Aspects of Brahmanical Influence On Jaina Mythology

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

Page 55

The Épics and the Faina Purānas
red to with a view to lending charm and colour to the contextual description 36 However, a thorough comparative study of all these elements is beyond the scope of the present monograph.
Viewed from the standpoint of comparative study of the Mahabharata themes, the Pandavacarita of Devaprabha Sun is very important Written in 1213 AD the work appears to be the first known Purana of its type Just as the Mahabharata is divided into 18 Pardans so the PC contains exactly 18 cantos, obviously in imitation of the epic scheme The epic heroes find mention also in some of the canonical texts"?, but those works contain very scanty information about them, taking incidental notices of only a few minor events of their life
It must, however, be mentioned that the Kaurava-Pāndava account has already been given by a number of post-canonical works, viz JHV, UP, RC, PMP, CMC and TSPC But in these works the history of the Kaurava-Pandava brothers does not find place as the principal theme, for, the main interest of the Puranas in question lies in the account of the Harı dynasty in general and in the description of the exploits of Neminatha, the twenty-second Tirthankara as well as Krşna, the ninth Vasudeva in particular
As in the Mahabharata, the actual account begins with the life-story of king Santanu,98 great grandfather of the heroes
object as indicative of its intrinsic quality, the author says that moon's origin from the Occan of AllL is infcrrcd from appcarancc alone (TSPC, Vol III, p 182) Also sce ibid Vol V, pp 321-22 which refer to the origin of deadly poison from thc churning of the occan of
Milk Cf MBh 1 18 34, 41-43 06 cg Cakrin Brolimadolta sporting with his wives Khanda and Visābhā 15
likened to Lord Siva in the sportive company of Ganga and Umā (Vol. V p 342) Similarly, a hing of Vagadha giving his daughters in marriage to Cakrin Brahmadatta is compared with Daksa (Prajapalı) wedding his daughters to the Moon-god,- Vol V p 343 of MBh
1 60 10-13, 16,9 35 45-46 ff 07 Nājā if, quoted in Life in Ancient India, p 397, Utlara Ti, 2 p 42a.
quoted ab d p 386 08 PC, 121 ff