Jain Mahabharatas

[Kristi Wiley]

>I am trying to gather information on Jain versions of the Mahabharata. I am
>looking for versions of the story (is there a Jain text that enjoys, in the
>Mahabharata domain, a status equal to that of the Paumacarita in the
>Ramayana tradition?) as well as secondary literature.
>Also, where is the theory about the sets of Baladevas, Vasudevas and
>prativasudevas (of which the last set--Balarama, Krishna and Jarasandha--
>form the heroes of Jain Mahabharatas) first textualized?
>I will greatly appreciate any help or reference.
>Yigal Bronner.
>
>Yigal Bronner
>Ph.D. candidate
>Department for South Asian languages and Civilizations
>University of Chicago.

Dear Yigal:

Other sources for information on  Jain versions of the Mahabharata include
the following:

1. Chapters by John Cort and Padmanabh Jaini in Purana Perennis, ed. Wendy
Doniger (SUNY Press 1993)

2.  P. S. Jaini's article on the Pandava Puranas and Jain Sectarian
Plagarism in Middle Indo-Aryan and Jaina Studies, ed.Colette Caillat (E.J.
Brill 1991)

3.  P. S. Jaini "Pandava-Purana of Vadicandra: Text and Translation,"
Journal of Indian Philosophy 25 (1997).  This contains an brief overview of
the literature and a text and translation of sargas 1 and 2.  This is the
first part of an ongoing translation that is to be published in JIP (sargas
3-4 are in press currently).

4.  I believe that Robert Zydenbos authored or co-authored an article on
Jain Mahabharatas.  I will need to look for the reference later today when
I am on campus.

Kristi Wiley
University of California, Berkeley