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The Fordmakers
295
Two factors unite Gautama and the other ten ganadharas: they were all in origin brahmans, and they were all enlightened by Mahâvîra and became omniscient kevalins (literally 'possessing unique knowledge'), the difference between a fordmaker and a kevalin being that the former requires no teacher (AvNiry 657).
It is the Universal History which puts the conversion of the ganadharas into a narrative context, starting with a section of the mnemonic verses on Avashyakasutra (AvNiry 592-659) which provides the core of the story which was then elaborated by Jinabhadra (sixth century CE) in the 'Debate with the Ganadharas' (GV), a work associated with the literature on the Avashyakasutra but which has achieved quasi-autonomous status. According to this text, the learned brahman Gautama summoned the gods to a great sacrifice but instead they flew off to hear Mahâvîra preaching at his second samouasarana nearby. In fury, Gautama confronted Mahâvîra in debate, as did ten other brahmans in succession, with the fordmaker converting them all by a demonstration, underpinned by his claim to omniscience, that they had failed to understand the true purport of the Veda which in reality accorded with a variety of Jain doctrinal principles, such as the eternal and unique nature of every soul and the physicality of both the human body and karma.
In effect, only three of the ganadharas have any real significance: Sudharman, from whom Shvetambara ascetic lineages trace their descent,41 Jambu, the last individual of this avasarpini to achieve enlightenment and Gautama, by far the most important. The biography of Gautama only starts to emerge as an independent entity by the common era and its most famous theme for Jains, his initial failure to win through to enlightenment, is a later episode, found for the first time in the developed Universal History. According to this story, Gautama, wishing to improve his chances of gaining enlightenment, went on pilgrimage to Mount Ashtapada, the site of the final deliverance of the first fordmaker, Rishabha, but although he had the magic power to scale the mountain effortlessly and was also the first person to have been converted by Mahâvîra, his efforts were to no avail. Mahâvîra told the disappointed Gautama on his return that it was his affection for his teacher that was holding him back, for any sort of emotion is a hindrance to the attainment of enlightenment. After
