History of Canonical Literature of Jainas

Author(s): Hiralal R Kapadia
Publisher: Shardaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre

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A HISTORY OF THE CANONICAL LITERATURE OF THE JAINAS
scientific study. This is borne out by Prof. Winternitz who sounded a clarion call and awakened us from lethargy by contributing his scholarly quotawriting 172 pages on the religious literature of the Jainas in his marvellous work "A History of Indian Literature" vol. II. He says :
"In the English translation of Vol. II of my "History of Indian Literature” which has been just published. I had to devote 172 pages to Jaina literature. But I have treated in these pages only the religious literature, while reserving the non-religious poetical and scientific literature of the Jainas to the third volume of my book. I am, however, fully aware that I was not able to do full justice to the literary achievements of the Jainas. But I hope to have shown that the Jainas have contributed their full share to the religious, ethical, poetical and scientific literature of ancient India." -Ibid., p. 144.
The subject that I have selected for this book debars me from entering the majestic domain of the non-canonical literature of the Jainas on the one hand, and the magnificient archive of their religious literature (which for some reason or other could not be completely included in the canonical literature), on the other.
With these preliminary remarks I shall proceed to examine the relative value of the canonical literature of the Jainas - a subject which has been incidentally hinted at, in the foregoing chapters.
Languages - To begin with, we may take a survey of the linguistic field. Prāksta as a language holds no insignificant a place therein. It has several varieties, Pāli, Addhamāgahi and Soraseni being some of them. Just as we owe the existence of the Pāli literature to the Bauddhas and that of Avesta and Pahlavi to the Zoroastrians, so for the varied and vivid specimens of the Addhamāgahī literature, we are grateful to the Jainas. As a crest-jewel of Addhamāgahī specimens I may mention Ayāra (I, 1). To my mind, its reading appears as if the very words of the first sermon delivered by Lord Mahāvīra or by his first apostle Indrabhūti are embodied herein; for, I notice here that there is sublimity in thought, serenity in expression and veracity in words. In short it is a panacea for the afflicted and aspirants after truth.
Had the Jainas not resorted to Addhamāgahi language and developed
1. This topic has been discussed by me in A Comprehensive History of the non-canonical
Literature of the Jainas, but this work can be published only after the war is over. 2. See Dr. S. M. Katre's article Names of Prakrit Languages published in "A Volume of
Indian and Iranian Studies presented to Sir E. Denison Ross, Kt. C. I. E.”