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श्री यतीन्द्रसूरि अभिनंदन ग्रंथ
of Mahāvīra and his disciples have come down to us in the Jaina Agama or the canon in Arddhamagadhi. Exigencies of time, and especially a famine, required its first systemetisation by the Pataliputra Council, some time in the 4th c. b. c. The canon, as it is available today, was systematised, rearranged, red, acted and committed to writing by the Valabhi Council under Devarddhi in the middle of the 5th c. a. d. Its contents are quite varied; the books cover almost every branch of human knowledge as it was conceived of in those days. The texts, like Acaranga, Dēsāvaikālika, give detailed account of monachism as then practised in Eatern India; Jivabhigama and other works fully discuss the Jina ideas about living beings; Upāśakaḍasah, Praśnavyākaraṇāni, set forth the ideals and regulations of a householder's life; Jnatadharmakathah, Vipakasruta and Nirayavaliyao give many holy legends, didactic in purpose; Suryaprajnapți discusses Jaina cosmology; Sutrakrtänga, Uttaradhyayana, contain brilliant moral exhortations, Philosophical discourses and amusing legends; and some of their sections are fine specimens of ancient Indian ascetic poetry; Nandi gives details of Jain espistemology; texts like the Bhagavati are encyclopaedic.
२९२
some
The canon comprises works of different origin and age; naturally, it is difficult to estimate its literary character. The red action has brought together distinctly disparate parts of works, some prose, some verse. The prose of the Acarnga contains metrical pieces. The old prose works are diffuse in style with endless, mechanical repetitions; works contain pithy remarks pregnant with meaning; the didactions, present vigorous exposition in a fluent style; the standardized descriptions, obviously aiming at literary effect, are heavy in construction, with irregular compound expression; the rules of monastic life are full of details; and the dogmatic lessons show a good deal of systematic exposition. There are narratives containg parables and similes of symbolic significance; there are exemplary stories of ascetic heroes; there are debates on dogmatic topics.
Mahavira is said to have preached in Ardhamagadhi which, therefore, is the name of the canonical language. The older portions preserve archaic forms of language and style. These gradually disappear in latter
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