Jain Journal 2003 07

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

Page 10

HAMPA NAGARAJAIK : EPIGRAPHIA JAINIKA
Interestingly these inscriptions begin without the usual benedictory verses, and directly narrate the purport of the record, praising the merits of virtuous life. The inscriptional material, composed in Old Kannada language is, virutally without exception, religious, Albeit, it is poetic, striking for its aesthetic quality of expression and still maintaining desi sap. These lithic records confirm the harmonious blend of Sanskrit and Kannada languages. They clearely establish the fact that Sanskrit and even Prakrit elements had merged in the warp and the woof of Kannada lingustic structure, happily assimilating the Jaina idioms of religious connotation.
Gifted men of letters, assiduously mastering the intricate codes and protocols of Sanskrit literature, started composing their works in their local language. Elites, hitherto proudly participated in a peculiar supralocal ecumene of the Sanskrit cosmopolis, chose to express in their regional language, Kannada, thanks mainly and wholly to Jaina ascetics and litterateurs. Kannada versification had efficaciously absorbed the genre and essence of the Sanskrit and Prakrit language and literature. Karnataka is affluent in inscriptions. As mentioned earlier, so far about 25,000 inscriptions are discovered, out of which about 18,000 are published. Karnataka had yielded and still is yielding considerably larger number of inscriptions of early period, perhaps than North. The largest number of Jaina epigraphs come from Shravanabelagola, followed by Koppala and Hombuja. Except for these three places, all the other Jaina epigraphs, so far collected, come from different parts of the State, and their number is limited.
Yet another salient feature of the Jaina inscriptions is the large number of Nishidhi epigraphs. It has been the practice to speak of Nishidhis that they are composed in bald prose. But in reality there are hundreds of Nishidhis composed in excellent literary kāvya style, embedded with verses of various metres. [Hampa Nagarajaiah : Jaina Corpus of Koppala Inscriptions Xrayed : Bangalore : 1999]
So is the case with records of endowments. Charters mentioning grants of specified area of land, garden, oil-mill, house and site gifted for worship offerings of the concerned deity, alms giving etc, made over to the pontiffs in charge of the adminsitration of the Jaina shrines,