Merutunga
Merutuṅga was a medieval scholar from present-day Gujarat in
Merutunga
India and was a Śvētāmbara Jain monk of the Añcala Gaccha. He
is presently most well-known for his Sanskrit text, the Born 14th-century
Prabandhacintāmaṇi, composed in 1306 CE.[1][2] He also wrote Died 14th-century
Vicāraśreṇī in 1350 CE which describes the chronology of
Works Prabandha-Chintamani
Chāvḍā, Chaulukya and Vāghelā dynasties.[3][4]
Vicharashreni
Contents
Works
Prabandhacintāmaṇi
Therāvalī
Vicāraśreṇī
Ṣaḍdarśananirṇaya
Mahāpuruṣacarita
Criticism
References
Citations
Sources
Works
Prabandhacintāma ṇi
The Prabandhacintāmaṇi was composed in Vardhamāna (modern-day Wadhwan) in VS 1361 Phālguna
Śukla 15, a Sunday.[5] In the text itself, Merutuṅga states that Gaṇī Guṇacandra compiled the first version
of the text and that Dharmadeva assisted Merutuṅga in the compilation of the final version.[6]
Therāvalī
The Therāvalī of Merutuṅga is a Paṭṭāvalī that presents a chronology from Mahavira to the arrival of and
invasion by the Sakas in India.[7]
Vicāraśre ṇī
The Vicāraśreṇī is a bhāṣya on his earlier Therāvalī and was likely composed in VS 1363 (1306 CE).[7]
Ṣa ḍdarśananirṇaya
The Ṣaḍdarśananirṇaya is a general exposition, a doxography of 6 contemporary religious philosophies
(darśanas) during Merutuṅga's time: Buddhism, Nyāya, Sāṃkhya, Vaiśeṣika, Mīmāṃsā, and Jainism. It is
unique among medieval Jain doxographies in that it presents refutations on non-Jain positions found in the
other philosophies.
Mahāpuru ṣacarita
The work has survived with a bhāṣya, likely written by Merutuṅga himself, and is a charita, a biography,
of five great figures in Jainism: Ṛṣabhadeva, Neminātha, Śāntinātha, Pārśvanātha, and Mahāvīra.[8]
Additionally, in the bhāṣya, the original work is named the Upadeśaśataka and the Dharmopadeśaśataka.
It is also referred to as the Vivaraṇa.[8]
Criticism
As a historian, Merutuṅga's works are generally regarded to be of poor quality, as compared with his
contemporaries and with modern historians.[9][10] Gujarati historian K. M. Munshi states that dates are "the
weakest point in Merutuṅga's narratives"[11] and British Indologist A. K. Warder dismisses Merutuṅga's
histories as "completely unreliable" and his narratives as "essentially fiction".[12]
References
Citations
1. Cort 2001, p. 35.
2. Sen 1999, p. 79.
3. Kailash Chand Jain 1991, p. 85.
4. Rajyagor, S. B.; Chopra, Pran Nath (1982). "Chapter II: Source Materials of History of
Gujarat". History of Gujarat ([Link] New
Delhi: S. Chand & Company Ltd. p. 17. OCLC 12215325 ([Link]
15325).
5. Tawney 1901, p. 204.
6. Tawney 1901, p. 2.
7. Eggermont 1969, p. 67.
8. Winternitz 1996, p. 497.
9. Crouzet 1965, p. 237.
10. Arai 1978.
11. Mahesh Singh 1984, p. 30.
12. A. K. Warder 1992, p. 151.
Sources
Cort, John E. (2001), Jains in the World : Religious Values and Ideology in India ([Link]
[Link]/books?id=PZk-4HOMzsoC), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-513234-3
Jain, Kailash Chand (1991), Lord Mahāvīra and His Times ([Link]
s?id=8-TxcO9dfrcC), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-81-208-0805-8
Sen, Sailendra Nath (1999) [1988], Ancient Indian History and Civilization ([Link]
[Link]/books?id=Wk4_ICH_g1EC) (Second ed.), New Age International Publishers,
ISBN 81-224-1198-3
Crouzet, François (1965), Studies in the Cultural History of India ([Link]
oks/edition/Studies_in_the_Cultural_History_of_India/2HJDAAAAYAAJ), Shiva Lal
Agarwala
Arai, Toshikazu (1978), The Structure of Jaina Kingship as Viewed by the
Prabandhacintāmaṇi
Tawney, Charles Henry (1901), The Prabandhacintāmaṇi or Wishing-Stone of Narratives,
The Asiatic Society of Bengal
Eggermont, P. H. L. (1969), The Purāņa Source of Merutuṅga's List of Kings and the Arrival
of the Śakas in India ([Link]
Winternitz, Moriz (1996), A History of Indian Literature, Volume 2 ([Link]
ooks?id=Lgz1eMhu0JsC), translated by Sarma, V. Srinivasa
Mahesh Singh (1984). Bhoja Paramāra and His Times ([Link]
uPsgAAAAMAAJ). Bharatiya Vidya Prakashan. OCLC 11786897 ([Link]
oclc/11786897).
A. K. Warder (1992). Indian Kāvya Literature ([Link]
xIC&pg=PA151). Vol. VI: The Art of Storytelling. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-
0615-3.
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