The Enigma Of The Universe : Antiquity of the Jain Philosophy

There does not remain any ambiguity amongst the scholars and historians regarding the antiquity of Jainism. If the remnants of the Mohan-jo-daro and Harappa civilizations are considered to have links with Lord Ṛṣabha, the first Tīrthaṅkara of the Jain tradition,^[1] then his pre-historic existence which is believed in the Jain tradition is confirmed. Further, the historicity of the 23rd Tīrthaṅkara Lord Pārśvanātha (8th Century B.C.) and ultimately of Mahāvīra (599 B.C. - 527 B.C.) is beyond doubt. Thus, it is quite amazing that more than 2500 years back, the Jain philosophy asserted its views on various aspects of the Universe, which are elaborately discussed in this book, and which have striking resemblances with the views of the modern scientists.