Studies in Jainism

Author(s): Ramkrishna Mission Institute of Culture Culcutta
Publisher: Ramkrishna Mission Institute of Culture Culcutta

Page 174

THE JAINA RĀMĀYAṆAS
165 be translations of the corresponding ones of Vimalasuri. His closeness to the original is quite patent. Next in importance, is Hemacandra's Jaina Rāmāyaṇa, which is familiar to scholars. Devavijaya Ganin wrote a Rämacarita in Sanskrit prose in 1576 A.D.25 He follows Hemacandra.
The outstanding figure in Kannada literature among the authors on the Jaina Rāmāyaṇa of the school of Vimalasūri, is Nāgacandra, called also Abhinava Pampa. He has skilfully abridged the story cutting off most of the superfluous and cumbrous episodes and achieving greater unity than that of the original. His style is sweet and simple. He has become a model in Kannada for all later writers of the Jaina Rāmāyaṇa. Chief of them is Kumudendu whose work is called after his name as Kumudendu Rāmāyaṇa, composed in the 13th century. It is written in the popular six-footed metre (Satpadi), all the six varieties of which are said to be fully represented in the work, in addition to stanzas in the Ragale, metre interspersed here and there. He is very fond of repeating the similes and metaphors of Nagacandra almost verbatim, which proves his indebtedness to the earlier poet. Devappa wrote his Rāmavijaya Caritain the sangatya metre in about 1525 A.D. Devacandra, who has been mentioned already, takes up many passages bodily from the work of Nāgacandra in his Ramakathāvatāra. Next comes Candrasagara Varṇin who wrote his Jaina Rāmāyaṇain the Bhāmini-ṣatpadimetre, in the beginning of the 19th century. The school of Vimalasuri can be represented thus:
Prakrit
(1) Paumaçaria
(Caumuha) (2) Paumacaria
Paumacaria (Vimalasūri)
Sanskrit
(1) Padmapurana (Ravisena)
(2) Jaina Rämāyaṇa (Hemacandra)
(Svayambhudeva Tribhavana Svayambhu (3) Rămacarita Jasakirti Bhaṭṭāraka)
25 HIL., II, 495.
(Devavijaya Gannin)
Kannada
(1) Pampa Rāmāyaṇa (Nāgacandra)
(2) Kumudendu Rāmāyaṇa (Kumudendu)
(3) Rāmavijaya carita (Devappa)
(4) Ramakathavatāra (Devacandra)
(5) Jina Rāmāyaṇa
(Candrasagara Varnin)