JAIN ART & LITERATURE

Jain Art: According to Dr. Guirenot art owes to Jainism a number of remarkable monuments and in architecture their achievements are greater still.

According to Mr. Walhouse, the whole capital an canopy of Jain pillars are a wonder of light, elegances, and a highly decorated stome work. Udaigigi caves of Orissa ad architectural finds of Kushan age Mathura are Jain objects of rate beauty which have won worldly praise. In the words of K.Narayan Iyengar Ag. Director of Archaeology , the Gomasteswara Colosus (heigh 56 ½ ft. Of 983 A.D.) is not only a national heritage but it is also considered one of the wonders of the wonders of the world. Splendid Jain temples of Abu are Marvelous. One of these, namely Adinatha, was built in 1031 by Vimalasha, minister of Bhimdeva, and another Semi Nath by Tejpal, minister in 1230 , are superfine architectural wonders. Palitana, in Gujrat, is known as the City of Temples, since it contains no less than 3000 Jain Temples of Rsabha Deva’s temple at Ajmer which took twenty five years for the Jainpur artists to build, is a specimen of the finest architecture. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru visited in the 1945 and said,

“It is museum of universal mind from which one can learn something not only about Jain philosophy and outlook, but also about Indian art.”

It is pity that trace of antiquity of Jainism are being systematically obliterated by the vandalism of both Indian and foreign robbers. You visit Jubbulpore, you visit Gwalior fort and you will not fail to notice what havoc people of rival faith have done to these rich relics.


Eluding detection by officials of Archaeological Deptt. and the dragnet of the police, an international gang of curio smugglers committee theft on an idol studded with precious stones, of a Jain Tirthankara, Padma Prabhu from a temple in Beethla village near Videha. The idol valued at several lakhs of rupees remains untraced till today.

It is high time that Jains and Government should guard such valuable relics. Jain Literature: Jainism has experienced many vicissitudes in the past. Bitter persecution of the Jain and the Budhists at hand of the devotees of the rival faiths characterised any centuries of their past history. Jain scriptures were used to kindle the fires in the baths of the foreign invading potentates. Those few left can still be seen in the old historical record vastly scattered under the sand of Rajasthan.

A piece of news item dated Bikaner the 11th November, 1955 published in the HindustanTimes of the previous date says that.

“ One Shri Agar Chand Nahata a historian of Rajastan , while inaugurating the Historical and Political Association of Dungar College Bikaner, disclosed that historians had colleted 60,000 manuscripts of great value mostly written on palm leaves, which concerned Jainism. Of these 30,000 palm leaves manuscripts were presented to the Prime Minister Mr. Nehru when he visited Jaiselmer in the year 1954. Mr. Nahata had 15,000 manuscsripts and 1,000 old paintings in his personal library”.

Dr. A.N. Upadhya rightly said,

“ Jain Bhandars are told,authentic and full of valuable literacy treasures and deserve to be looked upon as a part of our National wealth. These Manuscripts are such that they cannot be replaced it they are once lost.

Jain Antiquity Vol. IX P. 20-29 & 47-60.

Prof. A. Chakravarti writes: “The contributions of Jain scholars to literature in different languages , particularly in Prakrit Sanskrit and Tmil are unrivalled and the pride of India and served as a model for later non-Jain writers. They also contributed richly in Dravadian, Kannada Gujrati,Hindi,English, Urdu and various other languages on all the important Subject of the day.

Jain Antiquity Vol. IX page. 10.
What will be the condition of the Indian Sanskrit literature, if the contributions of the Jains are removed. The more i study the Jain literature, the more happy and wonderstruck I am.

Dr. Hertal (German)

The secred Books of the Jains are old, avowedly older than the Sanskrit literature, which we are accustomed to call classical. We can find no reason why should distrust sacred books of the Jain as an authentic source of their history.

Prof. Dr. Herman Jocobi Sraman Bhagwan Mahavira Vol. I, pp. 55-80.

Tirukural and Nalandiya- which are considered most precious have influenced Tamil people far greater than any other book in entire Tamil literature. In the opinion of Prof. Ramaswamy Ayengar the great author of Tirukural was a Jain.

The next important work in Tamil is Nalanadiyar , which is one of the Vedas of the Tamil people. Its one English Translation by Rev. G.V. Pope was published by Luzac and Co. In 1900 and the other by W.G. Chatty and Co. The teaching inculcated in Nalanadiyar by the pious Jain ascetics have greatly contributed in moulding the national characteristics and the religious thoughts of Tamil speaking people.

Shri V.G. Nair, Asstt. Secy.Sino-Indian Cultural Society. V.O.A.Vol. I part I p.8 amd part V, p. 5

Bhuvalaya: The most remarkable Kannada work called ‘Bhuvalaya’. The first part of which has been published by Sarvartha Sibhi Sangha of Bangalore, is attributed to Digambra sant Kumdendu. There can be little doubt that Kumudendu was a disciple of Virasena and contemporary of Jina-Sena and Amogha Varsa of Manyakheta. The Bhuvalaya is composed in the form of mathematical tables assigning the numbers 1-64 to the 64 letters of our alphabet, Kumumdendu mentions Jaya Dhanvla, Vijaya Dhavala, Atisaya, Dhavala, Maha Dhavala and Jaya Sila Dhavala (Aine Dhavalas) in ch, 10,209-212. These became the titles of Amogha-Uarsa also. (Ch. 9, 169- 172). Amogha Varsa Narapatunga’s Kanada work ‘Kaviraja Marga’ gives him the titles ‘Atisaya Dhavala’. Kumudendu by the Ankaksara method claims that the work Bhuvalaya can be read 718 languages, and includes 363 philosophical systems, 64 kalas and in fact all arts and sciences in the world. The work contains 6 lakhs of verses according to the poet, nearly siz times the size of Maha Bharata. It is not merely a freak or curiosity like a cross word puzzle or an acrostic but a veritable compendium of Indian culture in general and of Jainism in particular. Kumudendu , though a Digambara mentiones the Angas, Angabahira the works of Bhutabali, Kunda Kunda, Umasvati, Samanta Bhadra Pujyapada, Chudamani etc. many of them now lost but included in his Bhuvalaya. Similarly he gave the real Ramayan of Valmiki, he Jaya Khayana of Vyasn (the neuclus of the present Maha Bharata) and the Bhagvad Gita in five different languages. For a critical study of the Maha Bharat and the Gita Bhuvalaya seems to be indispensible. It is necessary therefore to exmine the authenticity of the parampara of Kumudendu. He gives the list of Sena Gana. Puspagachha down to Prabhavasena, Dharasena and Bhutabali. Then in the Sanskrit bandha:

‘Hkwrcfy xw.k/kj] vk;ea{kq ukxfgLr] ;fro`"kHk
Ohj lsukG;ke~ fojfpare~ Jh Jksrj% lko/kku;k J`.koUrqA


As in the Jaya Dhavala tika of Jina-Sena, Kumudendu was the deciple of Virasena.

Cksfnuksy vUreqgwrZfn fl)karnkfn vUooysYy fpRr lkf/ki jkt veks?o"Z.k xq: lkf/kr Jefl) dkO; pfjr; lkaxR;osus eqfuukfkj xq:ijEijs; fpjfpr flfjA ohjlsu lEikfnr ln~xzAfk fojfpr okpd dkO; Nk;s ;ksy vkpk;Zuqlqfjn okf.; nk;oufjr ukuq vk;eaxy ikgqVM dzekan nk;fn dqeqnsUrqeqfu fefxykn fr'k;nsyquwj fgnus"Vq vxf.krn{kj Hkk"ks lxk.kkfn i)fr lksxlfeu~ jfpflgs fexqo Hkk;s"kq gkssjfxYy

There are many wonderful things in this work which deserves world wide recognition & deep study. It is sure to revolutionise not only our present ideas of Jainism but of all Indian culture. For the present we shall confine our study to the Gita tradition as preserved by Kumudendu. Gita Kumudendu attaches the greatest importance to the to the Varsabha to his sons Bharata and Babubali on their Upanayana; again after the fight between the brothers, Bahubali told the Adi, Anadi, Gita to Bharata in Prakirta Samudra Vijaya at the Upanayana of Nemi, Krishna and Bala; imparted the Gita to them as Brahmopadesa and invested them with ‘Janavara-Jinavara’.Later Neninatha taught the same to Krishma in Magadhi. During the Maha Bharata, Krishna gave the Gita to Arjuna in five languages at the same time. On the order of Krishna , Vyasa included the Gita inSanskrit, in his Jayakhyana (the original Bharata). The same tradition condinued down to Mahavira who taught it to Gautama Gandhara. Gautama gave it to Srenika and finally Kumudendu like another Krishna revealed it to Amogha Varsaka.

The Bhuvalaya begins with Prakrita Gita in its first letters read from the top downwards and similarly the Sanskrit Gita according to Kumudendu begins from 27th read downwards.

The Prakrita Gita seems to begin with Nirvana gathas arranged in alphabetical order.

gks pfdïng dIis vk gqV~V; dksfM f.kocqns oUns(.ke)%
ykM oa'kk iTTkq.kks lEHkq dqekjks rgso vf.k:gks A
ckgÙkj dkMks Ãks mTt;Urh lkÙkl; fl¼k AA
yqfolUr~ ft.k ofjUnk Ãejklqj ofUn nk/qnkfdys A
lklEesns fxfj flgjs f.kok.k x;k.k eksrsfle~ A
yks vV~Vko Mlgks pEik;sa oklqiq×t ft.k.kgks A
mTtUrk,s .ksfeft.kks ikck,s f.k:nq,s egkchjks AA

,lgjjk; ÃLÏlqnk iapkl ;k bEefyax nsLefEe A
dksfMflyfEg dksMh f.kOok.k x;k .k;ks rsfle~ AA
,s ckgqcyh cUnfe iksnuiqj gkfFUukmjcUns A
,oUns lfUr dqUFkq okjhgks ukjk.kfl,s lqilik lUp AA

,oe~ dYYkk.k Bkl btk.k foltkn ePp yls;ewfg A
e.ko;.kdk; lq¼h lOos fljlk .keLÏkfe A
,Soe~ fgtho jk;k.k nOoks rg; lNgss nO;ks A
Ã.kqofjnOcks; iq.kks lkspsonq eh[[k eEes.kg A
,?k.k?kkbZeg.kkfrgqo.kojHkO; eYy eqrUM fjgk.k
ÃUr.kk"kS Ã.kqoe lks[dk t;Urq t;Snego; rqUxkrodk AA

The twenty seventh letters read downwards give the Sanskrit Gita as follows:- (references to the verses of the standard text of Gita are given in brackets where indentifiable, other verses are not in the current texts of the Gita).

Ãksadkj foUnqla;qDVa fuR;a è;k;fUr ;ksfxu% A
dkena ekq{kna pSoa ¬ dkjk; ueks ue% AA
Ãksafeu;sdk{kja CkzãO;gju~ ekequ~ Leju~ A
^;n* ¶iz¸ ;k R;tu~ nsg l% ;kfr ijeka xfre~ AA

e~d'kuk ye jlkla ewu[kk flEerfx nd`Ï A tsfn usfn ewrLok yr jLoka iqu peksZ ye AA (1)

bfUnk;k.kke~ fg pa[kk ;Oeuksuq fu/h;rs A rnL; gjfr izKke~ ok;qufofeokEefl AA (2@67) r~Ãeso 'kjya xPN loZHkkosu Hkkjr A rRizlknkU;;a 'kkfUre~ LFkkua izkIL;fl 'kk'ore~ AA (18-62) ;srkU;fi rqdekZf.klUxe~ R;DRok iQykfu p A drZO;uhfres ikFkZ fuf'pr eu eqÙkee~ AA (18-6) dkE;kuka de.ka U;kl lU;kle~ do;ks foUnq% AA loZ deZ iQyR;kxa izkgqLR;kxe~ fop{k"k AA ( 18-2) d`;e~ u Ks;eL;kfHk% ikiknLeku~ fuofrZrqe A dqy{k;d`ra nks"ka izi';fn{k tSuknuZ AA "k o lqjku~ lqân'pSao lsu;k: Hk;ksjfi A Rkku~ leh{; l dkSUrs; lokZa cU/wuofL;uku~ AA (1-27) Ãgks ou egRikia drqZO;oflrko;e~ A ;n~ (r) fUuoèukfr dkSUrs; deZlxsr nsfgue~ AA (14-7) e~b lokZf.kdekZf.k laU;L;kè;kRe psrlk A

fujf'k fuZeeks HkwRok ;qèoLo foxr Toj % AA ( 3-30) c mf¼;qDrks tgkrhg mHksalqd`r nq"d`rs A rLek|ksxk; ;qTLo ;ksx% deZlq dkS"kye~ AA ( 2-50) jlksbe~ ÃIlq dksUrs; izHkkfLe 'kf'klw;Z;ks% A iz.ko% loZ oSns"kq 'kCn% [ks ikS#"k u`"kq AA (7-8) e ÃÕ;klzzzzzØeuk% ikFkZ ;ksxZ ;qutu ;nkJ;% A Ãla'k; lexzs eka ;Fkk KkL;fl rPN`.kq AA ( 7-1) g#"kks ds'ks rnka okD;a bnekg eghir A lsu;h:Hk;kseZè;s jFka Loki; es AA MP;qr (1-21) Ã=k 'kwjk egs"oklk HkhektZqu lek;q/h A ;q#/kuh fojkV'p nzwin'p egkjFk% AA (1-4) O;olk;kRedk cqf¼ jsdso dq#uUnu A cgq'kk[kkáuUrk'p cq¼;ks O;olkf;uke~ AA ( 2-41) ;fn ekeizrhdkia Ã'kÏka 'kÏkik.kFk% A xrÏUxÏkL;eqDRkL; KkukofL/r psrlk A ;U>kr;k pjr% deZ lexza izfoyh;rs AA ( 4-32) f=kfo/k Hkofr J¼k nsfguka lk LoHkko tk A lkfRodh jktÏh po rkelh psfrrk Jq.kq AA ( 17-2)

;%ugq izlkn% lkSE;Roa ekSuekRe fofuxzg% A Hkkol'qkf¼fjR;srr~ riksekul psruk ( eqpPrs) AA (17-16)

fpunkuUn/us d`".ksoksDrk Loeq[krks¿tqZue~ A osn=k;h ljkuUn rRokFkZ ½f"ke.Me~ A ÃFk O;klequhUnzksifn"V t;k[;kukUrxZ xhrk f}rh;ks¿è;k; % e~e;ksfueZnzÉ rfLeUxHkZ n/kE;ge~ A laeoLloZ Hkwrkuka urksHkofr Hkkjr AA ( 14-3

e~ egkHkwrkfu Ãgdjkscqf¼[; Dreso p A bfUnz;kf.k n'kSdap iapipsfUnz; ;wfJfg (xkspj) AA (2) ÃekfuRoenfEeRoefagalk {kkfUrjktoe~ A Ãkpk;ksZiklu 'kkSp L;;ZUefoFcxzg% AA ( 13-8) ;~bfUnz;k;s"kq oSjkX;eugadkj Ro p A tUee`R;q/jkO;kf/ nq%[knks"kkuqn'kZue~ ( 13-9)

The first letters of the above read from top to bottom again gives:--

¬ feR;sdk{kja czã O;kgju~ ekequqL;ju~ A ;% iz;kR;tc nsgal okfr ijekaxfue~ AA

The rest of the Gita according to Kumudendu has yet been slowly deciphered. Apparently the verses look as clung together without references to the context and the new verses, distinctly Jaina ( to be hereafter indetified by Jain Scholars) have been included as part of the Gita. Before passing any final judgement the entire colossal work has to be closely scrutinised.

Kumudendu is not satisfied with this. Again and again he brings the same verses in various bandhas. For example taking the penultimate aksaras only from line 53 of chapter 18.and in the sreni of Ch. 15 again taking only the last letters in Ch. 14 we get repeatedly in the Sanskrit Gita. He has arranged the Gita as the equivalent of Tattvartha Sutra and of Rsmannadala which can also be derived from the same text. In Kh. 19 he has given of mathematical table for the letters of the Gita. The Gita taught by Neminatha was in the form Ridhi Mantra and Gita in Maghadhi is said to begin thus.

flr~ Fk.k]cks/ek;xNs lso Ãl;.k ; p eftns A uq (n) /kuqfcdks dfMMs] foc/gq gjfnfposuq Routk;ouk AA

Kumudendu translates into Kannada in the sangatya metre the Gita for the benefit of Amoghvarsa Kumudendu has thus shown in the astonishing work that the Gita is also the Voice of Ahimsa and an integral part of Jains tradition from remote times, transmitted by Neminatha to Krishna.

Even the alleged author of Gita Shri Krishna himself says that this knowledge in not new:

I taught this immortal youga to Vivaswan (Sun God): Vivaswan conveyed it to Manu (his son) and Manu imparted it to Ikswaku (his son) Gita .

chapter IV;I

According to Brahmanda Puran XIV: 59-61 Rsabha was the ancestor of the Ikswaku.

Thus handed down from father to son Arjuna’ this Youga remained known to the Raja rishis (Royal Sages) . By great efflux of time, however, it has more or less disappeared.

Chapter .IV, (2)

The same ancient Youga has this day been imparted to you by Me because you are my devotee and friend and because this is a supreme secretes.

Chapter. IV, (3)

Arjuna asked:
You are of recent origin while the birth of Vivaswan dates back to remote antiquity. How then, am I to understand that you taught at the beginning of creation?

Chapter. IV,(4)

Shri Bhagwan (Lord Krisna)said

Arjuna, you and I have passed through many births. I know them all, while you do not.

Chapter. IV, (5)