Jainism in Tamilnadu

Author(s): S Gajpathi
Publisher: Z_Rajendrasuri_Janma_Sardh_Shatabdi_Granth_012039.pdf

Page 11

According to Sri Padmanabhan at the bottom of the hanging rock there is a hall, veranda and a temple. The temple is of three parts. In one cell there is Lord Mahavira's idol. In another Lord Parswatha's idol exists. In the third should have existed Padmavati's idol. It was removed and Bhagavati was installed in 1913.
Kalugumalai: This is in Tirunelveli. It has many rock cut beautiful images of Tir thankaras and Yaksis. The inscriptions here and at Tiruccaranam are of the same period.
During this Caturmas (rainy season 1977) the Nirgranta Acharya Nirmal Sagar's Sangh is staying in Kalugumalai. This is an historical event.
Siddhannavasal : This is in Pudukottah state and near Tirochirappali. The excavation of the cave temples and the paintings here are done by Mahendra Pallava in the 7th century A.D. The paintings equal that of the Ajanta caves.
There are stray Tirthank ara images on the banks of tanks, street corners, fields etc. in several places all over Tamil Nad. It proves that there existed a number of temples in Tamil Nad once. Some collections are in the Madras Museum.
Mr. Padmanabhan writes in his book "The Forgotten History of the Land's End" But it is astonishing to note that the sacred place Kanya Kumari was once a centre of Jain pilgrimage. One of the twin rocks now named after Swami Vivekananda has been held in veneration from very ancient times. Apart from its having assumed the Swamy's name latterly the rock has been traditionally known as Sripaada paarai'. Sripaada means sacred feet and paarai is rock. In all probability we can say that the Jain monks on the way to Ceylon consecrated a shrine of Sripaada on the rock which was part of the main land.
Ajita Tirthankara's time. It agrees with the story found in the Trisasti Salaka Purusa Caritra (Translated into English by Mrs. Helen, M. Johnson).
In order to protect the Jaina temples at Kailas built by the first Chakravarti Bharata the sons of emperor Sagara with the help of the Danda Ratna dug a very deep mote or ditch around the temples and diverted the water of the river Ganga to fill them with water. The result was that the water submerged the under world of the Nagakumara Devas. There Indra Jivalanaprabha was enraged and he comes with his Naga Kumara Devas and with their fire emitting eyes burnt to ashes the 60000 sons of the Emperor Sagara. The news made the emperor sorrow-ful. In the meantime Ganga water filling up the ditch overflowed and submerged the surrounding villages. People of those areas came and complained this to the Emperor who ordered his youngest son Bhagiratha to divert the Ganga water to the ocean. Accordingly he with the help of Danda Ratna carries out the order. It is this story carved on the rock.
When actually any one goes through the full explanation of the Jaina carving given by Mylai Soeni Venkatasami in his illustrated Tamil book 'Jaina Carving at Mahabalipuram he will be wonder struck with the genius and the efforts of the author.
Let us now turn our attention to the present conditions. In all there are about 20000 Tamil Jains now. They are spread in several villages of the two District North Arcot and South Arcot. Those in twons and cities are emigrants from the villages.
Since last 250 years traders both Jains and nonJains came from Rajasthan and Gujarat and settled in Tamil Nad. The major bulk of the wholesale trade is in their hands.
The North Indian Jains are now spread in all the cities and towns of Tamil Nad. They have built new temples at Madras and some other towns.
Their settlement enabled several Suriji Maharaj visit Tamil Nad and propogate Jainism here. By the effort of Suriji (Shri Gambira Vijayjee Maharaj, if I remember correct) in near about 1926, The South Indian Humanitarian League' was established to propogate and stop animal sacrifice before the temple altars. The organisation had in one Sri T.S. Sripal the necessary genius for this magnificient task, who was the propogandist of the league.
Shri T.S. Sripal by his tireless effort and oratory skill succeeded in stopping animal sacrifice in area
In the same book is mentioned that the serpant shrine of Nagarcoil, which is considered to be a Hindu temple was originally a Jain one. Evidence of the Jain origin of the temple is seen in the inscriptions and sculptural images found in it.
Mahabalipuram: This is a sea shore 30 miles south of Madras where there are the famous rock cut temples of Mahendra Pallava.
On the side of a low rock there are carvings. It is the genius of Sri Mylai Soeni Venkatasami for having identified the carvings as Jaina, an episode of Bhagiratha son of Chakravarti Sagara of Lord
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Rajendra-Jyoti
Jain Education Intemational