Development And Impact Of Jainism In India And Abroad

Author(s): Gunvant Barvalia
Publisher: Arham Spiritual Center

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DEVELOPMENT AND IMPACT OF JAINISM IN ASIA AND ASIAN DWIPA
filling the containers with fresh sweet water (jala-bhayane).
When the ship was to take off, auspicious musical instruments were sounded, counchshells were blown, auspicious songs were sung, Brahmins muttered the asisa; and thus in the sound of invocation and jaya jaya the ship took off its voyage, the sails were unfurled,, the ropes and riggings were pulled up, the oars began to be operated, the helmsman took observations, the ship fell into its course, favorable winds began to blow. Thus the ship started its journey being tossed on the high sea waves.
The ship reached to its destination. It touched the landing, and the merchant got on the coast. It was then the custom to pay a visit to the king by making suitable presents, while obtaining from him his consent or tacit charter to trade in his territory. They paid all the customs, charges and taxes (ditthor rayakao pasao). In the trade of precious stones and gems, it was customary not to utter the value loudly by word of mouth but through a piece of cloth or a scarf on the jewels and pearls to be sold. Then the buyer and seller put their hands under the cloth, both of them negotiating by means of some signs conveyed through the fingers of the hands (dinna hatthasanna). It is also stated that after taking other goods in exchange and before leaving the place the foreign merchant make some charitable gifts to the local religious teachers and establishments (dinnam danam).
On the return journey, the greedy merchant pushed his friend in the mid ocean and raised a false cry of his having slipped into the sea. The pious merchant after struggling for some time against the waves sank under the water and either lost his life or reached to a dvipa and got married with its king's daughter. In case he lost his life, he became a Vyantaradeva whom, in order to revenge him against the mischief-making merchant, caused the storm leading to shipwreck. The ships were well guarded along with a lot of bustle of instructions. However, there were attacks from the Bhillas or Dasyus who robbed the caravans of all that was valuable.
This had become a literary motif as appears from other jain and Non-Jain works. The kuvalayamala gives strange reference to the capture of the floating merchant by some people on Taradvipa and preparing from his blood and flesh an ingredient considered an essential in making of gold.2 This ingredient was known as Momai in Muslim time and was highly praised by Unanian physicians.
The motif of the Bharumda bird darting from the sky and catching hold of and carrying human victim to another place otherwise difficult of access was well-known in medieval time story-literature and occurs in the Brhatkatha-slokasangraha of Buddhasvami, ascribed to Gupta period.
Another motif is an auspicious sign before starting the sea-voyage. There is a list of eight auspicious girls in the Kuvalayamala3 holding respectively sprouted water-jars, fan-palm, flywhisk, parasol, mirror, mrdanga, harp, drum and cloth and ornaments. These were regarded as eight celestial nymphs of Indra's heaven and frequently referred in literature as astakanya or sabhakanya. These are depicted on the railing pillars at Mathura during the Kusana period. Some of which were obtained from the Jain Kankali Tila and others from Buddhist stupa.
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