Essay name: Paumacariya (critical study)
Author:
K. R. Chandra
Affiliation: Research institute of Prakrit, Jainology and Ahimsa Vaishali
This is a critical study of the Paumacariya: the earliest Jain version of Rama's life story, written in Prakrit by Vimalasuri dating to the 4th century AD. In this text, Rama (referred to as Padma) is depicted with lotus-like eyes and a blooming face. The Paumacariya places emphasis on the human aspects of characters rooted in Jain values, contrasting with the divine portrayal in Valmiki鈥檚 version.
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SOCIAL CONDITIONS 317 that it is beyond the capacity of human mind to reckon it. The TP
(4.313-319) and the AP (3.14-21f) give the same account in corro-
boration of that of the PCV.
The Brahmanical tradition (Vi峁ａ箛upur膩峁嘺 1. 2. 61-67) maintains that
Hari is the cause of creation, maintenance, and destruction of the
Universe at the end of every Kalpa. A Kalpa consists of one thousand
Mah膩yugas and every Mah膩yuga is divided into four Yugas, viz. K峁泃a,
Tret膩, Dv膩para and Kali. In the first age (Yuga) all men are equal and
good. There is no evil. In the second age evil appears still men are
much happier than in the third age. In the the third age good and
evil are equal and in the fourth age evil dominates over the good.
Thus the conditions and the prosperity of the people deteriorate
gradually in every age. At the end of the fourth age (Kali-yuga) there
comes the end of the world by deluge or fire and again the Universe
is created and followed by the end. This chain is maintained for one
hundred years of Brahm膩 whose one day is equal to one Kalpa.
Chaos or 'pralaya' succeeds every 'Kalpa' (or a day of Brahma)
when Brahm膩 goes to sleep and when he wakes up (after a Kalpa), the
order is again restored. Again on the completion of the age of Brahma
(100 years of Brahm膩) there is a greater chaos when the Universe
is engulfed into Mah膩pralaya which lasts for one hundred years of
Brahma during which all gods, demons and human beings and the
other living beings are destroyed.
The measurement of the Kalpa given by the Brahmanical
tradition is however reckonable. It is said that a Kalpa is equivalent
to 4, 32, 00, 00, 000 years and every Mah膩yuga consists of 17, 28,000;
12, 96, 000; 8, 64, 000 and 4, 32, 000 years of the K峁泃a, Tret膩, Dv膩para
and the Kali-yuga respectively. Every Kalpa gets repeated and thus the
destruction
cycle continues through creation, preservation and
for ever.
Kulakaras (Law-givers):-As mentioned above the second age of
Avasarpin墨 (Susm膩) is marked with all round good, therefore up to that
age there arises no necessity of any law and punishment. It is during the
third age (Susam膩-d奴sam膩) of good and bad that the imperative need of
law-givers is felt when people gradually become victims of evils. The
Paumacariya峁� mentions that in the last part of the third age fourteen
patriarchs (Kulakaras) or law-givers are born in succession (3.50) They
(1) See P. Thomas--'Hindu Religion, Customs and Manners,' p.1;Vi峁ａ箛upur膩峁嘺,
1. 2-3; Manu, 1. 64-86.
