Arya Bhadrabahu

Author(s): M A Dhaky
Publisher: Z_Nirgranth_Aetihasik_Lekh_Samucchay_Part_1_002105.pdf and Nirgranth_Aetihasik_Lekh_Samucchay_Part_2

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M. A. Dhaky
Jambū-jyoti
Samprati's great grand-father's father. (Bhrājisnu doubtless is confused on this point.)
12) A question, indeed of sterling importance, also arises why Bhadrabāhu, despite his eminence and seneority, was not present at the Pataliputra Synod. It seems that, today's Bengal-Bihar divide seemingly had existed even in early Mauryan times. Bhadrabāhu apparently was alienated, the preponderance (and consequent predominance) of the mendicants from Magadha and from other territories, some of which now forming the State of Uttar Pradesh, at the Pātaliputra Synod and contrariwise, not according due importance to the Bengālī Bhadrabāhu, perhaps not even inviting him for the Redaction Conference, may have hurt him and consequently he may have remained aloof by staying in Nepāla and thereby completely ignoring the Synod 113. (The 'diktat' or command of the Synod to pass, what then had become very rare, the knowledge of the Pūrva texts, may have served to sprinkle salt on the wound.) That the tempo of teaching was very slow, proves that Bhadrabāhu was an unwilling horse and only reluctantly had imparted the instruction to Sthūlabhadra.
And the legendary anecdote of Sthūlabhadra's vanity bordering on deliquency was created, plausibly in pre-Gupta times or earlier (since the legend already was known to Umāsvāti) to cover up the fact that Bhadrabahu had withheld the last four Pūrva texts while the teaching had entered into the final phase. And there is no clarity on the point whether the Pataliputra Council had continued their sessions indefinitely and had waited till the return of Sthulabhadra. The medieval sources briefly note that both Bhadrabāhu and Sthūlabhadra had reached Pataliputra after the major part of teaching was over.
13) Since Bhadrabāhu either had not visited Karnataka at all, or, if he did, he may have stayed at Śravenabelag!a for a very brief period before he passed away : How, in that event, indeed in that extremely short period and under the avamodarya (oranasana) vow as he is said to be, did he propagate the Nirgrantha religion in Southern India is a moot point. The more likelihood is that it was his hagiological descendents as well as some other contemporaneous Nirgrantha mendicants, who had migrated during the drought period to Tamilnadu and settled there, possibly were