A History of Indian Literature v3.c35.s10.2

v3.c35.s10.2

Of unknown date is one Vajjālagga, a Prākrit anthology compiled by the Śvetāmbara Jaina Jayavallabha, hence also called Javallaham¹. The work stands out with its collection of stanzas² composed in the Āryā metre in Jaina Māhārāṣṭrī. The stanzas are arranged in chapters (vājjā) according to their subject-matter. Jayavallabha explicitly says that his idea was to collect the sayings of great poets on matters concerning the aims of life (dharma, artha, kāma). Still only one-third of the verses are gnomic and relate to the aims of life, whilst their two-thirds are erotic. The stanzas contain nothing about Jainism.