Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c5.s9.2

c5.s9.2

The original doctrine was contained in the fourteen Puvvas (Pūrvas) "old texts," which Mahāvīra himself had taught to his Gaṇandharas. The knowledge of the "old texts" was, however, soon lost. Only one of Mahāvīra's original disciples handed them down, and they were only preserved for six generations. Now in the second century after Mahāvīra's death, there was a terrible famine in Magadha which lasted for a long period. This seriously affected the study of the Jain monks who could hardly get sufficient alms for their maintenance. In fact, a number of monks, for want of food and drink, had to lose their precious lives In course of time, when the famine was over, a council was convoked at Pāṭaliputra after about 160 years of Mahāvīra's death (i.e., about 307 B.C) and the sacred lore which was in a state of decay, was put in order. We learn from the Āvaśyaka Cūrṇi³ that during the period of a long terrible famine in Magadha the monks had left the country and had migrated to the sea-shore. After the end of the famine they assembled in Pāṭaliputra and by collecting a section (uddesa) from one and a portion (khaṇḍa) from another, compiled the eleven Aṅgas. But nobody remembered the Diṭṭhivāya. Thereupon a couple (saṅghāḍaa) of monks were sent to Bhadrabāhu, who knew the fourteen Pūrvas and who had already retired to Nepal in order to undertake the Mahāprāṇavrata (fast unto death). But Bhadrabāhu declined to teach Diṭṭhivāya since he was engaged in meditation. The monks returned and reported the matter to the Jain Saṅgha of Pāṭaliputra; whereupon two other monks were deputed to Bhadrabāhu to ask him what penalty could be prescribed for disobeying the order of the Saṅgha since he had committed the same offence. Later on, being threatened with ex-communication, Bhadrabāhu agreed to teach Diṭṭhivāya on certain conditions in seven instalments (paḍipucchagaṃ). Then five hundred monks were deputed to Nepal to learn Diṭṭhivāya, but gradually all except Sthūlabhadra dropped out who succeeded in learning all the Pūrvas. But as penalty for some offence which he had committed towards his teacher, he was made to give his word of honour not to teach the last four Pūrvas to anybody. Thus the knowledge of the Pūrvas went into a state of oblivion from the time of Sthūlabhadra.⁴ This is known as the Pāṭaliputra version (vācanā) of the Jain Canons.