Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c9.s8.2

c9.s8.2

In view of these difficulties in those days, traders used to travel in a caravan, as we have seen before. A graphic description of the caravans is given in the Jain texts. The caravans were classified in the following divisions: (i) who carried their goods by carts and waggons (bhaṇḍi), (ii) who carried by camels, mules and bullocks (bahilaga), (iii) who carried their own loads (bhāravaha), (iv) the wandering people who travelled to earn their livelihood and went from place to place (odariyā), and (v) the Kārpaṭika ascetics (kappaḍiya).⁶³ The caravan engaged with it anuraṅgā (ghamsikā, com.), litters, horses, buffaloes, elephants, bullocks for the purpose of mounting the sick, wounded, boys, and old men, who were unable to walk.⁶⁴ The caravan is praised which started with cart loads of dantikku (modaka, maṇḍaka and aśokavartin etc. com.), wheat (gora), sesamum, seeds, molasses and ghee etc. because in unforeseen calamities such as rain and flood food was available to the members of the caravan.⁶⁵