Contemporaneity and Chronology of Mahavira and Buddha

Author(s): Nagrajmuni, Mahendramuni
Publisher: Today and Tomorrows Book Agency

Page 102

Mahāvīra and Buddha have refrained from referring to the events of Buddha's life.
Again because Buddha was a junior contemporary of Mahāvīra and the Buddhist canons were compiled after the Nirvāṇa of Buddha by his perfected disciples, it is quite natural that the Tripitakas afford us with a lot of allusions, about Mahāvīra's life. Contemporaneity and Chronology
On the basis of the facts discussed in the preceding sections, we indubitably reach the conclusion that Mahā. vīra predeceased Buddha and that Mahāvīra was a senior contemporary of Buddha. Now it remains to decide the period of their contemporaneity i.e. how long they lived in the presence of each other. But we can know this completely only after chronologizing the chief events of their life. Though the Āgamas and the Tripițakas afford us the account of the days and the months of their birth and death, they do not mention the years of these events in terms of any prevalent era. This might have happened on account of the fact that no such systematized era, was in vogue at that time. Thus the only means at our hand to determine their correct dates is the use of other chronicles after having attested their veracity on the touchstone of history.
First we shall consider the chronology of Mahāvīra, for it is rather more unequivocal and less controversial than that of Buddha.
1.
Though in the Jain canons such as the Sūtrakrtănga Sutra, etc., we find a mention of some beliefs of the Buddhists, it is quite negligible. Also. because the later patriarchs of Jainism possesing the knowledge of the Puryas (the most important portion of the Jain canons, but not available now) had made additions and altertations in the original Angas, the above stated fact is not violated.