TNSCERT 6 HISTORY UNIT 6

 6. GREAT THINKERS AND NEW FAITHS

• 6th century BCE - important period in the intellectual and spiritual development in India
• Historian Will Durant has rightly  called it the “shower of stars”

    LITERARY SOURCES

• Angas – Jain texts
• Tripitakas and Jatakas - Buddhist texts

     CAUSES FOR THE RISE OF INTELLECTUAL AWAKENING AND THE BIRTH OF BUDDHISM AND JAINISM

• The complex rituals and sacrifices advocated in the later Vedic period
• Expensive sacrificial ceremonies
• Slavery, caste system, gender discrimination also contributed to the new awakening

   JAINISM

• 6th century BCE
• one of the world’s oldest living religions
• Jainism grounds itself in 24 Tirthankaras
• first Tirthankara was Rishabha and the last one was Mahavira
• JAINISM -  Sanskrit word 'Jina' meaning conquering self and the external world

    MAHAVIRA (THE GREAT HERO)

• Kshatriya prince
• At 30, adopt an ascetic life
• After twelve and a half years, he attained supreme knowledge, known as Kevala
• Mahavira reviewed the ancient Sramanic traditions and came up with new doctrines
• He is believed to be the real founder of Jainism

    UNIQUE TEACHINGS OF JAINISM

• Jainism denies God as the creator of Universe.
• Basic philosophy of Jainism is Ahimsa or ‘non –Violence’.
• Ultimate aim of Jainism is attaining moksha or ending the cycle of birth – death – rebirth
• Jainism advocates that the goodness or quality of one’s life is determined by one’s karma

      TRI-RATHNAS OR THREE JEWELS

• Right Faith
• Right Knowledge
• Right action

   JAIN CODE OF CONDUCT

• Ahimsa - not to injure any living beings
• Satya - to speak truth
• Asteya - not to steal
• Aparigraha - not to own property
• Brahmacharya - Celibacy

Gautama Swami - a chief disciple of Mahavira, compiled the teachings of Mahavira, called Agama sidhantha

    DIGAMBARAS AND SVETAMBARAS

• Jainism split into two sects

   DIGAMBARAS

• orthodox and conservative followers
• do not wear any clothing and live naked
• believe that women cannot achieve nirvana or liberation directly

   SVETAMBARAS

• monks - wear white robes
• believe that women are equally capable of achieving liberation as men

   REASONS FOR THE SPREAD OF JAINISM

• Use of people’s language
• Intelligible teachings
• Support from rulers and traders
• Perseverance of Jain monks

   INFLUENCE OF JAINISM (SAMANAM) IN TAMIL NADU

• Samanar Hill in Keelakuyilkudi village, 15 km away from Madurai - protected monument of ASI
• Arittapatti, a small village 25 km from Madurai, on one side of Kalinjamalai hill there are Jain caves called Pandavar Padukkai
• Aravor Palli, place of living for Jain monks - Manimegalai reference
• In Silapathikaram, Gownthiyadigal a female jain monk helped Kovalan and Kannagi
• Puhar, Uraiyur, Madurai, Vanchi (Karuvur), Kanchi all had Jain monasteries
• Jina Kanchi – Thiruparthikundram (Kanchipuram) has two ancient Jain temples. This village was once called Jina Kanchi

    BUDDHISM

     GAUTAMA BUDDHA

• Like Mahavira, he was also a Kshatriya prince (Sakya clan)
• His mother died (when he was only 7 days old) So he was raised by his step mother Gautami

    FOUR GREAT SIGHTS

    Siddhartha saw four sorrowful sights

1. An uncared old man in rags with his bent back
2. An sick man suffering from an incurable disease
3. A man’s corpse being carried to the burial ground by weeping relatives
4. An ascetic

    ENLIGHTENMENT

• At 29, he left his palace and he sacrificed six years of his life towards penance
• On the 49th day he finally attained enlightenment
• Called as Buddha or Enlightened One
• He was also known as Sakya Muni or Sage of Sakya clan
• First sermon -  Deer Park in Sarnath, near Benaras. This was called “Dharma Chakra Pravartana” or the Turning of the Wheel of Law

   BUDDHA'S FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS

• Life is full of sorrow and misery
• Desire is the cause of misery
• Sorrows and sufferings can be removed by giving up one’s desire.
• The desire can be overcome by following the right path (Noble eightfold path)

   EIGHT FOLD PATH

• Right view
• Right Thought
• Right Speech
• Right Action
• Right Livelihood
• Right Effort
• Right Knowledge
• Right Meditation

  TEACHINGS OF BUDDHA

• Buddha's teachings - dhamma
• accepted the Theory of Karma – meaning that the quality of man’s life depends on his deed
• neither accepted nor denied the existence of God, but believed in the laws of universe.
• the ultimate aim of life - attaining nirvana
• advocated ahimsa or nonviolence
• rejected the caste system and opposed to rituals and sacrifices
• The Wheel of life – represents the Buddhist view of the world

    BUDDHIST SANGHA

• Sangha, meaning ‘association’ for the propagation of Buddha's faith
• members - bhikshus (monks)

    BUDDHIST SECTS

CAUSES FOR THE SPREAD OF BUDDHISM

• Teachings - simple, use of local language
• Buddhist Sanghas played an important role in spreading the messages of Buddha.
• Royal patronage under Ashoka, Kanishka and Harsha also helped the causes of Buddhism.
• Viharas or the Buddhist monasteries became great centres of education.
• One such centre was Nalanda, where Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese pilgrim, studied for many years

    

Middle path – neither indulging in extreme attachment to worldly pleasure nor committing severe penance

    JATAKA STORY

• Jatakas - popular stories about the previous birth and life of Buddha, as human and as an animal. They teach morals
• Frescoes (paintings) in Ajanta caves - depict Jataka tales

  INFLUENCE OF BUDDHISM IN TAMILNADU

• Buddhism spread to Tamil Nadu much later than Jainism.
• Manimekalai - epics of the post-Sangam age is a Buddhist literature (elaborate description about Kanchipuram)
• Kanchipuram (famous Buddhist Centre) - Dinnaga, the famous Buddhist logician, and Dharmapala, a great scholar of Nalanda University hailed
• Hieun Tsang who visited Kanchipuram in the 7th century CE - noticed the presence of 100 feet stupa built by Ashoka there
  

  ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD (6TH CENTURY BCE)