Book Title: Essays Lectures on Religion of Hindu Vol 01
Author(s): H H Wilson
Publisher: Trubner and Company London

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Page 319
________________ OF THE HINDUS. 303 Having thus attained the object of his penance and silence, Manávira, attended by his disciples, wandered about to different places, disseminating the Jain belief, ·and making numerous converts. The scene of his labours is mostly along the Ganges, in the modern districts of Behár and Alláhábúd, and principally at the cities of Kauśámbi and Rájagriha, under the kings SASÁnika and SREÑIKA, both of whom are Jains. The occurrences described relate more to the disciples of the Saint than to himself, and there are some curious matters of an apparently historical character. There is also a prophetic account of HEMACHANDRA himself, and his patron KUMÁRA Pála of Gucerat, put into the mouth of MahávíRA; but these are foreign to our present purpose, which is confined to the progress of the Jain sage. Mahávíra having completed the period of his earthly career, returned to Apápapuri, whither he was attended by a numerous concourse of followers of various designations. However fanciful the enumeration, the list is not uninstructive, as it displays the use of various terms to signify different orders of one sect, and not, as has been sometimes erroneously supposed, the sect itself. Sramańas, Sádhus and Srávaks may be Jains, but they are not necessarily so, nor do they singly designate all the individuals of that persuasion. Vira's train consists of Sádhus, holy men, fourteen thousand; Sádhwís, holy women, thirty-six thousand; Sramanas, or ascetics, versed in the fourteen Púrvas, three hundred; Avadhijnánís, those knowing the limits or laws,

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