Jain Journal 1983 04

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

Page 10

114
JAIN JOURNAL
his book, Jainism in Early Medieval Karnataka (c. A.D. 500-1200) (pp. 56-57) :
Despite the denunciation of these customs in the Jaina scriptures, the Jainas practised incantation from earliest times. The Sthânāngasūtra refers to the Jainas who were sensualists. The curative spells are mentioned in the Uttarādhyayana Sūtra. In the Sūtņakytānga we have instances of the monks who take to incantation for making a person happy or miserable. The Niryuktis, which are assigned to 300-500, state that the Jaina monks managed to acquire food with the help of magical spells. The Samaraiccakahā, which is a work of the 8th century, refers to a magician who restored life to Sagaradatta who was administered strong poison by his mother. In the same text, we have the story of a goddess who gave Sena a miraculous stone which could remove all diseases. With this he cured king Samaraketu of his disease when all physicians had failed.
I would like to suggest that one may regard magic as being incorporated in a religious tradition when magical elements within it are systematized instead of persisting as stray and scattered elements. Now it seems that the Dravida Gana of Jainism did go magical in this sense. The name of Helacarya figures prominently in this connection. To recount the story as summarized to P. B. Desai (p. 47) :
Helacarya, which name divested of phonetic hiatus would be Elacarya, according to a literary tradition, is intimately associated with the deity Jvalamalini. He was an eminent monk of the Dravida gana and hailed from Hemagrama in the Daksina Desa or southern country. In order to release a lady disciple of his from the clutches of a Brahmaraksasa or evil spirit which had possessed her, he propitiated the Vanhi Devata or the goddess of fire on the top of the Nilagiri Hill. This is the story of the origin of the cult of Jvalamalini, and Helacarya is regarded as its originator. We can easily acquiesce in the identity of Hemagrama of Helacarya with Ponnur (pon-gold), which has treasured, as seen above, relics and traditions associated with his name.
This information is derived from the treatise called Jvālāmalinikalpa which was composed in A.D. 939 by Indranandi, who also composed the Jvālāmālinistotra. He along with Mallisena Suri (11th century A.D.), who wrote the Jvälinikalpa, is credited with systematizing the occult lore relating to the deity Jvalamalini.