Mysore and Coorg from the Inscriptions c8.s1.18

c8.s1.18

¹ He is described as pūrṇa-chandra in SB 104. — It has been attempted by Dr. Fleet (EI. iv. 24) to make out that the Bhadrabāhu of the inscription was a later one of that name, who is said to have lived in the first century B.C., and that Chandragupta means his disciple Guptigupta. But no necessity appears for assuming that a long period intervened between the Bhadrabāhu in the opening portion and the one with whom the narrative begins, and that they were different persons. For even in the Kalpasūtra of Bhadrabāhu the section headed Sthavirāvali extends to many generations beyond him, which is accounted for as being for the sake of auspiciousness (see Introd. 23). Guptigupta, again, is nowhere mentioned in any inscription. The solitary instance in which the name was supposed to occur has been shown by Dr. Lüders (EI. iv. 339) to have no such meaning. Moreover, this Guptigupta is said to have had other names, one of which, it is significant to note, was Viśākha, the name of the successor of Bhadrabāhu I. To imagine also, with Dr. Leumann (in his kindly critique), that Prabhāchandra belonged to some still more distant period, farther removed from both, is in direct contradiction to the inscription, which unmistakably shows that he accompanied the sangha on its migration. The name Prabhāchandra is not an uncommon one among the Jain gurus, and occurs at all periods. But the one honoured with this unique memorial was no ordinary man. In the effort to discover some one of the name of sufficient distinction to whom it can be fitted, a certain Digambara teacher is suggested, who cannot be shown to have lived till a later time than that of the inscription, and of course he would in no way be connected with the migration. To justify this proposed piecemeal and disjointed treatment of the inscription, it is represented that the first portion was a customary introduction to Jain inscriptions. But plausible as this may appear in theory, it is opposed to fact, for not a single inscription has been found with this introduction.