Author: Sandhya Jain
Publication: Vijayvaani.com
Date: August 10, 2009
URL: http://www.vijayvaani.com/FrmPublicDisplayArticle.aspx?id=746
[The unveiling of Tamil Jaina saint-poet,
Thiruvalluvar's, statue in Bangalore yesterday by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister
M. Karunanidhi, is a virtual coup by Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa,
who retains the capacity to spring the quiet surprise. That this will be followed
next week by Yeddyruppa unveiling the statue of Kannada saint-poet, Sarvagna,
in Chennai, is more than a political statement - it is a powerful affirmation
of the regional efflorescence and continuity of India's civilisational unity.
Jainas have contributed vastly to the regional culture of both states from
very ancient times - Editor]
A few centuries after the nirvana of Mahavira,
a severe famine in the Bihar region around 360 BC caused a section of the
Jaina community to migrate towards the south, and their return after an interval
triggered off an irreconcilable split in the community. Despite the sectarian
claims of the two main groups, there are scarcely any significant doctrinal
differences between them. The Digambaras are those whose munis are clothed
in air, while Svetambara monks wear white cotton unstitched garments.
According to tradition, the renowned Acarya
Bhadrabahu, who knew all the Jaina scriptures by heart, led a large group
of migrants to the Mysore region of Karnataka around 360 BC, to escape the
rigours of a severe famine. Bhadrabahu passed away there, but the main body
of his followers returned to Pataliputra (modern Patna, Bihar) twelve years
later and found to their horror that the monks left in the care of his chief
disciple, Sthulabhadra, had taken to wearing white garments as a concession
to the lay society of the time.
Sthulabhadra had also in this interim had
an official recension of the sacred texts prepared, so that they would not
be lost in the event of future calamity. But the 'southern' group, enraged
over the monks' recourse to clothing in times of distress, rejected the recension
as heretical and invalid. Proclaiming themselves the "true" Jainas,
they wrote their own Puranas (legends) and scriptures, which would at times
vary from those of the Svetambaras. Yet there were truly no genuine doctrinal
differences between the two groups, and reverence for the Tirthankaras and
the practice of austerities (tapas) remained the path to salvation in both
groups. Of course, the Digambara monks remained unrivalled in the practice
of tapas.
One important difference between the two schools,
however, was their view on salvation for women. Digambaras believe that women
do not have the strong and powerful bodies needed to undertake the kind of
tapas and meditation that can lead to liberation, and must hence have a final
incarnation as men in order to attain moksa. Svetambaras, however, believe
that women can possess such bodies and hence arrive at salvation in the course
of their present lives.[1] Svetambaras in fact believe that the twenty-first
Tirthankara, Mallinatha, was a woman, and the Lucknow Museum has a beautiful
headless torso of a female ascetic, which many believe to be a representation
of Malli. Since the Svetambara tradition itself is more than two thousand
years old, this view is quite precocious and revolutionary, given the rigid
orthodoxy still displayed by many faith traditions towards female devotees
and clergy.
Over time, the Svetambaras further branched
out into several streams, but these are essentially lineages of distinguished
teachers of the tradition, rather than the exposition of new doctrines. Of
these, it may be relevant to mention the Sthanakvasi group to which my father's
family belongs, because this is believed to be the first Indic response to
the trauma of iconoclasm in the medieval period. Long before Guru Gobind Singh
declared the Granth Sahib to be the 'Guru' of the Khalsa Panth (Sikh community),
the Jaina monk, Lonka Shah (c. 1450) created a spiritual tradition in which
the faithful would congregate for community worship in halls (sthana, place,
hence Sthanakvasi) rather than temples, and there would be no image (murti)
of the Tirthankara. This group claimed that image worship was an accretion
to the 'pure' traditions practiced till the time of Mahavira, and the community
was now united through allegiance and devotion to the teachers of the new
lineage.
Scholars and traditional Jainas, however,
believe that the Sthanakvasi doctrine was a defense mechanism to ward off
the sense of powerlessness and despair that gripped the faithful every time
a temple was attacked and a loved image broken. It needs to be kept in mind
that from the time Indians began to fashion images of gods for worship, and
to create temples to house their deities, image worship has been a central
tenet of worship among Hindus, Bauddhas and Jainas. Arguments that attempt
to invoke the pristine purity of a pre-temple building era are therefore puerile
and irrelevant.
It may be interesting, in this context, to
cite Kokkala Grahpati's medieval inscription in a Siva temple at Khajuraho,
which explicitly celebrates the unity of the diverse Hindu creeds:
yam vedantavido vadanti manasah samkalpabhutam
sivam brahmaikam paramaksaram tamajaram tam camaram tadvidah anye tam sivameva
buddhamamalam tvanye jinam vamanam tasmai sarvamayaika karanapate sarvaya
nityam namah
[I bow daily to the all-inclusive One who
embodies all these: Those who know Vedanta call him Siva, the knowledgeable;
some call him one indestructible and ageless Brahma, others call Him as Buddha,
Jina or Vamana]. [2]
Jaina doctrine is provocatively ambivalent
about warfare. Far from upholding ahimsa as an absolute value, valid in all
circumstances, Jaina dharma demanded military prowess in the ruler and appreciated
the need for state power to protect dharma. The Pali canon mentions Siha,
a general (senapati) in the time of Mahavira and Buddha, who was a Jaina layman
(niganthasavaka).[3] Candragupta Maurya, founder of the Mauryan empire, renounced
his throne under the influence of the famous Jaina ascetic, Bhadrabahu. Accompanying
the monk to Mysore, he practiced great austerities on Chandragiri hill, opposite
the Bahubali statue at Shravana Belagola, before ending his life by sallekhana.
The site is commemorated by his footprints. Centuries later, the last Rastrakuta
king took the same route to salvation.
In the medieval era, Jainas fought invading
armies. The tenth century saint, Somadeva, clarified: "a king should
strike down only those enemies of his kingdom who appear on the battlefield
bearing arms, but never those people who are downtrodden, weak, or who are
friends."[4] Jainas reconciled to necessary violence with the concept
of virodhi-himsa (countering violence with violence). Laymen could resort
to violence, as a last resort, in the legitimate defence of rights, property,
honour, community, or if called upon to fight by the king (state). Jainas
have never confused ahimsa with cowardice and never hesitated to defend dharma.
Of course, the Jaina view of karma and its impact on the jiva (atman) necessitate
the eventual negation of all acts of violence before one can attain moksa.
That is why Jainas have not glorified the bravery involved even in a just
war, nor offered birth in heaven to the protagonists, whether winners or losers.
Tamil culture's Jaina roots
Jainas are an important all-India community,
a fact that tends to get overlooked as scholars concentrate upon the Bihar
region where Mahavira was born (Kundagrama, Vaisali) and attained nirvana
(Pavapuri, near Patna). Jainas played a major role in shaping the history
and culture of the Tamil people, making seminal contributions to Tamil learning
and literature from a very early period. The Sangam classical literature includes
works by Jainas, and notwithstanding serious sectarian conflicts with Tamil
Saivas for more than a millennium from the eleventh century onwards, the participation
remained active and intense, as attested to by epigraphic and archeological
evidence.
Jaina monks and communities penetrated deep into the Tamil countryside, incorporating
all classes and castes in their embrace, and getting powerful patronage from
merchants, warriors, and kings (both Jaina and non-Jaina, including even Pandya
and Chola rulers after Saivism had become dominant). They were particularly
powerful during Kalabhra rule from the third to the sixth centuries AD, and
produced great literature in Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, and Tamil.
Jainas are in fact the most significant creators
of Tamil literature, writing the most important ethical texts, most notably
The Kural (Tirukkurral) of Tiruvalluvar. The Jaina poet-monk Ilankovatikal
wrote the classic Cilappadikaram (fifth century) and the Digambara Muni Tiruttakkatevar
penned Civakacintamani in the ninth century. The two epics influenced all
future Tamil literature, regardless of religious affiliation. Another famous
Jain Tamil epic, Culamani, shows a close relationship between the legends
of Krishna and the hero, Tivittan.[5]
Though Cilappadikaram reflects the Jaina ethos
completely, Ilankovatikal depicts the harmony and exchange between the Brahmanical
and sramana groups in society. Even when sectarian conflicts overtook this
concord, Tamil Jaina scholars continued making intellectual contributions
to society throughout, and the most important Tamil grammars, dictionaries,
and technical treatises were written by Jainas, such as Pavananti's Nannul
(twelfth century), the standard Tamil Grammar. Jaina grammars, treatises,
and long poems were appreciated in commentaries by Saiva and Vaisnava scholars.
It would be difficult to talk about Tamil
Nadu without taking note of Nampi's famous story about the impalement of eight
thousand Jaina monks in Madurai, capital of the Pandyan kings, after their
defeat by Saiva saint Campantar. It is noteworthy that there are no historical
records of any such event having taken place, and it is first mentioned in
Tamil Saiva literature by Nampi, after which it is considered as an established
fact.
The legend states that the Jainas had opted
to die if defeated, and chose death by impalement on stakes. Historically,
however, there is no record of such a massacre, and it seems inconceivable
that Indic tradition could condone an en masse massacre of saints. Hence,
despite the popularity of the legend, scholars believe it is more likely that
state persecution prompted an exodus of Jainas.
Scholars today appreciate that Jaina views
of karma have deeply influenced the Sanskrit Agama texts of Saiva Siddhanta.
As both schools of thought have much in common, there appears to have been
a free and extensive exchange of ideas and ideals over a long period of time,
which reinforces the emerging view that Jaina and Hindu are not closed communities
with rigid doctrines.
Like Jainas, the Siddhantins believe in a
plurality of distinct animate and immaterial entities (jiva, atman), which
have consciousness (cetanam). Though each soul has the potential to enjoy
bliss, it is hindered by bondage. Saiva s believe that the bonds that encumber
the soul include mala, karma, maya, and like Jainas aver that karma offers
the way to liberate oneself. Padmanabh Jaini points out that Jainas believe
that karma is itself actual matter, though other schools of thought invest
it with quasi-physical or psychological properties. But like Jainas, the Saiva
Siddhantins perceive karma as real and substantive, not as psychological or
causal. Liberation comes through the gradual reduction and removal of karma.
A number of ascetic practices common to Saiva
and Jaina traditions have percolated to other groups. Scholars believe the
Saiva matham derived from the Jaina monasteries that thrived in Tamil Nadu
at least from the fifth century. Though Jainas have been prominent in states
like Bihar, Karnataka and Gujarat, their contribution to the creation of a
distinct regional religious culture is most pronounced in Tamil Nadu.
Notes
1] Jaini, P.S., ibid, p. 39.
2] I owe this information to Dr. S. Kalyanaraman,
Director, Saraswati Research Centre.
3] Lath, Mukund, "Somadeva Suri and the
question of Jain identity," in Carrithers, Michael and Caroline Humphrey,
ed., The Assembly of Listeners. Jains in Society, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, 1991, pp 25.
4] Dundas, Paul, "The Digambara Jain
warrior" in Carrithers et al, op. cit., p. 172.
5] I am indebted to Dr. Prema Nandakumar for
this insight. She adds that the structure and mode of worship in Jain temples
has close identity with the Vedic-Agamic mode of worship.
Excerpted from
Why I am a Jaina, Sandhya Jain, in
Why I am a Believer
Ed., Arvind Sharma
Penguin, New Delhi, 2009
Price: Rs 450/-
