Jain Journal 1986 07

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

Page 29

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sickness. The Cera kingdom strengthened cordial relations with the Pandya and the Cola kingdoms, under the guidance of the Crown-prince. Prosperity, unity and peace reigned supreme in the country. The Prince rose to the high estimation of the people and everyone loved and respected him for his benevolent activities to promote their welfare.
JAIN JOURNAL
A soothsayer had predicted that the Crown-prince would ascend a ruler's seat years earlier which aroused apprehensions in king Senkuttuvan's mind. But as a matter of fact what the prediction meant was the ruler's seat of a hermit and not that of a king. An age-old custom also prevailed in the king's family that a member, male or female should take Holy Orders. This ancient custom continues among the Jainas even today. Whatever it might have been whether the prediction or family tradition, the Crown-prince after deep consideration determined to maintain the family custom and accordingly he renounced his home life to the homeless life of a hermit and retired to a monastery. During the early years of his monastic life, the ascetic observed penance and austerities prescribed in the holy scriptures of Jainism. He travelled on foot to villages and towns besides distant localities delivering sermons before Jainas and non-Jainas on the tenets of Arhat dharma or Jainism. Being an advanced scholar himself the ascetic devoted a part of his time to literature like the ascetic scholars of ancient and modern times and he completed a monumental literary work, a poetical composition called Silappadikaram which is acclaimed by eminent Tamil scholars as the greatest and the best literary work in Tamil classical literature.
The Silappadikaram is not a fiction like a modern novel but a marvellous historical narrative, a biography entirely based on real events and episodes which had actually happened in the life of Jaina couple called Kannaki and Kovalan of Poompukar in the capital city of the early Cola kingdom of Tamilnad. In view of the fact that an anklet of Kannaki was the cause of Kovalan's tragic death, Silappadikaram is also called the Story of the Anklet. The author must have devoted at least four years to collect authentic materials from various quarters and persons both far and near Kodungallur to compile and complete the epic poem. The preface which is also a poetical composition is written by the renowned Buddhist poet and scholar Chathanar hailing from Chertalai modern Shertalai in Travancore, Kerala. The poet is popularly known as Chertalai Chathanar among the people. In the Preface, Chathanar has stated that the author of Silappadikaram is Ilamko Adikal, the young prince-hermit who had taken Holy Orders years earlier in Kunavayinkottam, a monastery situated on the eastern gate of Kodungallur. In the preface, Chathanar has not revealed the real family name of Ilamko Adikal probably because