Book Title: Religion and Culture of the Jains
Author(s): D C Sirkar
Publisher: University of Calcutta

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Page 120
________________ A. K. CHATTERJEE (54. 73) which is elsewhere described as a town in the Pallava territory (64. 1). This shows that during Jinasena's time, i.e. in the last quarter of the 8th century A.D., Madura, which was previously held by the Pandyas, passed into the hands of the Pallavas. And we should note that Jinasena II was a contemporary of the famous Pallava king Nandivarman II Pallavamalla who ruled for at least about 65 years.17 Jinasena's evidence shows that at least for a few years, in the last quarter of the 8th century, the region around Madura was captured by the Pallavas from the Pandyas who were the natural enemies of the Pallavas.* Interestingly enough, the poet of the Jain Harivaṁśa makes Jara (called Jaratkumāra) a brother of Kṛṣṇa and a son of Vasudeva (62. 38-39). Probably the idea of a vyādha killing one of the Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpurușas was difficult for our pcet to stomach and that is why he has painted Kṛṣṇa's killer as an aristocrat.** Jinasena II speaks of one Andhakavṛṣṇi18 as the son of Śūra and he is represented as the father of the following ten sons-Samudravijaya, Akṣobhya, Stimitasagara, Himavat, Vijaya, Acala, Dharaṇa, Purana, Abhicandra and Vasudeva. The name Andhakavṛṣṇi is the Sanskrit form of Pali Andhakavenhu found in the Ghața Jātaka (No. 454), who too is represented as the father of ten sons including Vasudeva. The names of Andhakaveņhu's sons are quite different in that Jātaka; they are-Vasudeva, Baladeva, Candadeva, Suriyadeva, Aggideva, Varunadeva, Ajjuna, Pajjuna, Ghata-pandita and Amkura. There is absolutely no doubt that most of the names of the two lists are fanciful. What is of interest to note is the name Andhakavṛṣṇi which actually represents the two principal Yadava tribes, viz. Andhaka and Vrsni.*** 17 See The Classical Age (ed. R. C. Majumdar), pp. 262f. *[There seems to be no truth in Jinasena's statement.-Ed.] 105 **[The purpose was the distortion of the Brahmaņical account, which the Jain and Buddhist authors enjoyed.-Ed.] 18 Jain Education International 18.12-14. **[According to the Purāņas, the progenitors of these two clans were Andhaka and Vṛṣṇi who were the sons of Satvata of the Yadu tribe.-Ed.] For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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