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RELIGION AND CULTURE OF THE JAINS
there would be catastrophe in the near future. Taking the hint of the forecast, a number of Jain monks left Pāțaliputra ; but some were still living there. Soon after unprecedented and continuous rains for 17 days in the month of Bhādrapada, the waters of the rivers Ganges and Son rose high and engulfed Pāțaliputra from all sides. The latter was terrific and devastating and carried off several monks and laymen of the city by the force of the current of the water and only those who could get the support of wood or boat were saved. 28 This marks the last phase of Jainism at Pāţaliputra. Although it was an important administrative centre during Pāla rule over Bihar and Bengal, the evidence of the existence of Jainism is lacking. The excavations at Pāțaliputra yielded nothing of any Jain importance of this period.
Jainism suffered a set back during the Gupta-Pāla-Sena rule in Bihar and soon it completely faded out from North Bihar. Notwithstanding the formidable opposition from Brāhmaṇism and Buddhism which gained ascendancy during this period, it maintained its position, but remained confined to the hilly regions of South Bihar. No doubt the Muslim conquest gave the last blow to the tottering edifice of Jainism in Bihar; the subsequent periods witnessed a great revival of this faith and the activity of the Jains during this period was centred at places like Rājgir, Pāvāpuri, Bihārsharif, Kulubā, Pārasnāth and Mandār hills. 29
We have seen above that the birth place of Mahāvira, according to the Jain tradition, was Kundapura or Kundalapura.80 It was also called Khattiya-Kundaggama (Avašyakacūrņi, p. 243). Hoernle identified it with the modern village
28 Motichandra, in Premi Abhinandana Grantha (Hindi), pp. 230ff.
29 A large number of Jain inscriptions dated between Vikrama 1110 (1053 A.D.) and 1938 (1881 A.D.), engraved on stone slabs and images recording the installation of foot prints and images of the Jain Tirthadkaras have been found at Rājgir.
30 Tirthakalpa, Chaps. 14 and 21, pp. 8, 41, 282, 287, etc.; cf. Thakur, op. cit., p. 149.
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