Aspects of Brahmanical Influence On Jaina Mythology

Author(s): Shaktidhar Jha
Publisher: Bharat Bharti Bhandar

Page 49

The Epics and the Faina Purūnas
the epic-Purāņic legend of the redemption of the carth by Vardha, has ascribed the title to the fina with an explanatory phrase which, though used in a special sense, points to the same act as the original legend. Thus, it is the reclaiming of the carth by the saviour which entitles him to the name Adi-Varaha. Of the other names and attributes of Brahmä usurped to Rşabha, mention may be made of Hiranyagarbha, Vedāngavādın, Kamalayonand rajñapurusa,72 Among Vişnu's names and epithets, Madhava, Madhusüdana, keśava, Vaikuntha, Dämodara as well as Vişnu78 are appropriated to the Jina Besides these, Ganesa, Sīrya (Divasanātha75) Buddha76 and the patronymic Sauddhodanı, too, do not escape the searching eyes of Puspadanta who indiscriminately uses them as Rsabhadeva's titles
The Caüpannamahāpursacarigaan of Silānha (868 AD) is the first known Svelāmbara Purana on the exploits of the sixtythree Salālāputusas of the Jaina faith It is written in Prakrit prose and verse and, therefore, shares the characteristic of that type of literary composition which is called Campū Although Silānka gives accounts of all the sixty-three excellent men of the Jaina universal history, yet he calls his work Caüpannamahaþurisacanya in place of the generally accepted name Trisasti So it is evident that he does not regard the nine Pratz-Vasudevas as great Men But Silānka appears to be the only author to have adopted that scheme Another important point to be noted about the work is that, unlike other works, it does not make Vālmili and Vyāsa targets of its attack Instead, the author seems to have proper regard for the Mahābhārata to which he
72 PMP X 6 10-13, cf MBh 1 1 29-32, Hy 11 27-30 MBh 154 11,
3 291 173 203 12-15, 12 348 48 Rāmā 736 3, 756 7 73 PMP X 5 14-16, X, 6 lb, cf MBh 13 149 10 21 f 74 PMP X 5 Sa 75 Ibid , X 512 76 Ibid, X o la 77. Edited by Pt Amritlal Mohanlal Bhojal and published by Prakrit
Text Society, Varanasi