Historical Facts About Jainism

Author(s): Lala Lajpatrai
Publisher: Jain Associations of India Mumbai

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As a Buddlihist canon was collected in the beginning of the fourth century B. C. whiclı mi the whole is preserved in the Pali collection of the Southern Buddhists, and as the Lalitavistara is said to have been translated into Chinese in 65 A.I)., the limits for the composition of the extant Jaina works lic between the fourthi auch first centuries B. C. But considering the greater resemblance of the oldest Jain metres to those of the Southern Buddhists, tlie beginning of the Jain literature must be placed nearer the time of the pali literature, rather than of the Northern Buddhists. This result agrees pretty well with the tradition of tlie Svetambaras, who state that the Angas were collecteil by the Sanglia. of Pataliputra at tle end of the fourtlı century B. C. or in the beginning of the third. While thus the continuity of the Jain tradition appears certain for eight out of the ten centuries which lie between Vardhamana and Devardhihi, lie thinks it probable that during the remaining two it was secured by the fourteen purvas, whose former existence is asserted both by the Svetambaras and Digambaras, while a table of their contents is preserved in the sacred books of the former. These works which were the earlier cannons of the Jains contained chiefly matters of a controversial nature, accounts of Vardhamana's disputations with the rivals. As these discussions in the course of time lost their interest, they were superseded by the Angas