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Aspects of Bralimanical Influence on the Jaina Mythology
the greatness of the occan, though churned up by the gods,"" has been admitted
202
The earth-sustainers
10g
The world, from the Jinist stand-point, is uncreated "It is cternal and self-produced (produced by the natural action of substances according to their inherent properties) and is situat ed in the middle of the infinite space Becoming clearer on the topic Hemacandra says that "the world with a well-supported form was made by none and is sustained by none It is selfeffected and remains in space without support 09 The same notion bolds good about position of the carth100 as well.
However, the influence of the Brahmanical epic-Puranic mythology has made itself felt on some occasions We meet with some passages in the TSPC in which the popular Brahmanical belief regarding the position of the earth has been expressed as an established fact On the eve of the commence. ment of the battle between Bharata and Balubalın, it is stated that the fourfold divisions of the army stood ready "injuring the back of the tortoise with their great weight, bending the turned up tush of the great boar, slackening the firmly expanded hood of the serpent-hing and crippling all the elephants of the quarter "101 Both Bharata and Bahubalın advancing towards cach other at ease are said to have put the king of the tortoises (supporting the earth) in danger of his life in every step (pade
97. TSPC, 1 5 644
98 नित्य स्वभावनिर्वृत्त सोऽनन्ताकाशमध्यग |
-1P 4 15b
99 सुप्रतिष्ठाकृतिर्लोको न केनापि कृतो घृत | स्वयमिद्धो निराधारो व्योम्ति तिष्ठति किन्त्वसौ ॥
-TSPC 23 80
100 1bid 4 2 314a
101
भूयसा निजभारेण क्लिश्नन्त कूर्मकर्परम् । दष्ट्रा महावराहस्य नामयन्त समुन्नताम् ॥ गाढ शिथिलयन्तश्च फरगाटोप फरणीशितु । दिग्गजानपि खर्वाङ्गीकुर्वन्तो निखिलानपि ॥
-1.5 427-28 Compare MBh 5 103 2, 6 67 13,7 94 48
