Bruhat Katha kosha

SR No.: 016060
Original Sutra Author: Harishen Acharya
Publisher: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan
Publication Year: 1943
Total Pages: 566
Language: Prakrit, Sanskrit
Classification: Dictionary & Dictionary
File Size: 16 MB

Page 66

INTRODUCTION
same names as those given by Samantabhadra : he gives Jinadatta for Jinendrabhakta and in addition mentions the names of their towns also (verse Nos. 52-5). Vasunandi illustrates the consequences of the seven Vyasanas by appealing to the following stories : Due to gambling the king
Yudhisthira lost his kingdom and had to dwell in the forest for a period of twelve years; Yadavas perished by drinking foul wine when they were thirsty while sporting in the garden; the demon Baka of Ekacakra, being addicted to flesh-eating, lost his kingdom and went to hell after death; that intelligent Cārudatta, because of his contact with a prostitute, lost his wealth and suffered a good deal in the foreign country; the sovereign Brahmadatta went to hell on account of his sin of hunting; because he repudiated a deposit, Sribhūti was punished and he wandered miserably in Samsära; the lord of Lankā, though a semi-sovereign and a king of Vidyādharas, went to hell, because he kidnapped another's wife; and Rudradatta of Sāketa, being
cted to all the seven Vyasanas, went to hell and wandered long in Saṁsāra (verse Nos. 125-33).
These texts by themselves give very little information about these names, and it is for the commentators to supply the details. Prabhācandra, for instance, has given the stories to make the references of the Ratnakarandaka intelligible. Most of these stories, it is clear, are moral lessons ; some of them are found in later Kathākošas; and the fate of the heroes and
e story leaves a definite imprint on the pious readers. If they suffer by their sins, the reader is expected to abstain from similar acts; and if they reach happiness by their pious acts, the reader becomes a confirmed believer in those virtues.
A thorough study of the extensive Jaina Kathānaka or narrative literature alone would help us to identify the stories and get more details about the names casually mentioned in the wide range of early Jaina literature some specimens of which have been passingly surveyed above. This much is certain that no writer would refer to names like this unless he has definite stories in view either in oral tradition or in written records. The fact that some stories have been traced with the necessary details means that further studies are needed to connect these names with the well-established tales.
c) LATER TENDENCIES AND TYPES
After taking this passing survey of the narrative elements in early Jaina literature, it is possible to take stock, with typical examples, of the growth of subsequent Jaina narrative literature from the earlier seeds. We are concerned more with the types and their broad traits than with detailed particulars about each work.
The material for the lives of 63 Salākāpuruşas (24 Tirthankaras, 12 Cakravartins, 9 Baladevas, 9 Vasudevas and 9 Prativāsudevas) is found partly in the Kalpasūtra and, in its basic elements, in the Tiloyapannatti and