History of Jaina Monachism

Author(s): S B Deo
Publisher: Deccan College Research Institute

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HISTORY OF JAINA MONACHISM
mar and the rasas etc. WINTERNITZ, therefore, puts them in the class of 'huge encyclopaedias'.
From their contents and the tradition about their author we may take the Nandi and the Anuyogadvāra to be later works.
Conclusions:
From the above discussion about the possible antiquity of the different parts of the Svetämbara Canon, we may arrange the groups in the order of descending antiquity in the following way:
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The Angas, then the Mülasûtras, then the Chedasūtras and lastly the Niryuktis, Upangas and the rest of the Canon.
The Exegetical Literature:
Besides the Canon, the Jainas have an immense commentarial literature woven round the canonical texts. This literature embodies and refers to old traditions and variant readings. It also mentions certain texts which have become extinct by now.
Besides this, the exegetical literature is of importance from the point of view of social traditions, peculiar customs and practices mentioned in it, as also due to references to several religious sects, schisms and faiths. Thus they give us the social background to monastic practices and alterations in it, if any.
Over and above all these qualifications, the commentaries are essentially useful in properly understanding the texts of the Canon. Dating of this Literature as a whole:
The exegetical literature has been the creation of a number of centuries, and except for such commentaries which have been ascribed to datable authors, it is not possible to trace the period of each and every book in this type of literature.
The fundamental difficulty in dating the earlier types of commentaries is the late compilation of the Canon itself. WINTERNITZ remarks, "As the Canon was written down at so late a period, it is not possible to fix a definite line of demarcation between the canonical and the non-canonical literature. At all events the non-canonical literature already begins before the completion of the Canon, and it has continued through all the centuries down to the present day". In fact, we have already seen that some of the Niryuktis-viz. Pinda and Ogha, are included as texts of the Canon itself.
76. Op. cit., p. 475.