Sramana 2016 04

Author(s): Shreeprakash Pandey, Rahulkumar Singh, Omprakash Singh
Publisher: Parshvanath Vidhyashram Varanasi

Page 63

56 : 99401, auf 67, 31a 2, Baste-ga, 2016 B.C. is established as the year of the Vira Nirvāņa. It is not possible to reconcile it with any other alternatives. In the Mathura inscriptions (Jaina Śilālekha Samgraha: article no. 56 & 59), the name of Arya VỊddhahasti is related with two inscriptions. One is from Saka Era 60 (Huviska year 60) and the other from 79 of the same. According to the Christian era, these inscriptions belong to 138 and 157 A.D. respectively. If he is the Ārya Vțddha of the Kalpasūtra Sthavirāvali and the VỊddhadeva of the Pastāvalīs (Vividha Gacchīya Patļāvali Saṁgraha: p. 17), then according to the Pattāvalis, he was led to perform Mürti Pratisthāin Karnataka in the year 695 V.N.S. If we accept 467 B.C. to be the year of the Vīra Nirvāṇa, then this period can be fixed at 695-467=228 A.D. whereas the inscriptional evidences are from 138 and 157 A.D. But, if according to the traditional concept the date of the Vīra Nirvāņa is accepted as 527 B.C. then his period is to be fixed at 695-527=168 A.D. Therefore, on accepting 527 B.C. to be the Vira Nirvāņa year, the equation between this inscriptional evidence and the Pattāvali based evidence is found to be matching well. On assuming 25 years to be the average period of tenure of each Ācārya, his period should be around 625 V.N.S, because Vļddha occupies the 25th place in Pattāvali. Thus his time can be fixed as 625-467=158 A.D. which also proves the 467 B.C. as the period of Vira Nirvāņa.
The last evidence, on the basis of which the date of Mahāvīra's Nirvāṇa can be established, is king Dhruvasena's inscriptions and his period. According to the popular belief, after the Valabhi assembly, first time Kalpasūtra was recited before a congregation at Anandpur (Vaờanagar) in order to console the grieved King Dhruvasena on his son's death.24 The period of Valabhi assembly is fixed as 980-993 V.N.S. There are several inscriptions of Dhruvasena available. The period of Dhruvasena, the first is said to be from 525 to 550 A.D. (Parikh, Rasikalal: 1974:40). If this event is related to the second year of his accession i.e. 526 A.D., then it is proved that Mahāvīra's Nirvāņa must have taken place in 993-526=467 B.C.