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Jainism: The Oldest Religion
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Thus the tradition of Tirtharikaras in the present age begins with Rsabha, the first Tīrthankara, and ends with Mahāvīra, the twenty fourth Tīrthankara. Naturally, there is a continuous link among these twenty four Tīrtharkaras who flourished in different periods of history in India. It, therefore, means that the religion first preached by Ķsabha in the remote past was preached in succession by the remaining twenty three Tīrtharkaras during their life-time for the benefit of living beings.
As seen above, Mahāvīra is the twenty fourth Tīrtharkara in this line of Tirtharkaras. As Mahāvīra happens to be the last Tīrtharikara, he is regarded by the common people as the founder of Jaina Religion. Obviously, this is misconception. Now the historians have come to accept the fact that Mahāvīra did not found Jaina religion but he preached the religion which was in existence from the remote past.
4. Historicity of the Jaina Tradition
The historicity of the Jaina tradition is amply bome out both by literary and archaeological evidences. This traditional history of Jainism from the earliest times to the age of the last Tirthankara Mahāvīra (6th century B.C.) can be consistently traced from the facts maintained by Jaina religion.
As per the Jaina tradition, Lord Rşabha, the son of Nābhirāja and Marudevi, was the first Tīrtharikaraor expounder of Jaina religion of this era. This Lord Rşbha is considered the harbinger of human civilization because he inaugurated the karma-bhūmi (the age of action); founded the social institutions of marriage, family, law, justice, state, etc., taught mankind the cultivation of land, different arts and crafts, reading, writing and arithmetic; built villages, towns and cities; and in short, pioneered the different kinds of activities with a view to provide a new kind of social order meant for increasing the welfare of human beings. Lord Rşabha had two daughters and one hundred sons. After guiding human beings for a considerable period of time, Lord Rşabha abdicated his temporal powers in favour of his eldest son, Bharata, who in the course of time, became the Cakravarti, i.e. paramount sovereign of this country, led a life of complete renunciation, attained Kevala-jñāna, i.e. liberation at Mount Kailasa.
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