The Ādipurāṇa: The Genesis of Human History

Summary

Hampa Nagarajaiah’s article situates Jinasena’s Ādipurāṇa, the “Lorebook of the Beginning,” within its ninth‑century Rāṣṭrakūṭa context and explores its role as a cultural encyclopædia of Jainism. The author describes how the Rashtrakuta era fostered a renaissance in Jain literature and how Acharya Jinasena, an erudite scholar and poet, integrated earlier narrative traditions and even certain Hindu saṃskāras into a uniquely Jain framework. The Ādipurāṇa forms the first half of the Mahāpurāṇa; it recounts the genesis of the cosmos and human history through a Jain cosmological lens, portraying the universe as a three‑tiered structure with Jambūdvīpa at its centre and explaining temporal cycles divided into ascending (utsarpiṇī) and descending (avasarpiṇī) half‑epochs with six stages ranging from extreme happiness to extreme misery. According to this reckoning, we currently inhabit the avasarpiṇī era, a period of decline that began shortly after Mahāvīra’s nirvāṇa. Nagarajaiah summarises how the Ādipurāṇa narrates early human history: initial humanity enjoyed effortless sustenance from wish‑fulfilling trees (kalpa‑vṛkṣa), but as desires grew and disputes arose, fourteen kulakaras (law‑givers) were successively appointed. The last of these, Nābhirāja, and his consort Marudevī became the parents of Ṛṣabha, who introduced agriculture, crafts and social institutions before renouncing the world to become the first Tīrthaṅkara, thereby marking the transition from primitive survival to organised society and religion. The article also examines Jinasena’s approach to social organisation. He adapts the Hindu varṇa system into a Jain ethical hierarchy based on conduct rather than birth and extols sixty‑three illustrious beings (śalākāpuruṣas), portraying characters like Rāvaṇa, Duryodhana and Karṇa as virtuous heroes in contrast to Hindu epics. Nagarajaiah highlights Jinasena’s literary artistry: his mastery of kathā narrative styles, his preference for saddharma‑kathā emphasising dharma over artha and kāma, and his assimilation of earlier scholars’ insights. After Jinasena’s death, his disciple Guṇabhadra completed the Uttarapurāṇa, making the Mahāpurāṇa a comprehensive compendium blending philosophy, mythology, history and ethics. The article notes that Jain Purāṇas were composed in diverse languages – Prakrit, Sanskrit, Apabhraṃśa, Kannada, Tamil, Gujarati and Rajasthani – reflecting their wide cultural reach. By analysing cosmology, social evolution and literary context, Nagarajaiah concludes that the Ādipurāṇa serves as a microcosm of the Jain world and the heart of Jain literature. It preserves ancient lore while promoting an ethical vision in which human heroes, not divine avatars, exemplify virtue and non‑violence. Its enduring appeal lies in its synthesis of spiritual philosophy with rich storytelling, offering insight into the spiritual and cultural maturity of ninth‑century Jainism.