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8
A Note on Lord Mahavira's Clan
In Pali text Nigantha Nathaputta (or Nataputta) and in Sanskrit Buddhist texts Nirgrantha (Nigrantha) Jñariuptra (Jnataputra) is used for Lord Mahavira (see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary). In jaināgama texts also we have Nayaputta. Nāyasuya, Nayaputta, Mahavira etc. According to the comm. of Samyuttanikaya 'Nata' was the name of his father but Malalasekra says that Nata is the name of the clan, and most of the Jaina texts and commentators are unanimous in saying that Nata is the clan of the Ksatriyas.
Recently Muni Nathmalji has opined that the Prakrit word Naya or Nata should be sanskritized as Naga.1 He may be correct to a certain extent as far as Prakrit word is concerned but when we see the word Nāta or Natha used in pali, there remains no possibility of sanskrtizing it as Naga. Still we can keep this question of sanskritizing the word Naya open and find out some solution.
In Acaranga II we find 'Nayaņam khattiyāṇam (116) which shows that Naya, were Kṣatriyas. This is corroborated by Kalpasūtra (20) also.
But in Acaranga I which is the earilest text of the Jaina Canon Lord Mahavira is called 'Mahana' not once but four times at the end of all the four sub-section of the ch. IX wherein ascetic practices of the Lord are described-‘एस विही अणुक्कन्तो माहणेण मईमया ।"
This statement may be right if we see the story in Bhagavatisūtra (9. 33. 380) where the Lord says- देवाणंदा माहणी मम श्रम्मगा । अहन्नं देवाणदाए
#gŴg gag 12
Will it not be proper if we say that only after the introduction of the story of interchange of embryo the Lord was known as Kşatr ya? It can be assumed also that in order to validate the change of embryo this story in Bhagavati is inserted but that possibility is not there because in that case the question of relation of Trisala should arise which is not there.
Here we may mention the other possibility also. The Buddha and the Mahavira-both of them have propagated that only the right type of a
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