418 Major Delamajne on the Srdwacs or Jains. 



tended, however, that tliey could no longer submit to starve in the woods ; 

 that the few who remained now got food, and that they must eat, but 

 would comply with his other commands. Hence arose the Ardhabhdls : 

 and anotiier account says, that from this, too, sprang many Siettdmbar 

 sects ; and pretends tliat it was an Ardhabhdl wlio framed the era of 

 VicRAMADiTYA, son of Gandharpa-sena, who favoured the religion of the 

 Jains. 



It might be supposed, however, from the following tradition, tliat this 

 priority of the Digambars has not been fully admitted by the Swetdmbar sect 

 for many centuries back. It is from the Buddha-vildsa also. 



In Samvat 749 Muni Cunda Cund Acharya was chief priest of Chitore, 

 where he eradicated bad notions, and introduced his own. One day a Deva 

 came to him, and said he would do whatever he chose. The sage desired that 

 he might be conveyed to Bidehi-cshetra* On this the deva placed him on a 

 celestial vehicle and carried him through the path of the skies. The brush of 

 peacock's feathers which the sage bore fell to the ground, on which he told the 

 deva he could proceed no further ; but the deva supplied him with kite's 

 feathers instead, and they preceded without impediment to Bidehi-cslietra. 

 There he worsliipped the Tirf/iafica7-a, since called Mundir Sw ami, t who was 

 five hundred bow's length, or two thousand cubits, high. The Chacravarti 

 J'djd, too, was sitting in the hall of the Tirfhancaras, and on observing how 

 small the Muni was, placed him on the palm of his hand, asking who it was 

 with the bunch of feathers and pot. They told him it was an Achdrya from 

 Bharui khand, but the Chacravarti rdjd called him Ecl-dclidrya. The Achdrya 

 then went into the city of Pandrecni. The day of Bharat khand was the night of 

 Pandrecni, and the day of Pandrecni the night of Bharat khand. He brought 

 thence back to Bharat khand writings of the Siddhdnt, and wrote verses and 

 commentaries on them, and wrote eighty-four thousand stanzas on the Matka 

 of MahabhasLt 



* VUUhi-cshetra, same witli Vidcha-varsha, As. Res. v. ix, p. 320 — H. T. C. 



f No such Tirt'hancara is among the twenty-four Jinas. They appear to have been changed 

 tVequeiitlv : the sect of Ra'ma-sen even made new Tiri'haticaras. However, in tliis narrative a 

 different name is requisite, as there are three distinct sets of Jinas, consisting of twenty-four 

 each, in three different cslielra or abodes of the deity. 



J I imagine there is in this some allusion to Muhammed, and perhaps to Mekka or Medina. 

 Muhammed (As. Res. v. ix, p. 118 and 143) is called Mahabhat, and made an antagonist of 



