Jain Journal 2003 07

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

Page 25

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JAIN JOURNAL: VOL-XXXVIII, NO. I JULY 2003
sentiments of the devotees : “However, the imprecations tend to be full of offensive terminologies which reflect a general deterioration of social standards, moral values, and higher principles" JA Ekambaranathan : Jainism in Tamilnadu: 1996: 35-36).
"Tamilnadu has more than five hundred and thirty (530) Jaina inscriptions reported from over one hundred and twenty locations. Many of these sites are still inhabited. As demonstrated in the chart below these records are found widely distributed in almost all the districts of Tamilnadu :
Chingleput 30, Pudukkottai 27, Ramnad II, Coimbatore 16, South Arcot 93, Dharmapuri 7, Tirunelveli III, Madurai 102, Thanjavur 6, Kanyakumari 21, Madras 5, North Arcot 85, Tiruchirapalli 17.
As indicated in the chart, bulk of the records are located in the regions of Tirunelveli, Madurai, South and north Arcot districts. The findings also indicate that most of the earliest epigraphic records first appeared in southern districts. This suggests that prior to ninth and tenth century C.E., Jain communities were first established in the northern region.
The various scripts employed in the lithic records include: Brahmi, Vatteluttu, Grantha, Tamil, Kannada and Devanagari. Although the scripts varied from time to time, the language of these scripts was invariably a form of Tamil. The few exceptions are those written in the Kannada and Sanskrit languages. The earliest epigraphs found in the Tamilnadu region are of Jaina Brahmi inscriptions, which have been palaeographically assigned to a period dating from the second century B.C.E to the second century C.E. There is little questions of the historical importance of these sites, and that the archaeological excavations have, and will continue to, shed new light on the material culture of Jains who first inhabited these villages in the second century B.C.E. Besides the above sites, major Jain centres which flourished in later periods may also be taken up for archaeological investigation in future, so as to bridge gaps in the history of Jainism in Tamilnadu." TA Ekambaranathan A: 1996:20-21]