________________
Development & Impact of Jainism in India & Abroad
Mahavira's mind & thought were deeply inclined towards spiritual life. However, he was compassionate enough at the animal slaughter in the name of Vedic Sacrifice. He tried his best to stop it as a defender & saviour of animal life. Thus, he became a social revolutionary & relinquished his royal heritage & adopted the life & a rectum just like Bhagvan Rishabhdeva. After spending 12 years seven months & 12 days, Mahavira left this mortal frame - life & attained final liberation. He was omniscient Gandhara (great scholar) carried his heritage to the people. The contemporary rule of Mahavira belonged to the great Magadha Empire. He was Bimbisar, who was followed by Ajatsatru, Pusya Mitra& others.
Bihar has been not only the holy birth-place but also the sacred land of his austerity & place of his final beatitude.
Jainism was patronized by many Kings & emperors of Bihar even after Lord Mahavira like Emperor Chetak of Vaishali, the place of birth of Mahavira's mother Trishala. Chetak was the chief of famous Republic Vaishali then there were other royal dynasties which encouraged Jainism to flourish in Bihar. They were Srenika (301-552, 552 B.C.)
AjatSatru (552-518 B.C.), Nanda Dynasty (350 B.C.) The Maurayan King Chandrgupta (320 B.C.), Emperor Ashok (277 B.C.), King Sampriti (310 B.C.), Kharwelin Orissa (174 A.D.)
Apart from the above imperial dynasties, Bihar has a wide range of jain pilgrimages & places of art & architecture. The famous place in Modern Bhagalpur. It is only at the outskirts of Bhagalpurity. Now, it is a tumorsDigambara Temple Bhagalpur city proper, there is a very fine & artistic temple of Swetambara & One of Jain Digambara.
About 50 km from Bhagalpur, there is the famous ancient palace & the famous Mandar temple, where thousands of Jain pilgrims come to visit from everywhere. In Hazaribaugh (formerly in Bihar, Now in Jharkhand). There is the famous SametShikhar which is most respected by both the Digambara& Swetambaras. This is the place where not only Lord mahavira but 20 other Jain Tirthankaras attained final liberation.
There is a place in Bhojpur District called Ara where there is Jain population. In modern times, the Jain philanthropists and lover of learning had started college at Ara called H.O. Jain College, which has become the nucleus of a new university at Ara. The most important thing is the establishment of anold library called jainSiddhantBhawan which has more than 700 Jain M.S. This was looked after by great Jain scholar K. Shastri & Nemicandra Siddhant Shastri. There is also an institution for education of the females called Chandrabai School. Chandrabai was a devoted Jain ascetic who had lived there. Last but not the least, I shall repeat that Vaishali is the most sacred place where Mahavira was born, & it was near theatre, where from his mother had been living.
Thanks to this Bihar Government, also after independence a research institute called Prakrit Institute of Jaindogy was started. There have been over 100 publications till now. But requires attention from the side of Government as well as Jain Philanthropists.
It is noteworthy to mention that Bihar is perhaps the state, where Prakrit is taught in more than two dozens of colleges. At Ara Veer Kuersingh University there is postgraduate department of Prakrit&Jaindogy.
164
