Studies in the Bhagavati Sutra

Author(s): J C Sikdar
Publisher: Research Institute of Prakrit Jainology & Ahimsa Mujjaffarpur

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relations, popular belief in dreams, celebrations of birth and marriage, position of women, dresses and ornaments, art of decoration, houses and articles of furniture, sports and amusements, manners and customs. It reveals that the society was based on the traditional Varnasrama Dharma but the social order was not very rigid, as it is evidenced by the fact of the racial synthesis of various Indian tribes and foreign nationals, such as, Kirātas, Barbaras (Indian tribes), Pārasīs, Arabs, Simghalis, (foreign nationals), etc., in the evolution of Indian civilization. The spirit of Varnasrama Dharma illustrated itself in the system of life into stages, for spiritualism dominated in the individual, social, political, religious and secular aspects of the people's life of that period.
The fifth chapter makes a study of the economic conditions as reflected in the Bhagavatī Sutra by revealing that the economic structure of its society stood on agriculture, arts and crafts, labour and capital, industry, trade and commerce, roads and communications and banking business. As regards the general economic conditions of the people it is found that there was a small number of rich persons in comparison with the economic standard of those days and that of the present time. A current of poverty flowed beneath the surface of much opulence of social wealth and prosperity.
The sixth chapter deals with education of that period by making discussion on the conception of education, its system, art of writing, language and literature, science and arts. It reveals that education was based on the unity of thought and action, knowledge, right attitude and right conduct. Its ideals and aims were self-control, building up of moral character, physical, mental and intellectual development, theoretical and practical knowledge in different branches of learning to make an individual capable of shouldering the responsibilities of the worldly affairs and discharging both temporal and secular duties by holding before him the goal of life-Moksa (liberation). So the system of education was academic and vocational, because a balance was maintained between the individual and secular aspects of life. This spiritual