Jainism in Buddhist Literature

Author(s): Bhagchandra Jain Bhaskar
Publisher: Alok Prakashan

Page 49

( 30 )
date of Mahavira's death. He says that Kumārapala of Chala. kyakula was born 1669 years after the Nirvana of Mahavira 73 It is now certain that Calukya Kumarapala was born in 1142 A. D.78 Accordingly, the date of Mahavira's death falls in 527 B. C. He has also made an attempt to prove 527 B. C. Muni Nagaraj has also made an attempt to prove 527 B. C. as the most likely date of Mabāvīra's (Nātaputta's ) parinirvāņa74.
Moni Kalyanavijaya, Kailash Chandra Shastri78, and Shantilala Shah77, accept this date but reject the evidence of PaliTripitka. Vijayendra Suri76 agrees with them as far as this date is concerned, but thinkes like Basham, that the death of Gosalaka, and not of Nigaņțba Nataputta, is recorded in Pāli Tripitaka. The date of the Buddha's death is accepted by them as 544 B. C. But other references made in Pali Nikayas are ignored by them.
On the other hand K. P. Jayasavalo, Radhakumuda Mok. erji8o and Kamata Prasada 61 favour the view that Mahavira's Nirvāṇa took place in 545 B. C.(i. e. 57+ 488=545 B. C.) Their main argument is that the Vikrama era commenced from the accession which took place 488 years after Mahāvira's death.
But their views are not correct as the evidence to prove 527 B. C. as the date of Nigantha Nataputta's parinirvana are rather more substential and reliable. J. K. Mukhtar proved successfully this view8%. The Jambusvāmicariu and other granthas also support the same opinion. The Pali records also pro. test its genuineness. Without going into prolonged discussion. we may now conclude that 527 B. C. seems to be more dependable as the date of Nigantha Nataputta's death.
The Place of Niganhtha Natapuatta's death
According to the Pali Canon, which has already been referred to in the earlier section, the Buddha was informed while he was at a Samagāma among the Sākyas, that Nigantha Nātaputta had died at Pāvá. In the Vividhatirtha-kalpa, Pavá is called Apāpapuri, perbaps on account of its religious importance. In the course of his peregrinations Mahavīra came from