History of Canonical Literature of Jainas

Author(s): Hiralal R Kapadia, Nagin J Shah
Publisher: Prakrit Text Society Ahmedabad

Page 19

THE CANONICAL LITERATURE OF THE JAINAS
every samaya, the minutest division of time. Taking the entire universe into consideration Jainism flourishes for ever, and so do the Jaina scriptures. But if we were to examine this topic from the stand-point of India we shall find that such is not the case. Even during the present cycle of time known as Thundā avasarpini, Jainism got completely wiped out seven times, and even its scriptures shared no better fate. But this refers to a very very remote age; for, for the last hundreds of millenniums Jainism has been existing in this land, and to express it definitely, it has not disappeared once it here got promulgated by Lord śāntinātha, the 16th Tirthankara, 4 out of 24 who flourished during the present avasarpini period.5 This does not mean that all the Jaina scriptures that were then composed or compiled still survive in words, though, of course, in spirit they do exist even now in some form or other. This is what the Jaina tradition says.
1. This name occurs in ‘Kalikāla sarvajña' Hemacandra Sūri's Trişastiśalākā.
puruşacarita (parvan 3, canto 7, v. 154) 2. Avasarpiņi (period of involution) has for its counter-part utsarpini (period of
evolution) along with which it makes up a kāla-cakra or the twelve-spoked wheel of time. This kāla-cakra is the basis of law of time so far as 5 Bharata ksetras (zones) and 5 Airāvata kşetras are concerned. It is two-fold because of its division into ava sarpiņi and utsarpini. There are six spokes in avasarpiņi beginning with unadulterated happiness and ending in utmost misery. Reverse is rather the case
with utsarpiņi which, too, has six spokes. 3. Cf. the following lines occurring in Viāhapannatti (XX, 8):
"एएसु णं तेवीसाए जिणंतरेसु पुरिमपच्छिमएसु अट्ठसु २ जिणंतरेसु एत्थ णं कालियसुयस्स अ वोच्छेदे प० मज्झिमएसु सत्तसु जिणंतरेसु एत्थ णं कालियसुयस्स वोच्छेदे प० सव्वत्थ वि णं वोच्छिन्ने दिट्ठिवाए।" (सु. ६७७) Visesanavai (v. 103) of Jinabhadra Gani Ksamāśramana, Pavayana sāruddhāra (v. 430-431) of Nemicandra Sūri and Sattarisayatthana (v.213) of Somatilaka Sūri
may be also consulted. 4. A builder of a landing place in the sea of existence. 5. "sigeld op và ! Na 'RE' Th Fite Bitefoqufig afa P T FATT? t ! asene fremtaa
तं जहा- उसभमजियसंभवअभिणंदणं च सुमतिसूप्पभसुपासससिपुप्फदंतसीयलसे जंसवासुपुजं च विमलअणंतधम्मसंतिकुंथुअरमल्लिमुणिसुव्वयनमिनेमिपासवद्धमाणा २४ ।" (सु. ६७६)
Viāhapannatti (XX, 8)