Book Title: Jainism in South India and Some Jaina Epigraphs
Author(s): P B Desai
Publisher: Jain Sanskruti Samrakshak Sangh Solapur
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JAINISM IN SOUTH INDIA noticed herein an image of Adinātha along with his Yaksha Gõmukha and Yakshiņi Chakrēsvarī who bore twelve hands.
Two NISHIDAI RECORDS: Among the Jaina records collected at Sonda two epigraphs engraved on the Nishidhi memorials standing in the funeral ground specially reservd for the followers of the Jaina faith, deserve particular attention. One of them records the demise of a teacher named Akaļanka bearing all the titles of the Sangitapura preceptors, in Saka 1530 or a. D. 1607. It is stated at the end of the epitaph that Bhattākalanka, an advocate of the Syâdvāda philosophy caused the Nishidhi Maņdapa to be erected. The second epigraph registers the death of the preceptor Bhattākaļanka possessing similar titles, in Saka 1577 or A. d. 1655.
Taking into consideration the historical facts discussed above, these two teachers specified in the Sõndā records seem to be identical with Aka. lanka II and Bhattākalanka of the Sangitapura line. Illuminating in this context is the assertion of Dēvachandra who narrates in his Rājāvaļikathe that the grammarian Bhattākalanka studied all the sciences at Svādi or Sõndā, presumably under his teacher Akalanka. It may reasonably be assumed from this that the Sõndă ruler Arasappa Nayaka II, who was a great admirer of Akalanka II, founded the Jaina matha in his capital and installed Akalanka II as its first pontiff. After the demise of his teacher, Bhattākalanka succeeded to the pontifical throne in A. D. 1607. On account of the great reputation of the two teachers, the names of both were associated with the matha. Calculating on the basis of the years of their death as indicated in the above epitaphs, 'we find that Akaļaňka II and Bhattākaļanka died at the ripe ages of about 70 and 90 years respectively.
Jainism lost its hold in this region by the period of the 17th century A. D. The tide of Muslim invasion swept the country and shook the found
1 Kannada SÃbilya Parishat Patrike, Vol. XXX, Nos. 3-4, p. 45. 2 While editing the copper plate records from Svādi in the journal, Jaya Karnataka,
1925-26, Prof. Kundangar has noticed a tradition which attributes the foundation of the Akalanka Mathe at Sondā to as early an age as the 4th century A. D. But this is disproved by historical facts. I doubt the existence of any Jaina matha at the place prior to the age of Akalanka II, of the Sangftapura line. Existence of a large number of tenoh ers bearing the name Akaļanka in the Jaina monastic orders has given rise to such wide and speculative legends which are found in other places also. Ou account of the disrupted condition of the monastery no genealogical account of the Akalanka Matha at Sondā is unfortunately available. Nishidhis of teachers who sucoeeded Bhattāka
lanka ovuld be traced in the Jaina burial ground at Sondā. 3 The Biļigiya Arasugala Vamśávali refers to the expedition of a Mohammadan ruler
in the reign of Gbaptêndra III, the grandson of Ghantondra II (verse 126 ).
