Jain Journal 1990 10

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

Page 11

JAIN JOURNAL
It is a fact worth-noting that for writing the history of ancient India the study of the Prakrit Purānas, Caritāvalis and Pattāvalis is necessary. It is worthwhile to remember that the Jaina canonical texts, written in Ardhamagadhi—the last compilation of which ended by 450 A.D. are seldom thoroughly and constantly consulted by the historians for the history of ancient India, perhaps, because of the language bar. It is a general charge against the chronology of Indian history, but the Jainas have fairly (and in some cases accurately) kept the chronology in their Pattāvalis, and a good chronological order of Indian history supplemented by contemporary sources may fairly be drawn up. Many of our historical notions, ideas, and events may be revised with the help of those Caritā valis and Pattāvalis mostly written by the Jainas. To conclude we can say that we shall be surprised to think that the materials the Jainas have treasured up in their literature will evoke envy of the scholarly world, if these Caritā valis and Pattāvalis are properly edited and translated.
(v) Prakrit Kavyas :
The Prakrit kavyas of all kinds-epics, lyrics, kośas, narrative, deductive, historical are so vast and varied that most of them are lying unedited in the Bhåndāras of Jaina Institutes. These literatures can go on at par with Sanskrit so much so that in contents, themes and ideas, these literatures will occupy a unique position among the literatures of the world. Some of the books are lost. We should try to recover them, and for that, investigation of Prakrit manuscripts is necessary. For example, the Tarangarota of Padaliptacarya is a lost work, but its small version is available. The abridged version, Samkhitta-Tarangavaikaha by Nemicandra in Prakrit, at least, gives us the context of the lost Tarangarota, just as we have the context of lost Brhatkatha. Though we may not get many lost works, we can however, re-search the Jaina Bhāndaras for getting some of the rare and ancient texts of Prakrit. The value of Prakrit kāvyas and tales is emphasized by Winternitz thus :
"The mass of narratives and books of narratives among the Jainas is indeed vast. They are of great importance not only to the students of comparative fairy-tale love, but also because, to a greater degree than other branches of literature, they allow us to catch a glimpse of the real life of the common people. Just as in the language of these narrative works there are frequent points of agreement with the vernaculars of the people, their subject-matter, too, gives a picture of the real life of the most varied classes of the people, not only the kings and priests, in