Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c21.10

c21.10

6. It should be borne in mind that the historical material in the Jain canons is so scanty that hardly any history in the real sense of the word could be written; hence this chapter should not be treated as purely historical. Herein simply an attempt has been made to put together the historical material preserved in the Jain Canons. A number of kings and rulers are mentioned in the Jain Canons, most of whom seem to be fictitious. They go to a religious teacher, attend his religious sermons, renounce the world and attain salvation on some mountain. Even the kings who are described as contemporaries of Mahāvīra seem to be quite legendary. Except for a few notable kings such as Sreṇika, Ajātaśatru, Pradyota and Udavana history has not given any clue to them so far. Regarding kings and rulers, another point which should be noted is that most of the well-known rulers are claimed by both Jains and Buddhists as their own. In fact, they showed equal regard towards religious teachers of different sects and hence it is very difficult to say that they belonged to any particular faith.