Jaina Philosophy Historical Outline

Author(s): Narendra Nath Bhattacharya
Publisher: Munshiram Manoharlal Publisher's Pvt Ltd New Delhi

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Introduction
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chapter on the general history of Jainism. South Indian Jainism was studied by Ayyangar and Rao, and their work which was published in 1922 throws a significant light on the historical role of Jainism in that region. V. Glasenapp's Der Jainismus: Eine indische Erlosungs religion which came out in 1925 had become popular in India and a Gujarati translation of this work was made by N.I. Patel. Schübring's Wrote Mahāvīras and Guerinot's La religion djaina came out in 1926. of other important publications during the twenties bearing on the general history of Jainism and on the lives of the saints, reference should be made to K.P. Jain's Bhagavān Mahāvīra (in Hindi 1924), M.B. Jhavery's Historical Facts about Jainism (1925), J.L. Jaini's The Bright Ones in Jainism (1926), C.R. Jain's Rşabhadeva (1929), etc. H. Bhattacharya's Divinity in Jainism (1925) is also an important work of this period. A.C. Sen's Schools and Sects in Jain Literature came out in 1931. Ajanta's Mahāvīra Caritra (in Marathi 1931), J. Shah's Jainism in Northern India (1932), K.P. Jain's Sankṣipta Jaina Itihāsa (in Hindi 1934), B.C. Law's Mahāvīra: His Life and Teachings (1937), B.A. Salatore's Medieval Jainism (1938), H.L. Jain's Jaina Itihāsa Ki pūrva pithika (in Hindi 1939), etc. had characterised the Jain studies during the thirties.
Studies in the social, cultural, legal and miscellaneous aspects of Jainism are also by no means insiginificant. Valuable articles on these aspects of Jainism, written by eminent authorities like Jacobi, Mrs. Stevenson and others, were incorporated in the famous Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics. C.R. Jain's Jain Law (1926), Jain Penance (1930) and Jain Culture (1934), S.R. Sharma's Jainism in Karņāțaka Culture (1940), B.T. Kala's Jain Vivāha Paddhati aur Lokācāra (in Hindi 1940), D.C. Dasgupta's Jain System of Education (1942), Jinavijaya Muni's Jaina Pustaka Praśāsti Samgraha (in Sanskrit and Hindi 1943), K.P. Jain's Jaina Tirtha (in Hindi 1946), Bool Chand's Jain Cultural Studies (1946), S.C. Rampuria's Cult of Ahimsa (1947), P.L. Vaidya's Jaina Dharma āņi Vangmaya (in Marathi 1948), K.L. Hindiqui's Yaśastilaka and Indian Culture (1949) etc. are important contributions to the understanding of the essentials of Jain culture. Of other works made in the forties reference should be made to Bool Chand's Lord Mahāvîra: A Study in Historical Perspective (1948) and J.C. Jain's Life in Ancient India as depicted in the Jain Canons (1947). The latter is especially important for any study on the social life of ancient India. Unfortunately this line of research with Jain sources has not been seriously pursued. We are, however, pleased to see a recent work by