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PREFACE : XLIII
the lives of Tirthaikaras or other holy, pious and liberated noble souls. According to the Jainas no place is holy or unholy on its own accord but it becomes holy or pious when it gets associated with the auspicious events such as birth, self-ordination, enlightenment, and liberation of the Lords Prophets or some other great and noble souls. In the Buddhist tradition, too, the places associated with the life-events of Buddha have been considered as
holy.
The second fundamental difference between the Hindu and the Jaina traditions is that whereas the Hindu tradition mainly accepts rivers, lakes etc. as places of pilgrimage, the Jaina tradition generally accepts only some cities and hills as such. Even this difference is based on the concept of either believing a place as holy by itself or by its association with the important events in the lives of some great and noble souls. Again, an important reason for this difference is that in the Hindu tradition there has been a great emphasis on the external cleanliness by the means of bathing etc, the Jaina tradition puts it on the internal purity achieved by means of observance of austerities and practising renunciation. Therein bathing etc has been considered as prohibited acts as it is. Hence, it was natural that in the Hindu tradition the rivers and lakes etc. came to be regarded as holy places of pilgrimage while in the Jaina tradition the places of spiritual practice like forests, hills etc. developed as tirthas. Although, as exceptions, Mt. Kailāśa etc have been regarded as places of pilgrimage in the Hindu tradition and likewise river Satruñjaya etc have been so regarded in the Jaina tradition as well. This was, however, due to the mutual influence of these two traditions on each other. Again, regarding of hills like Mt. kailāśa ete, which were the places of spiritual practices of great gods such as Lord Mahadeva etc, as places of pilgrimage by the Hindu tradition was due to the influence of the
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