Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c14.t4.5

c14.t4.5

Jain Texts describe some prominent wandering mendicants and nuns who seem to have exercised considerable influence on the public. We hear of Ajjakhaṇḍa of Kaccāyana gotta, who was putting up in Sāvatthī. Once he took his ritualistic paraphernalia viz., triple staves, water pot (kuṇḍī), rosary (kañcanīyā), earthen bowl (karoḍiyā), seat (bhisiya), sweeping duster (kesariyā), teapoy (chaṇṇaliyā), hook (ankusaya), ring (pavittaya) and the forearm ornament (kalācikā) and putting on an umbrella and wearing shoes and dyed robes proceeded to pay a visit to Mahāvīra.⁹⁰ Suya was another wandering mendicant who was well-versed in the four Vedas, Saṭṭhitanta and the Sāmkhya system. He preached ten kinds of a mendicant's religion (parivvāyagadhamma) based on purity. When Suya arrived in the company of one thousand mendicants in Sogandhiyā, people set out to pay him reverence with great enthusiasm.⁹¹ Then the Ovāiya⁹² describes the mendicant Ammaḍa and his seven disciples. It is said that Ammaḍa and his disciples did not pay respect to any other deity except the Arhat and they attained heaven after death. Ammaḍa sojourned in Kampillapura and he received alms from hundred houses (gharasaya). He observed the chatthamachattha fast with his alms stretched and his face turned towards the sun. He never accepted food which was prepared for him or brought for him or set aside for him or cooked for him; neither he was allowed to eat food, meant for famine-stricken persons, for rich persons, or roots, bulbs, fruits, seeds and green vegetables. Once the seven disciples of Ammaḍa were travelling from Kampillapura to Purimatāla in summer; they arrived in a dense forest and felt extremely thirsty. They did not get water to drink and so setting aside their ritualistic paraphernalia they went to the sand of the Ganges and by giving up food and drink submitted to pāovagamana. Puggala is mentioned as another mendicant who sojourned in ⁹³ Ālabhiyā. We have already referred to the nun Cokkhā who was wandering about in the company of other nuns in Mithilā.