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O Dr. J. C. Sikdar, M. D. Institute of Indology, Ahmedabad-9
A Reflection on the Life of Tirthankara Mahāvira
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Lord Mahāvisā appeared as a great ascetic, a religious teacher, a philosopher, religious reformer and the last of the twenty four Tīrthankaras, wandering with the retinue of his monk,--disciples from village to village, from town to town, from city to city, throughout North India, extending from West Bengal up to the united kingdom of Sindhu-Sauvirā, and preaching religion to the people of all social grades, belonging to heterogeneous faiths, expounding and interpreting developing and systematizing the metaphysical aspects of Nirgrantha Dharma by refuting the arguments of his own followers and those of the people at large on the religious and abstruse philosophical doctrines through his holy teachings, partly in the forms of questions and answers, partly in that of dialogues, legends, numerous parables, familiar similies, analogies and incidents of their daily lives.
He has developed and systematized the fundemental principles of the doctrines Nirgrantha Dharma laid down by his predecessors on a firm ground by making some improvements on them, as their moral precepts demanded a deeper metaphysical foundation necessitated by the religous conditions of his time.
There was no fundamental difference between the Laws preached by Lord Pārsvanātha and Lord Mahāvīra, because both of them pursued the same end. So the development of the metaphysical side of Nirgrantha Dharma was a historical necessity due to the existence of strong oppositions of heterodox religious sects, having different faiths, such as, Brāhmaṇisam, Ājivikism, Buddhism, Caravākism Parivrajakism, Vānaprasthism, those of Anyatirthikas, etc. and the followers of Lord Pārsvanātha and that of Jamalin his own disciple.
In such a condition of religious firmament Lord Mahāvīra reformed and consolidated the entire Nirgrantha Sangha on a solid foundation of metaphysical principles by absorbing the followers of Lord Pārsvanatha, into his Sangha and strengthemed it bp converting, initiating and admitting those of other sects and common people to his order.
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