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________________ JAINISM IN ROYAL FAMILIES Vesali Nevertheless they were known as 'Vesalie - i.e. inhabitants of Vesali." 1 Mahavira, the son of Siddhartha and Trisala, is undoubtedly the most noble scion of the Jnatrika clan A sidelight on the tremendous influence exercised by this remarkable man on his fellow-men is thrown by a passage occurring in the canonical literature of his bitter antagonists, the Buddhists. The passage may be translated thus : "He is the head of an order, of a following, the teacher of a school, well known and of repute as a sophist, revered by the people, a man of experience, who has long been a recluse, old and well stricken in years." 2 We have already seen that Mahavira and his parents were the followers of the tenets of Parsva, and hence with them it is highly probable that the whole clan of the Naya Kshatriyas were also the followers of the same tenets. The Naya clan seems to have supported a body of monks who followed the predecessor of Mahavira, and lastly, when he appeared, the members of his clan became his devoted followers. The Sutrakrtanga tells us that those who followed the law proclaimed by Mahavira vere "virtuous and righteous" and that they "confirmed each other in the law."4 Thus the Jnatrikas, being of the clan of Mahavira, naturally were greatly affected by the doctrines of Nataputta. The Jaina Sutras give an idealised picture of the Jnatrikas, and tell us that they avoided what was sinful and were afraid of sin. For instance the Sutrakrtanga observes: "In compassion to all beings, the seers, the Jnatriputras, avoid what is sinful; afraid of it, they abstain from food especially prepared for them. They abstain from wicked deeds, afraid of injuring living beings, and do no harm to any creature; therefore they do not partake of such food. This is a maxim of the monks of our creed." 6 From the Uvasaga-Dasao ve come to know that the Jnatrikas possessed a Jaina temple outside their settlement at Kollaga, which bore the name of Dupalasa.? The term Ceiya used here has been 1 Raychaudhuri, op.at, p 74. Cf Barnett, op at, Int, v, Hoernle, op. and loc al . Lat (BC), op al, pp 124-125 C Stevenson (Mrs), op af, SI, Low (BC), op cit, p 128 Cf. Jacobi, S.B.E, XIV, 256 Cf Law (BC), op cit,p 122. . Jacobi, op cil, p 410 Dr Jacobi makes a note here that the term Jnatriputras is used as the synonym for the Jainas Cf fund C. Hoernte, op at, 1, p 2 105
| SR No. | 011067 |
| Book Title | Jainism in North India |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Chimanlal J Shah |
| Publisher | Longmans Green and Compny London |
| Publication Year | 1932 |
| Total Pages | 66 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English |
| File Size | 3 MB |