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Lord Mahāvīra and His Times
Śrenika and his son Abhayakumāra of Magadha who also in return despatched their presents to them. It is said that first of all Abhayakumāra enlightened Ārdraka with the teachings of Mahāvīra. In course of time, Ārdraka joined the Order of Mahāvīra.1
On the basis of an evidence furnished by a very late period, Mahävira is known to have propagated his message even in the region now known as Rajasthan. There is an inscription of 1276 A.D. which begins with a verse which tells us that Mahāvīra in person came to Śrímāla.? This is supported by the Srimālamāhātmya, a work of c. the thirteenth century A.D., which gives an account of the dissemination of Jainism in Śrīmāla. Disgusted with the behaviour of the Brāhmaṇas of Srīmāla, Gautama Gañadhara went to Kashmir where he was converted to Jainism by Mahāvīra. After his return to Srīmāla, he converted the Vaiśyas to Jainism and composed the Kalpa Sutra, the Bhagavatī Sätra, Mahāvīra Janmasūtra and other works.3 An inscription of 1369 A.D., found on the door of the chief shrine in Jīvantasvāmi Śrı Mahāvīra. Jaina temple at Mungusthala Mahātīrtha, 7 km. west of Ābū Road, shows that Lord Mahāvīra visited Arbudabhūmi, and an image was consecrated by Sri Keść Ganadhara during the 37th year of the life of Mahāvira.4 These statements are of a very late date and, therefore, cannot be easily relied on. But from them it can be legitimately deduced that in thc 13th century A.D., Jainism was considered to be a very old religion in Rajasthan.5
Not only the rulers but also several contemporary clans were the followers of the religion of Mahāvīra. There are many stray references in the Jaina Sūtras which prove that the Lichchhavis followed the Jaina faith. Their capital, Vaiśāli, formed one of the headquarters of the Jaina community during the days of Mahāvīra. Out of the fortytwo rainy seasons of 1. J.P. Jaix: Bharatiya Itihāsa-eka Drishti, pp. 67-63. 2. Pris. Wc., 1907, p. 35.
Srimalapurana, pp. 633-663. 4. APJLS, No. 48. 5. Jainism in Rajasthan, p. 8. 6. SBE, XLV, p. 339.
