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- Title
Fair Trade and Reversal of Fortune: Kr̥ṣṇa and Mahāvīra in the Hindu and Jaina Traditions.
- Authors
Geen, Jonathan
- Abstract
Hindu and Jaina mythological texts share many literary characters, some of which were clearly borrowed from one another. This paper examines two such cases of borrowing: the incorporation of the Hindu character Kr̥ṣṇa into the Jaina tradition and the incorporation of the Jaina savior Mahāvīra by Hindus. While the Hindu mythological tradition underwent subtle changes as a result of adopting Mahāvīra, the incorporation of Kr̥ṣṇa had a profound effect on Jaina mythology. In fact, as Jaina mythology developed, Kr̥ṣṇa came to be seen as a sort of Mahāvīra-in-the-making, while Mahāvīra was described as a Kr̥ṣṇa-of-the-past, implying a chronologically shifted equivalence between them. The original impetus for borrowing one another's popular characters seems to have been a desire to discredit them. Over time, however, the fortunes of these characters in their new literary environment steadily rose, and they managed to take on lives of their own.
- Subjects
HINDU sacred books; JAIN doctrines; JAINA literature -- History &; criticism; KRISHNA (Hindu deity); MAHAVIRA; GOOD &; evil in religion; JAINA mythology; JAINA saints; JAINA saints in literature; HINDU saints; HINDU literature
- Publication
Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 2011, Vol 79, Issue 1, p58
- ISSN
0002-7189
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1093/jaarel/lfq059