Lord Mahavira Vol 02

Author(s): S C Rampuria
Publisher: Jain Vishva Bharati Institute

Page 66

Philosophy of Lord Mahâvîra
57
accounts seems to be this-that in the second year of his monkhood, Mahâvîra left the religious order of Parsvanatha, and joined the school of Gosala. And when six years afterwards the difference of opinion led Mahâvîra to leave that school, he founded a new school of his own and organised a religious order mainly after the model of that of Parsvanatha. The only innovation which he made was the introduction of the vow of chastity in addition to the fourfold vow of Parsvanatha, and that was perhaps suggested by the moral corruption of the naked ascetics. However, the fact that he retained all the vows of the latter induced his old friends, the followers of Parsvanatha, again to meet him, nay, to accept him as their teacher. But although the two orders were thus amalgamated, and Mahâvîra was recognised as the common spiritual father and leader, the followers of Parsvanatha could not but be shocked at the sight of nudity. This furnished a psychological cause of difference, which led at last immediately after the teacher's death to, a dissention among his disciples.' The after effect of it was of course the appearance of two rival sects, the Digambara or sky-clad and the Svetambara or white-clad. This schism may accordingly be viewed in a sense as a 'reversion' to the original separation between the two orders, referred to above.
Mahâvîra died in 527 B.C. at Pava, after a successful career of thirty-five years as a teacher. Among his disciples, Gautama Indrabhuti was the 'earliest and greatest.' He survived his master for twelve years. Sudharman is another great disciple who survived Mahâvîra.
Among other notable facts we have to 'record, first, that the main centres of Mahâvîra's activity were Rajagriha, Campa, Vaisali and Pava; secondly, that Prince Abhaya, the son of Bimbisara, was the chief patron of his order; and thirdly, that from the beginning the lay supporters of his order were merchants and rich bankers.
HIS PHILOSOPHY
Sources of information
I. In dealing with Mahâvîra's philosophy it is necessary first to discriminate the sources of information which broadly fall under two heads; the direct and the collateral. The former comprise documents preserved to us by the Jains themselves; the latter