Jaina Archaeology Outside India

Author(s): Jineshwardas Jain
Publisher: Bharat Varshiya Digambar Jain Mahasabha

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Jaina agamas and religious text books mention the names of different cities and towns such as Dvarawati, Ayerawat regions etc which are supposed to be the birth places of Tirthanakaras. Munis and learned scholars went there. One can find all these places in South-east Asia (See Map. (Fig. 1). The rulers of these places were the followers of Jaina religion. However, these rulers had to flee from these places during an upsurge in the local people and communities and settled in India. In India these people gave the names to many cities the same names which were very auspicious and religious in South-East Asia so that the people could have similar respect for these places. But this is also a fact that these very settlers, traders and rulers, business men when traveled to the South-East Asian countries they built there huge temples, monastries. For example Borobudur in Indonesia, Angkorvat and 52 towered temples in Cambodia etc. I differ with the view of many scholars and historians that they gave the names to these south-East Asian countries the same names as were existing in India. It is rather other way round. It may be mentioned here that the South East Asia was actually ancient Mahabharata which happened to be most advance.
Few civilizations have as long a continuous history as that of Jainism. Using the evidences from archeological finds and literature we are able to comfortably to embrace the last 4500 years. Once the Ayerawat and Videha regions were discovered, I was confident in believing that Aryans came to India to settle.
These settlers gave the very names to different cities in India as were popular and religious in South-East Asia, eg. Ayodya, Hastinapur, Champa, Vaishali etc. After they settled in India their religious activities like building of temples, Dharamshalas (monastries), approach roads, etc started with much vigour. The most prominent were Sravanbelgola, Khajuraho, and many places on top of hills. The stone sculpture technique developed in Inda was carried by the rulers of India to the places like Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia and erected world fame monuments like Borobudur in Indonesia,, Angkorvat/ Angkorthom in Cambodia, Pyramids in Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, etc. because of an upsurge in these countries by the local tribes from these places
Jainism had already established as an important religion in various countries before Mahavira and Buddha began their missionary activities.