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
Ditthivaya. So it now remains to note the stages about the loss of its remaining four sections. But as it requires an investigation about their contents, I defer its treatment for the time being, and in the meanwhile I note the various reasons assigned by modern scholars for the loss of Ditthivaya in general and the 14 Puvvas in particular.
Prof. Jacobi in his intro. (p. XLVI) to S. B. E. (vol. XXII) observes :
"Professor A. Weber assigns as the probable cause of the Dristivâda being lost, that the development of the Svetâmbara sect had arrived at a point where the diversity of its tenets from those embodied in that book became too visible to be passed over. Therefore the Dristivâda, which contained the Purvas, fell into neglect. I cannot concur in Professor Weber's opinion seeing that the Digambaras also have lost the Pûrvas, and the Angas to boot. It is not probable that the development of Gainism during the two first centuries after the Nirvana should have gone on at so rapid a pace that its two principal sects should have been brought to the necessity of discarding their old canon. For, as stated above, after the splitting of the church in these two sects the philosophical system of the Gainas remained stationary, since it is nearly the same with both sects. As regards ethics, both sects, it is true, differ more. But as the extant canon of the Svetâmbaras is not falling into neglect, though many practices enjoined in it have long since been abandoned, it is not more probable that they should have been more sensible on the same score at the time when the Pûrvas formed their canon. Besides, some of the Pûrvas are said to have continued to be extant long after the time which we have assigned for the formtion of the new canon. At last they disappeared, not by an intentional neglect, I presume but because the new canon set into clearer light the Gaina doctrines, and put them forward more systematically than had been done in the controversial literature of the Pûrvas."
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The latest information we can gather on this point is to be found in L. Alsdolf's article A new version of the Agadadatta story published in "New Indian Antiquary" (vol. I, No. 5, August 1938). There on p. 287 it is said:
"I must confess that I do not believe in the legendary and biographical contents of the fourth part of the Dṛṣṭivada but regard the Jaina tradition on this point as unfounded. I agree with SCHUBRING (Lehre der Jainas, § 38) who has made it at least very probable that the real contents of the Drstivada, consisted of an exposition and refutation of heretical doctrines, and that this was the reason of its loss it was thought undesirable to preserve