-trayas of kannada
literature. Each of them composed a secular work as also a religious purana to
serve the cause of the public as also of their own religion. Pampa's
Vikamrarjuna-Vijay and Adipurana, Ponna's Bhuvanaikaramabhyudaya and Shantipurana and Ranna's Gadaddhya and Ajitapurana occupy a special place of
pride in Kannada literature on account of their poetic excellence and grandeur
of conception. All the three poets flourished in the tenth century. Then came
Nagachandra or Abhinava Pampa whose Ramayana and Mallinathapurana are unique for their descriptive power and
facility of
expression. E. P. Rice considers the Ramayana as unique since it preserves the Jaina version of that epic. Waddaradhane of Shivakotyacharya and Chamundaraya
Purana of Chamundaraya are the only two earliest works in prose. Kabbigarakava
of Andayya and Dharmamrita of Nayasena are two works which were written in pure
Kannada without the use of Samskrit words. Nemichandra's Lilavati is a beautiful
poem.
The contribution of Jaina writers and poets to Kannada literature has been so
rich and varied that it forms a glorious chapter in the history of Kannada
literature. Kesiraja's Sabdamanidarpana is a standard work on grammar and
linguistics and stands unequalled to this day. Bhattakalanka Deva has written another valuable work on grammar,
prosody and linguistics. Sridharacharya wrote a book on astrology while
jagaddala Somanath has written a book entitled : Kalyana-Karaka on medicine.
Rajaditya has written a book on mathematics. Brahma Kavi has written a book
called Samaya Pariksha on Jaina ethics. Bharatesha Vaibhava of Ratnakar Varni is
a marvellous poem on the life of Bharat.
I have already referred to a few important works of Jaina poets in Tamil.
Yasodhara Kavya, Chudamani, Udayanan Kathai, Nagakumara kavyam and Neelakeshi
are some of the Kavyas written by Jaina authors. Sripurana is a popular poem
among the Jaina.
There are some Jaina writers and poets in Telugu but many of their works have
not been available. As Dr. S. Krishnaswami Iyengar says : `There must be a Jaina
period in Andhya Literature before the 11th century as in Kannada Literature,
the absence of which is a mystery to be solved by historians. "Adharvanacharya was a poet well-versed
in Samskrit and Telugu. He is said to have written a book on prosody and grammar
at the beginning of the 13th century. Gokarna is another poet who wrote a book
entitled "Kavijanasraya" Padma Kavi has written Jinendra Purana while
Sarvadevayya has written Adipurana.
It is a unique feature of Jaina writers that they have contributed works of
literary merit in all Indian languages. As Dr. Maurice Winternitz has said :
"It would take a fairly big volume to give a history of all that the Jainas
have contributed to the treasures on Indian literature." There is no Indian
language in which the Jainas have not contributed to the secular or religious
literature of different languages in our country. They were men of broad
outlook, identified themselves with the people of the region where they settled and tried
their best to enrich the spiritual, social and literary thoughts of that region.
This speaks of their catholicity and mastery of languages.
"Today...the followers of Jainism are an insignificant religious minority
in these areas in contrast to the rich contributions which the Jaina monks and
laymen have all along made to the cultural heritage of this part of our land.
There are Jaina caves on seduded but inspiring spots; there are temples which
are fine specimens of art, sculpture, ..."