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SOURCES, CONTRIBUTION AND INFLUENCE OF PCV. 265 Balarāma as Rāma while the Tiloyapannatti names them as Rāma and Padma respectively. Both of them are recognised as the 8th and 9th Baladevas in the Jaina tradition. Now why one of these two Baladevas is named Padma. The only plausible explanation seems to be that the similarity in their names might have necessitated to distinguish one from the other and one of them was named Padma. Why this particular name was preferred ? We see that Rama and Krşpa are regarded as the incarnations of Vişņu in the Brahmanical tradition. Vişņu is called Padmanābha i.e. from his navel sprang the lotus which contained Brahmā, the future creator. As a Padmanābha is an epithet of Vişņu, and Rāma and Kệşņa are incarnations of Vişnu, so this epithet has most probably influenced the Jaina tradition in naming either Rāma or Krsna as Padma to distinguish between the two Rāmas, Daśarathi Rāma and Balarāma. In the Hindu Padmapurāņa (Ādikhanda, 1.23-24; 2.31-32) it is said that since the universe descended from the great lotus (mahāpadma) which sprang from the navel of Vişnu, and the universe itself is the embodiment of Vişņu, and there is description of the same in it so the work is named Padmapuräna. This fairly explains the association of the name Padma with Vişnu, i.e. Rāma and Kršņa.
Thus as far as the matter goes we here by conclude that the Rāmastory of PCV has its basic foundation on the Jaina tradition preserved in the form of 'series of names' which was aided with oral details that remained with the preceptors who augmented from time to time by accepting elements of their choice from popular tradition. In this way Vimalasuri seems to have inherited the subject-matter of Rāma-story from his predecessors and on that basis he composed Paumacariya; of his own plan and pattern, notwithstanding the fact that the VR too has considerably influenced the details of PCV and it was quite imperative in view of the great popularity the former had gained by the time of the composition of the latter. Therefore the Rama-story of PCV is not wholly dependent on the VR.
F. Two Jaina Traditions of Rāma-kathā,
1. Tradition of Paumacariyam:
The Paumacariyam represents its own tradition of the Rāma story.
Now we shall deal with the Rāma-stories of two other works namely, Vasudevahindi and Uttarapurāna. They make out a different tradition of the Rāma-story depicting two currents of the same tradition
| SR No. | 022643 |
| Book Title | Critical Study Of Paumacariyam |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | K R Chandra |
| Publisher | Research Institute of Prakrit Jainology and Ahimsa |
| Publication Year | 1970 |
| Total Pages | 672 |
| Language | English, Sanskrit |
| Classification | Book_English & Book_Devnagari |
| File Size | 18 MB |