Jain Journal 1976 01

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 44

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JAIN JOURNAL
A survey of the Jainistic pantheon is a modification of the Vedic, Hinduistic pantheon with extensive enrichment by non-Jainistic, Vedic, Hinduistic, (particularly Saivait) gods and demons139. The Jainistic pantheon also contains ancient Indian female (Sakti) goddesses140 as magical tantrism had formed them. Surimantra starts with Om Kali, Mahakali, etc., as found in the paintings.
The development of even more inclusive religious and non-religious literature like ever-increasing storing up of first rank works in the Jaina bhandāras is under the circumstances so significant an achievement that it only could have been achieved under the hierarchic rigidly organized monastic Jainism with its boundless power over the Jaina laity.
The ancient Indian sacred military organization on the one hand, and the monastic ascetic organization with its dispensing Jaina subjects on the other here achieved culture on the mission territory, which from the stand-point of capitalistic rentability was partially extensive eternal pausture, partly simply desert, therefore not the rest of place to support great construction and artistic production except in the hills.
The Restoration of Orthodox Hinduism in Jaina Mission Territory in India
In North India Jainism and Buddhism gave way to Hinduism gradually with the advent of Islam in seventh century A. D. Jainism and Hinduism made room for Buddhism in East India as is evidenced by the rise of the Palas with the state religion-Buddhism in 750 A.D., but again Buddhism gave way to Saivism there with the foundation of the Sena dynasty in Bengal in the 11th-12th century A. D. under the leadership of Vijayasena, a Karnataka Brahmana-Ksatriya prince. In South India Buddhism gave way to Jainism (and also to Hinduism) gradually. This may be correlated with the superior community organization of this confession. However, Jainism too shrivelled within the area of its diffusion finally being reduced to the cities and some villages of South India, Inner India and North India and West India where it still lives to-day.
The field has been won by Hinduism with the Brahmanas on the top. It almost appears that the restoration of Hinduism proceeded from Kashmir, the classical land of the magical science of the Atharva-Veda,
139 Jainikarana kriya (act of making these gods and demons as Jaina gods and
ksetrapalas, etc.) was done by the Jaina monks. 140 The goddesses appeared as the attendants of Jinesvaras but they were not superior
to the Jinas or the Acaryas. See Kharatara Pattavalis and others.