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JAIN HISTORY LITERATURE and SECTS
E01 - History of Jain Traditions and Sects
this Käyotsarga (way of practicing penance, as in a standing posture) is peculiar only to Jains and the figures are of naked ascetics, it can be postulated that these figures represent the Jain Tirthankars. Again, the figures of male deities in contemplative mood and in sitting posture engraved on the seals are believed to resemble the figures of Jain Tirthankars, because these male deities are depicted as having one face only, while the figures of male deities of Hindu tradition are generally depicted as having three faces or three eyes and a trident or some type of weapon. Furthermore, there are some motifs on the seals found in Mohen-Jo-Daro identical to those found in the ancient Jain art of Mathura. As Mahävir was the last Tirthankar, most historians previously considered Mahävir-swämi the founder of the Jain religion. Based on the evidence found above, it has become clear that this is a misconception. Now, historians have accepted the fact that Mahävir-swämi did not found the Jain religion, but he preached, revived, and organized the religion, which had been in existence from the past (Anädi Käl). At present, we are in the fifth Ärä, Dusham, of the Avasarpini half cycle, of which nearly 2500 years have passed. The fifth Arä began three years and three and a half months after the Nirvana of Bhagawan Mahävir in 527 B.C. Bhagawan Rishabhadev, the first Tirthankar, lived in the later part of the third Ärä, and the remaining 23 Tirthankars lived during the fourth Arä. 03 Historical Period - Jain Tradition and Archeological Evidence Neminäth as a Historical Figure
Neminäth or Aristanemi, who preceded Bhagawan Pärshvanäth, was a cousin of Krishna. He was a son of Samudravijay and grandson of Andhakavrshi of Sauryapura. Krishna had negotiated the wedding of Neminäth with Räjimati, the daughter of Ugrasen of Dvärkä. Neminäth attained emancipation on the summit of Mount Raivata (Girnar). There is a mention of Neminäth in several Vedic canonical books; the king named Nebuchadnazzar is said to have visited a temple of Neminäth in the tenth century B.C. There seems to be little doubt
about Neminäth as a historical figure but there is some difficulty in fixing his date. Historicity of Pärshvanath
The historicity of Bhagawän Pärshvanäth has been unanimously accepted. He was the son of King Ashvasen and Queen Vämä of Väränasi and preceded Bhagawan Mahävir by 250 years. At the age of 30,he renounced the world and became an ascetic. He then practiced austerities for 83 days. On the 84" day, he obtained omniscience. Thereafter, Bhagawan Pärshvanath preached his doctrines for 70 years. At the age of 100, he attained liberation on the summit of Mount Samet Shikhar (Pärshvanath Hills). The four vows preached by Bhagawan Pärshvanath were: not to kill, not to lie, not to steal, and not to have any possessions. The vow of celibacy was implicitly included in the last vow. However, in the 250 years that elapsed between the Nirvana of Pärshvanath and the preaching of Bhagawan Mahävir, the situation changed and in light of the situation of his time Bhagawan Mahävir added the fifth vow of celibacy to the existing four vows. There were followers of Bhagawan Pärshvanath headed by Keshi Ganadhar at the time of Bhagawan Mahävir. It is a historical fact that Keshi Ganadhar and Ganadhar Gautam, chief disciple of Bhagawan Mahävir, met and discussed the differences. After a satisfactory explanation by Ganadhar Gautam, Keshi Ganadhar and the monks, and nuns of the Bhagawan Pärshvanath tradition accepted the leadership of Bhagawan Mahävir and they were reinitiated. It should be noted that the monks and nuns who followed the tradition of
Bhagawan Pärshvanath were wearing clothes (by shvetämbar tradition/belief). Bhagawan Mahävir
Bhagawan Mahävir was the 24th and the last Tirthankar. According to the tradition of the Shvetämbar Jains, the Nirvana of Bhagawan Mahävir took place 470 years before the beginning of the Vikram Era. The tradition of the Digambar Jains maintains that Bhagawan Mahävir attained Nirvana 605 years before the beginning of the Saka Era. By either mode of calculation, the date
Compendium of Jainism - 2015
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