Jain Journal 1971 01

SR No.: 520021
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication
Publication Year: 1971
Total Pages: 54
Language: English
Classification: Magazine, India_Jain Journal, & India
File Size: 3 MB

Page 32

Agni-pariksa*
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a review article
K.C. LALWANI
Agni-parikṣā (Fire-ordeal) is a poetical work by Acarya Tulasi, head of the Terapanth order of the Jainas. Written about a decade back, the book is a good complement to the Hindi Ramayana by the devoteepoet Tulasidas, upholding as it does the cause of Sita and unfolding in details the events after Rama's return from Lanka and corronation, the culmination of which is the fire-ordeal of the first lady of Ayodhya. This imparts to Acarya Tulasi's work a resemblence with that of Bhavabhuti's Uttara-Rama-Carita.
In the cultural integration of India, among many factors the Rama story has a very distinct place so much so that since the First Poet had produced his commendable work, there have been many in different parts of the country at different times who have written on part or whole of this story, so that as years, centuries and millennia have passed, the story has remained as fresh, imparting a unity to the peoples of this sub-continent. In fact, there are several hundred versions of the Ramayana extant in the traditional as well as modern Indian languages, none rigorously following the other, not even the original work by Valmiki, but each presenting the story in a manner that would give the writer supreme joy and ecstacy. For, each writer of this story has had an inspiration and a faith that in re-telling it, he is fulfilling some spiritual mission, each version in consequence differing from the other depending on the writer's spiritual experience and the point which he is keen to emphasize. This apart, each version bears the stamp of time, place and environment in which it is produced. But despite these considerations, not very insignificant in any sense, the thread running through the diverse versions has remained strikingly the same. This point is particularly important to keep in mind while considering any particular version of the Rama story.
*
Agni-pariksa (Fire-ordeal): Acarya Tulasi: Atmaram & Sons, Delhi, 1961: Pages xx+180 Prices 6.50.