Jaina Philosophy Historical Outline

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

Page 71

50
Jain Philosophy in Historical Outline
division in the church, each section claiming greater authenticity than the other. The points on which emphasis is laid by the Digambaras are that the Tīrthamkaras must be represented as nude and with downcast eyes, that women cannot attain Mokşa, that the Kavalajñānins require no food, that Mahāvīra was never married, that the complied canonical works are not valid since they are man-made, that the asceties must be entirely nude and that the Ācāryas after Jambu Svāmi do not represent the entire community. The immediate cause of this split is not known, but there are grounds to believe that there had always been two parties in the community. Two modes of monastic life known as Jinakalpa and Sthavirakalpa were surviving side by side which were mutually opposed to each other. The enmity was nourished for a long time, but suddenly, probably on minor issues, it suddenly burst open. By the end of the first century as the division was finalised.
After the Švetāmbara-Digambara split the integration of the Jain church became rather loose giving rise to regional leaderships. The split caused a separation not only among the monks but also in the ranks of the laity. The major sects were further subdivided into smaller groups. One of the important events in the later history of the Jain church was the Second Council at Valabhi, held at the beginning of the sixth century AD under the guidance of Devardhi in which some of the Jain canonical works took their present shape. In this Council the earlier commentaries also were recast and ampli fied. After Vajrasena the church was led by the following patriarchs: Puşyagiri, Phalgumitra, Dhanagiri, Sivabhūti, Bhadra, Nakșatra, Rakșa, Nāga, Jehila, Višņu, Kālaka, Sampalita, Bhadra (J), Vțddha, Samghapalita, Hastin, Dharma, Simha, Dharma, (I) and Sāņdilya.