Jaina Religion and their Heritage in Bihar

 

Srotoswini Borah

 

ABSTRACT:

The Following Article discusses about the popularity and extension of the Jaina Religious system in the state of Bihar. The article shows the various Jaina religious heritage scattered over various regions. Through the article I have tried to show the popularity of this religious pantheon reflected by the various temple and other monasteries. These temples and other religious monuments of the Jaina sect truly form a great part of the National Heritage which undoubtedly should be preserved so that the Heritage of Ancient Indian culture can be enriched. 

 

INTRODUCTION:

During the 6^th century B.C. side by side with Buddhism there flourished the creed of Jainism. Although Vardhamana Mahavira is regarded as the founder of Jainism, Jaina traditions give the idea that Jainism existed long before Mahavira. From the 4^th century B.C. to 5^th century A.D. Jainism expanded over different parts of India. If we look at the Bihar region then it can be seen that the Jaina religion expanded far and wide in this place. It is mentioned that various rulers of ancient Bihar rendered vigorous patronage towards Jaina religion and its community. The representatives like Bimbisara and Ajatasatru of famous dynasties of Bihar were, according to Jaina legends, actually related to Lord Mahavira due to which they professed Jainism. Many temples and tirthas were built as symbols of great Jaina religion. These temples truly show the popularity of the Jaina religion in Bihar. These actually form a great part of national heritage of India which should be preserved properly

 

Extension of the Creed in Bihar

Rajgir:

Among the most important Tirthas, the region of Rajgir in the state of Bihar is regarded as significant by the Jainas. Rajgir sometimes referred to as an important place of Jaina pilgrimage. The very famous Jaina pilgrim age site, Shree Digambar Jain Siddha Kshetra of Rajgir is situated 15 kilometers from Nalanda and 97 kilometers from Patna. Rajgir is about 50 kilometers away from Gaya. Rajagriha or modern Rajgir and its neighbourhood have acquired a great importance in the history of Jainism. The ancient Rajgir was the capital of Magadhan king Bimbisara who was an ardent disciple of Bhagwan Mahaveer. According to tradition; Mahavira spent around fourteen seasons in this region in the modern state of Bihar. It is referred that Rajgir was the birth place of twentieth Tirthankara, Munisuvrata. At certain points it can be seen that there was a rivalry between the followers of Buddhism and Jainism for a long time to establish control over the region of Rajgir.

According to tradition, Mahavira could find many disciples at Rajgir and Nalanda like Vijaya, Ananda, Sudarasana, etc. who were actually householders. The name of a king named Srenika can be seen at the bottom of a Jaina image at Rajgir. Besides, the growing popularity of the Jaina pantheon in the Vaibhara mountain region can be seen in the writings of Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang which actually shows that by the 7^th century A.D. the Buddhist control over the Vaibhara mountain region however declined.

 

Nalanda:

Nalanda can be regarded as another Jaina pilgrimage site. Two famous householders namely Upali and Lepa also lived there who were ardent followers of Jaina religion. In the Nalanda region, the two most important sites were Gunasila chaitya and Kollaga. According to Bhagavati Sutra, Mahavira visited Brahmana Bahula at Kollaga. It was in Paniyabhumi which was close to Kollaga where Gosala was accepted as a disciple by Mahavira. According to the beliefs of the Digambara Jain sect, all the five auspicious life events of Mahavira occurred in this land. The various Jaina antiquities from Nalanda have been displayed in the Nalanda museum and other museums as well. The famous Jaina temple of Kundalpur is a very famous Jaina Tirtha. At a distance of 1 kilometer from this temple there is a hillock known as Simhamukhi Teela from where archaeologists expect a good number of artifacts which will reflect more about the expansion of this religion   in this region. 

 

Pawapuri: 

Another Jaina Tirtha that has been mentioned in many Jaina texts is situated at Pavapuri or ancient Papa or Apapapuri where Mahavira breathed his last. During the ancient times, Pawapuri was the part of the great Magadhan Kingdom. This place attracts a large number of pilgrimages every year which is situated 7 miles away from Bihar Sharif.  Pawapuri is regarded as an important centre for Jaina worship. It is currently situated in the Nalanda district of modern Bihar. It is situated about 19 kilometers from Rajgir and 101 kilometers from Patna. Mahavira attained Nirvana and also was cremated at Pawapuri. The famous Jal Mandir of Pawapuri marks the place where the mortal remains of Lord Mahavira were cremated.   The main deity of this temple is an old “Charan Paduka” of Lord Mahavira. Another magnificent Jain temple known as Samosharan is situated at this region where Mahavira believed to have delivered his sermon. There are mainly five temples in Pawapuri including Jal Mandir, the Gaon Mandir, the Samosharan, the New Samosharan and another one. The Gaon Mandir marks the place where Mahavira breathed his last.

 

Vaishali: 

Among the Tirthas mention may be made of Vaisali. During the time of the visit of Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang, the Digambara sect of the Jainas expanded in this region. Tibetan traveller Dharmasvamin also could find Vaisali as an important stronghold of the Jains. It is said that Mahavira spent 12 rainy seasons at Vaisali.

 

Campa: 

Campa is a significant Jaina pilgrimage site where Mahavira spent 3 rainy seasons.

 

Pataliputra:

Besides Campa, Pataliputra is another Tirtha which is mentioned as an important Jaina pilgrimage Centre in various works. Besides, Mithila could also see the influence of Jaina religion over this region where Mahavira spent as many as 6 seasons and it is also said that Neminath  and Mallinath, the Jaina Tirthankaras were born and gained supreme knowledge.

 

CONCLUSION:

So, it can be said that the Jaina Tirthas or the pilgrimage sites are scattered over large parts of the state of Bihar which undoubtedly talk much about the extension of Jaina religion over this region. Just like the other religious sects of the 6^th century B.C., Jainism also began to rise as one of the most popular and significant religious pantheons of India. The Pilgrimage sites reflect much about the extension of this religion over a large part of India including the state of Bihar for which important steps should be taken for the preservation of this ancient cultural heritage.

 

REFERENCES:

1.        Tripathi, Ramashankar; History of Ancient India.

2.        Maiti, P.; Studies in Ancient India.

3.        Sharma, R.S.; India’s Ancient Past.

 

 

Received on 15.03.2017

Modified on 28.04.2017

Accepted on 15.05.2017

© A&V Publications all right reserved

Research J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 8(2): April- June, 2017, 223-224.