The Cambridge History of India, Vol. I: Ancient India v1.c18.27

v1.c18.27

To give a sketch of Mahāvīra’s life is a somewhat difficult task as the oldest existing biography, included in the chapter of the Kalpasūtra to which we have referred, is fanciful and exaggerated, bearing in these respects a certain resemblance to the tales in the Lalita-vistara and Nidāna-kathā concerning the early life of Buddha. If this biography is really the work of Bhadrabāhu, it may be expected to contain notices of great value, even although its statements cannot always be accepted as strictly accurate. There are, moreover, in several old canonical works passages which give information on various events in Mahāvīra's life; and the Buddhist scriptures also give us some valuable hints.