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MEDIEVAL JAINISM Another well known Jaina official of the age of General Irugappa was the Mahāpradhāna Gopa Camūpa, who was placed in charge of the famous hill-fortress of Nidugal. He is described as "a full moon in raising the tide of the ocean of the Jaina sangha (Jainendra-samayāmbudhi-vardhana pūrņa-candra) in an undated and incomplete record, thereby suggesting that he materially added to the cause of Jainism. Rice doubtfully assigned this record to A.D. 1410,4 obviously on the assumption that he is mentioned as ruling the great Nidugal hill-fortress during the reign of king Deva Rāya I.
We have some interesting details about this military officer. These are gathered from a stone inscription dated A.D. 1408. He belonged to a line of benevolent Jainas. His father was called Siriyaņņa śripati, the lord of Bāndhavapura, and a disciple of śāntīśvara. And Sriyanna's father was Gopa Mahaprabhu, the governor of Kuppațūr. Gopa shone as purified by the Jina dharma, his blameless career like steps to paradise. We shall have to see in some detail about the well known city of Bandhavapura in the Vijayanagara times. Gopa Camūpa, the subject of our discussion, was a Gauda ; and his guru was Siddhāntācārya of the Mūla sangha and Desiya gana. This inscription relates that by the instruction in Jinendra dharma of his guru Siddhāntadeva, accompanied by numerous lucid comments, Gopaņņa became a good servant of the faith. He constructed a Jinālaya in Kuppaļūr which he richly endowed.
The Malenād Mahaprabhu Gopaņņa had two wives named Gopāyi and Padmāyi, who in devotion to Jina dharma were equal to their husband. The moment came for Gopa Mahaprabhu to show to the world his worth as a true Jaina.
1. E. C. XI. Hr. 28, pp. 107-108.
