Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c9.s2.3

c9.s2.3

It is remarkable that, in spite of a comparative lower stage of trading enterprise and lack of fluid capital for investment in industrial purposes, there was commercial or trading organisation. Important craftsmen such as goldsmiths, painters and washermen were organised into guilds (seṇi) Jain texts like those of the Buddhists mention eighteen guilds. We are told that in honour of the cakka jewel, Bharata called upon eighteen guilds (seṇippaseni) and ordered them to exempt people from customs, taxes and confiscations, to stop the transaction of buying and selling, to prevent policemen from entering the houses of the public and to cancel fines and debts.¹ The guilds of the goldsmiths,² the painters,³ and washermen⁴ are mentioned and about the rest we do not know much.⁵ Neither we are told about their character, their constitution or organisation. But it seems that a seṇi was organised in the form of a union and its functions were legislative, judicial and executive.⁶ A seṇi worked for the welfare of its members and it had a right to approach the king and demand justice. We are told of a painter who was ordered to be executed by prince Malladinna; the guild of the painters visited the king, explained the matter and requested him to quash the sentence passed against the member of its union. The king was pleased to commute the sentence into banishment⁷. Then we hear of a washermen's guild approaching the king in order to demand justice.⁸ In the words of Dr. Majumdar, a śreṇi was a corporation of people belonging to the same or different caste but belonging to the same trade and industry.⁹ The śreṇis were the representative assemblies of the state and the king was obliged to respect their feelings and views.¹⁰