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COMPR BHENSIVE HISTORY OF JAINISM
difficulty, as his son and successor Lūņakarna, was on the throne of Jaisalmer131 in V.S. 1585. It we therefore reject this identification, we have to identify this .Jaityasingha' with the Bikaner king, whose name is found in a Jain epigraph"88 from that place, dated V.S. 1591. It is also a fact that "Vikrama' was an old name of Bikaner. Jaitrasimha II of Jaisalmer is known from Jain epigraphs from that place dated V.S. 1581188 and 1583184, respectively. For king Lügakarna we have a Jain inscription 185, dated V.S. 1585. Another Jaisalmer king of our period, who is mentioned in Jain epigraphs 188, was Bhīmasena or Bhimaji, who was a contemporary of Emperor Akbar. His dates are V.S. 1650 and 1663,
The above discussion of Jainism in Jaisalmer proves that it was exceedingly popular in that area. The frequent references to the Kharatara monks show that the Jain temples here were practically under their control,187 The Jain libraries of this town are exceedingly rich, and the labours of scholars like Dalal and Punyavijaya have brought to light some of these priceless works.
As we have already noted, Abu area of Rajasthan was connected with Jainism from the 11th century, if not earlier. This area has also yielded hundreds of Jain inscriptions. A very good number of Jain epigraphs of our period (1300-1600 A.D.), from Abu, are also known. The earliest important Jain epigraph, of this period, is one dated V.S. 1378, corresponding to 1322 A.D. 188 We are told that in this year, during the time of Tejasimba and Tihuna, of the Cābamāna lineage, the jirņoddhāra (repair) of Rshabhamandira was carried out by the two brothers Lalla and Vijaļa. The rebuilt temple was consecrated by Muni jñānacandra, who belonged to the spiritual lineage of Dharmaghosha. This Jõānacandra has been further described as the disciple of Amaraprabha. It appears that this Jñānacandra, the disciple of Amaraprabha, had an exceptionally long life, as he is mentioned in two image
