Jainism in South India

Ennaayaram Malai, Tamil Nadu

No, this is not a post about one religion versus another. This is about history of Jainism in India's Southern regions and to discover the patronage it received in the South. The Bhakti Movement in the South is very well known, so is the presence of Jains, Buddhists and Ajvaiks in the South. However, the extent to which Jainism reached prominence is mentioned only by some authors and historians. The book "Jainism in South India" b Prof. S.K.Ramachandra Rao narrates the patronage Jainism received by dynasties and individual Kings in the South. His sources are good. K.A.N. Sastri's books are listed in his notes and bibliography.  I used Prof S.K.Ramachandra Rao's book and KAN's monumental work "A History of South India" to write my crude summary. I highly recommend both books. My only grudge with Prof. S.K.Ramchandra Rao is his position on Tirukural - the tamil literary classic. He cites legends to narrate it as a work of the Jaina monk - Kondakunda. His views are if that legends are incorrect, Tiruvaluvar - the sage to whom Tirukural is now attributed -  could have been a Jaina monk himself. Or he was heavily influenced by Jainism. In his defense the Professor does say the debate on this subject is hot. Other than that, I thought it was a marvelous book.

Note: I don't cover the copious Sanskrit, Prakrit, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu literature that were written or influence by Jaina monks and Kings. You will have to pay me to read about all that give you nice summary, because I would have to take some time off my day job.

Happy reading, and keep your Wikipedia and Atlas nearby.

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