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Kannada Literature / 123
Kannada literary renaissance. Jaina authors heralded a series of epics and classiscs of exceptional accomplishments which vies with that of Prakrit and Tamil, and in some instances eclipses that of Sanskrit classics.
Ārādhana-Karnāṭa-Tikā
5.4. In Jaina narrative literatre there are anumber of stories and anthologies of stories (katha-kośa) which belong to the tradition of Ārādhanā, a treatise on the superior and the inferior varieties of death, authored by Sivakoti alias Śivarya (Pk. Sivajja). The Ārādhanā olim Mulārā dhanā, also called Bhagavati-Ārādhanā and Bṛhadāradhanā, in Jaina Sauraseni Prakrit, containing about 2170 gathās, is one of the very early texts (C. 1-2nd cent. C. E.), which belongs to the tradition of Loharya alias Lohacarya. Aradhana has been a primordial Nirgrantha surrogate of Dravyānuyōga canonical text for both the major sects for more than a thousand years. Among its commentators Bhrājiṣṇu (C. 800 C. E.) has composed a Kannada comm., perhaps even earlier to Vijayōdayāṭikā of Aparajitasūri (C. 9th cent) and definitely earlier to Bṛhat-katha-kośa of Harisena (C. 930).
5.4.1. Aparajitasūri is said to be a Yapaniya, where as Mūlārādhanā-Darpaṇa of Aṣādhara Pandita is Digambara. Ārādhana is respected by both the traditions. Ārādhanā - KarnataȚikā, the Kannada Comm. of Bhrājiṣņu, was fairly a voluminous work consisting of not less than of about 175 tales, practically covering the whole range of Ärädhana text. Albeit, only a bunch of 19 tales apropos of the 'Kavaca'section has come down to us. The word Kavaca is of greater significance; it is an armour of spiritual protection to the ārādhaka, the person who is committed to emaciation of body and passions through external and internal penances. Like the kavaca, coat of armour, protecting a soldier, here the kavaca, in the form of exhortation by illustration of stories
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