Jaina Political Thought

Author(s): G C Pandey
Publisher: Prakrit Bharti Academy

Page 62

IV THE JAINAPURANIC TRADITION
It has already been mentioned that the Jaina canon by its incidental references presupposes the existence of a Puranic tradition. The canonical tradition has been held to have included four kinds of teachings, viz. Prathamanuyoga, Karananuyoga, Carananuyoga, and Dravyanuyoga. These stand for the Puranas, cosmography, ascetic discipline and metaphysics respectively. The first or Prathamanuyoga, corresponds to the third or Anuyoga section of the lost Drastivada. The main emphasis here was on the biographies of the sixty-three model persons called Salaka Purusas. These consisted of twenty-four Arhants, twelve Cakravartins, nine Vasudevas, nine Baldevas, and nine, Pratinarayanas. The Jain Puranas of the classical age claim to draw upon the traditions of the lost portions of the Agamas. In these classical Puranas, cosmography, the biography of celebrities, and religious instructions are joined together in the same manner in which they are found in the Brahmanical Puranas. The most popular heroes seem to have been Padma or Rama, the cousins, Nemi and Krsna, Parsva and Mahavira. Thus the Jaina Puranas are not only similar to the Brahmanical Pura nas in their general scope and style, but also share some common mythical and legendary tradtions, though the accounts are not wholly similar.
It stands to reason that the development of the Brahmanical and Jaina Puranic traditions could not have been wholly independent. The earlier of the extant Puranas in the Brahmanical traditions are now generally dated in the Kusana and Gupta periods. On the other hand while the Paumacariya of Vimala Suri might be dated five hundred and thirty years after Mahavira's nirvana, the other Jaina Puranas go the Brahmanical tradition Mahavira's nirvana, the other Jaina Puranas belong to the post-Gupta period. Thus, as far as the classical Puranas go the Brahmanical tradition seems to be earlier than its Jaina counterpart. Similarly, the earliest references to the Puranas in the Brahmanical literature are earlier than the references to the Puranic material in the Jaina canon. Thus the Chandogya refers to Itihas Purana and several Puranic rulers are mentioned in the
49