Jain Vidya Ke Vividh Aayam

Author(s): Fulchandra Jain
Publisher: Gommateshwar Bahubali Swami Mahamastakabhishek Mahotsav Samiti

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In the second century B.C. even though king samprati, a grandson of Asoka, was responsible for the spread of Jainism to Malwa, The Jaina sage Kalakacarya was also equally responsible to spread Jainism in Malwa in the first century B.C. In the same second century B.C. a group of Jaina community migrated to Mathura and Ujjagini. In Mathura we have some ruins of a Jaina strine and a small number of inscriptions engraved on Jaina images. Ujjayini was also a stronghold of Jainism. In the 5th century A.D. in the classical Age, he second council at Valabhi was held in 454 or 467 A.D. under, the able guidance of Devardhigani Ksmasramana to codify the Jaina cononical texts at the time of king Dhruvasena I of the Maitraka dynasty of Valabhi who extolled as a Jaina convert. Though history adoubts it, but the Jaina tradition asserts it. In the 6th and 7th centuries A.D. the Ganga kings of Mysore, through not Jains, were very much attached to Jainism. In a similar way, the Kodamba rulers of Vaijayanti, showed unusual respect to Jainism. The Chaulukya's of Badami did not show much respect to Jainism, but Pulakesin II (610-11-642 A.D.) favoured much to Jainism. In the tenth century A.D., Camundaraya, the student of Digambara Nemicandra, who was the minister and general of the Ganga princes Mahasimha (dies in 974 A.D.) and Racamalla or Rajamalla II (974-984 A.D.) ereded the famous colossal statue of Gommata in Sravanabelagola (Mysore) in about 980 A.D. In the 12th century, Jayasimha who was a convert Jaina, ruled Gujarat from 1159 to 1172 A.D. During his reign there were two kings named Jayasimha (1093-1143 A.D.) and Kumarapala (1143-1174 A.D.). Jayasimha was the Choulukya king Jayasemha Siddharaja. In the 13th century in the history of Gujarat the name Mahamatya Vastupala, through a time minister, practically ruled Gujarat at that time like a king and in his literary circles there were Jaina poets and Sadhus who contributed so much that Vastupala became famous as a king. In this way, the contributions of the Jain kings to the growth of Jainism is described in this paper. - 207 -