________________
120
JAIN JOURNAL VOL-XLI, NO.3 JANUARY, 2007
inscription mentions regarding the Kurcaka Sangha and the Mula Sangha along with the Svetambara, Nirgrantha (Digambara) and the Yapaniya sects As far as the Mula Sangha is concerned, it is the forerunner of the Yapaniya Sangha only. I have conclusively proved this in my book.--Jaina Dharma Ka Yapaniya Sampradaya. Although the scholars of the Digambara pursuit relate it to the Nirgrantha Sangha, but how far is this belief of theirs tenable can be a controversial issue and I do not wish to enter into this controversy here. I have presented my arguments to this end in my book, Jaina Dharma Kā Yapaniya Sampradaya and the desirous readers may consult them there. There is no place for raising this controversy in this article. As far as the Kurcaka Sangha is concerned, I have found a mention of Kürcaka Gaccha in the Svetambara tradition also. However, firstly, this mention is of a later period, and secondly, it is related to a place, Kucera, in Rajasthan, while the inscription regarding the Kurcaka Sangha is from the South and it is dated the 5th century AD. Whether or not there was any relation amongst the Kurcaka Gaccha and the Kürcaka Sangha, is a matter for further research.
According to his views, Dr. Hampa Nagarajaiah has mentioned four sects - Yapaniya, Śvetāmbara, Digambara, and Neo-Digambara, and has taken the Neo-Digambara sect as different from the Digambara sect. He has simply categorised the literary works and said that (1) Paumacariyam, a work on the story of Rama by Vimalasūri is of the the Yapaniya tradition. (2) Rāma-stories by Śīlāńka and Hemacandrasuri are from the Svetambara tradition. (3) Ādipurāṇa by Jinasea, and descriptions about Rama by Gunabhadra (circa 898 AD) and Puspadanta (circa 965 AD) are of the Digambara sect and that (4) Padmapurāṇa by Ravisena and Harivaṁśa' by Punnāta Jinasena and Bṛhatkathākosa' by Hariṣena are from the Neo Digambara sect.
In this connection, my first objection is, "Have Ravisena, Punnāța Jinasena and Harişena ever claimed themselves or their master-disciple tradition to be belonging to the Digambara or the NeoDigambara tradition?"
'Is there any other inscriptional or literary mention about the
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
