BHAVAVALI
Bhavavali (ಭವಾವಳಿ) is an important concept in Jaina
theology and it is used as a creative device to achieve various goals in
Kannada literary works composed by Jaina poets. The
description of the previous births of Thirthankaras in achronological
order is called Bhavavali. In Jaina
Philosophy it is believed that the Jeevatma, while
attaining Jnana, ascends from lower birth to higher
birth and finally attains Jnana-siddhi, which leads
to the birth of a Thirthankara. Against the characteristics
of Sarga and Prathi Sarga, at the beginning of Maha Puranas Bhavavali adorns the
first part of Jaina Puranas.
Hence, Bhavavali is the prologue of the main story of
a Thirthankara, the hero of Jaina
Purana. The word Bava
means birth and the other Sanskrit word AvaLi means
group. Bhavavali is a series of incarnations
undergone by Jaina Theerthankaras
in order to achieve final salvation. This is essentially a journey of a
specific soul to liberate itself by undergoing many ordeals. The terms Doora Bhavya and Aasanna Bhavya denote the souls that are far away from salvation and
nearing salvation respectively. The traditional texts of Jainism such as Maha Purana and Purva Purana give a detailed
description of the previous lives of all the Teerthanakaras.
This is a process of purification which consists of getting rid of sins and
earning positives by repentance. These details also are pre ordained and follow
a particular course.
Pampa the first major poet of Kannada who composed Adipurana an epic depicting the life of Vrushabhanatha the first Teerthankara
started a tradition followed by his successors such as Ponna,
Ranna, Nagachandra, Janna
and others. He used the magic Wand of poetry to convert every single birth of Vrushabhanatha into short but powerfully lyrical passages.
Incarnations such as those of Lalithanga-Svayamprabha
and Shrimathi-Vajrajangha are used to accentuate the
oneness of soul mates and the yearning of human beings for transient pleasures.
Bhavavalis of the protagonist are depicted in Shanthipurana of Ponna, Ajithanathapurana Thilaka of Ranna, Mallinatha Purana of Nagachandra and Ananthanatha Purana of Janna.
Some times they are prolonged as in Ponnas work.
Janna puts a similar concept to a different use in
his celebrated work Yashodhara Charite.
Actually it is not fair to call the incarnations of Yashodhara
and his mother Chandramathi as various animals as a
retributions for the sin of Sankalpa Himse (Violence in intention though not in deed) because Yashodhara is a not a Theerthankara.
But the situation here is much more heartrending because this pair of mother
and son retains the consciousness of their original birth during the
reincarnations and consequently their agony is multiplied.
One can find parallels to the concept of Bhavavali in the Doctrine of Karma propounded by the
Hindu religion. Veerashaiva poets such as Harihara and Chamarasa do speak
of the previous births of their protagonists while tracing their origin to Kailasa the abode of Lord Shiva.
Actually this could be a symbolic representation of
the travails and transformations undergone by human beings in a single life.
However, Bhavavali in the
context of Kannada Culture has an exclusively Jaina flavour and it has given birth to some exquisitely
beautiful incidents in ancient Kannada literature.