Talk:Basava Puranam

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The Shaiva Sect of Basava Was Violently Anti-Jain and Sought to Destroy Jainism in South India

The scriptures of the Virashaiva sect of Hinduism, also known as the Lingayatas, present some of the most violent rhetoric found in the literature of mankind. As devotees of the deity Shiva, the Virashaivas rapidly spread the Shaiva religion across southern India, often to the great detriment of other religious communities. Accounts of their exploits are recorded in Virashaiva scriptures such as the BASAVA PURANA which was dedicated to the founder of the movement, Basava (12th cent. AD). As can be seen in these stories, the Virashaivas especially coveted the cities and temples built by the Jains who were widespread and well-established in the region, and who were the primary targets for destruction by the Virashaivas. Forced conversion, ethnic cleansing, and genocide against the Jains are recurring themes in the Basava Purana:

The Story of Iruttandi (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"In Chellattiruvaluru there lived a devotee of Kama Killer called Iruttandi, who had been blind since birth.... Then Black Throat gave him eyes to see, AND HE SOUGHT OUT THE JAIN VASADIS [TEMPLES] AND DESTROYED THEM. FURTHERMORE, HE BLINDED ALL THE JAINS. By this means, Iruttandi demonstrated the power of our ganas."

The Story of Pilla Nayanaru (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"Then Pilla Nayanaru was happy to make the king a devotee [of Shiva]. AND THEY ROUNDED UP ALL 18,000 JAINS. Meanwhile, Kulacchiriyaru HAD BEEN HEATING IRON SPEARS, AND HE NOW USED THEM TO IMPALE THE JAINS. Have you not heard, O Jain, what happened in Tiruvuru? That place is intimately associated with devotion. This is the story that has been told before."

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Nidumara (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"And then there was a [Shiva devotee] king named Nidumara. In his realm he was the only individual who was not a Jain. When he got to thinking seriously about the matter, he could not imagine why there was not a single other individual who wore the three lines of ash on his forehead. He had heard how a Kama Killer devotee named Shivajnanasamambandhi had gone to the Panya king. He had also heard the story of his heroic maheshvara argument, AND HOW HE HAD IMPALED ALL THE JAINS OF THE RIVAL RELIGION ON IRON STAVES. When King Nidumara reflected on these stories that he had heard, he called the noted Jain teachers and all those who were expert in the Jain mantras. 'O YOU FOOLISH FOLLOWERS OF A SENSELESS RELIGION THAT HAS NO BASIS IN SHRUTI [VEDIC SCRIPTURES]! O YOU BEASTLY ANIMALS who worship one who acts like an animal and know nothing of the lord of beasts! O you sinners... O YOU UNTOUCHABLES WHO STRAY FROM THE TRUE PATH AND EMPLOY ILLUSORY ARGUMENTS BASED ON NONDUALITY AND KARMA! O YOU ENEMIES... How have you managed to subject my people to your evil teachings for so long? Look what Pilla Nayanaru, Abhava's [Shiva] devotee, has done. He has employed logic and miracles to establish Shiva as the author of everything. BY DOING SO, HE HAS WIPED OUT THE VERY NAMES OF BUDDHISM AND JAINISM FROM THE PANDYA COUNTRY. HE EVEN IMPALED THEIR SAGES ON IRON STAVES. THEREFORE, YOU MUST WORSHIP BLACK NECK. IF YOU DO NOT, I WILL IMPALE YOU UPSIDE DOWN ON RED-HOT IRON SPEARS,' HE SAID. WITH A SHARP SWORD IN HIS HAND, THE SHAIVA DEVOTEE CUT OFF THEIR HEADS LIKE ANIMALS AND IMPALED THEM ON STAVES. But when the Jains turned and became devotees of Shiva, he joyfully protected them, did he not? O evil Jain, have you not heard the power of King Nidumara, the devotee of Mrida?"

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Naminandi (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"Another one of our devotees, named Naminandi, lived in Chellattiruvaluru.... Then his god [Shiva] appeared before him and gave him this order: 'There was a man, Varada Somaya, who used to light lamps with water used for oblations. You should do the same. Just bring water from the well, and the lamps will light themselves. Not only that, THE CATTLE THAT BELONG TO THE EVIL-MINDED JAINS WILL DIE.' When he heard what the God of gods had to say, Naminandi's face lit up with a smile. Then he lit 10,000,000 lamps with pond water. Furthermore, ALL THE CATTLE DIED, SO THAT NOT EVEN A CALF REMAINED.... THEN, O JAIN, THAT MERCIFUL ONE BROUGHT THE CATTLE BACK TO LIFE AND INITIATED THE JAINS INTO THE WAY OF SHIVA."

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Sankhyatonda (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

In Shantamanga, in the Choda country, there was a man named Sankhyatonda who had been born to Buddhist parents but who had acquired wisdom and begun to oppose the Buddhists. Because of some merit acquired in an earlier life, he had retained a recollection of devotion to Shiva.... [He prayed to Shiva, saying] 'There is no way that I can wholeheartedly worship you here. UNTIL YOU DESTROY THE THREE ANTI-VEDIC TRADITIONS, JAIN, BUDDHIST, AND CHARVAKA, I am going to throw three stones at you three times a day. That is my vow.' And he proceeded to do as he promised.... The Shiva linga raised its hands to protect its head from the stone and smiled. 'I appreciate what you have done, and I am going to give you whatever you want as a boon,' [Shiva] said. At once, Sankhyatonda fell prostrate on the earth. 'O great linga, even Hari and Brahma are unable to know your beginning and end. O embodiment of the linga, though a person may search the Veda in a thousand ways, he will not find you.... May this stone become a stone flower, and may it appear on the side of your head in all your temples,' he requested. WITH THIS REQUEST, O JAIN, SANKHYATONDA DESTROYED ALL THE ANTI-VEDIC RELIGIONS."

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Kovuri Brahmayya (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"There was a famous devotee of Black Neck named Kovuri Brahmayya who had a dispute with the Jain sages. When the Jains were shamed in the dispute, they looked at nearby banyan tree and said, 'O devotee, let's do something for a visible sign. Tell me, shall we burn it up and have you bring it back, or do you want to burn it up and have us bring it back?' 'You burn it up, and I will bring it back,' said Brahmayya. So the Jains burned up the banyan tree with their mantras and tantras. When the evil mantras and tantras had destroyed the tree and when it had become ashes on the earth, Brahmayya sprinkled ashes over it and brought it back to life. AND THEN, O JAIN, HE DESTROYED ALL THE JAIN VASADIS [TEMPLES] IN KOVURU!"

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Dedara Dasayya (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"700 Jain vasadis [temples] were built in the city called Potlaceruvu, and a Jain guru there was worshipped by 20,000 Jains. He also served as the chief mentor for Ballaha and gave him advice and instruction. King Desinga Ballaha had a good wife named Suggaladevi who was a devotee of the pure-minded [Shiva devotee] Dedara Dasayya.... Then she called all the wretched Jains to Ballaha's court, and to their right seated her true, Jain-destroying guru on a nine-jeweled throne and served his feet. The Jains tried all the mantras, tantras, tricks, yantras, and magic that they knew. They also argued aggressively from the strength of Advaita, shunya, maya, and karma. The true guru [Dedara Dasayya], on the other hand, employed arguments drawn from the Vedas and vedanta. And he wisely demonstrated many points by drawing on examples from Nyaya, Vaisheshika, and other learned sources.... When they heard his arguments, the Jains laughed at him, thought for a while, and then spoke these words: 'We have profited much from what you have to say. If all this is true, and everything is Shiva, is he to be found in the place where you defecate and urinate? Is that also a high place?' Then Dasaya [replied], 'DON'T YOU JAINS KNOW ANYTHING?... WE WILL WALK ON THE HEAD OF ANY FOOL WHO TALKS ONLY OF KARMA AND SAYS THAT THERE IS NO MRIDA. THE MOUTHS OF THOSE DESPICABLE CREATURES WHO SAY THAT THERE IS NO KAMA KILLER WILL BE OUR LATRINES. DON'T BE NASTY!.... IT IS WELL-KNOWN THERE ARE 700 JAIN VASADIS IN POTLACERUVU, AND I AM GOING TO HAVE THEM ALL DESTROYED. YOU ARE MERE ANIMALS. What more can I say to you?' Meanwhile, Ballaha and all the Jains were discomfited, and they fell prostrate on the earth. And Dedara Dasayya endowed Ballaha with a linga. Once he had smashed their logic, he established the crystal Linga in that town and called it Uttareshvara. DASAYYA THEN DESTROYED THE 700 JAIN VASADIS. DID HE NOT INITIATE ALL THE JAINS INTO THE SHAIVA PATH, O JAIN?"

-- BASAVA PURANA ch. 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th cent. A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana...

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The Story of Hiriya Nacayya (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"In a town called Marudiga lived another [Shiva] devotee named Hiriya Nacayya whom no one knew to be a devotee.... Within ten days he had gathered up 12,000 Kama Killer devotees, and they had loaded 1700 lingas on carts. Traveling quickly, they camped around Marudiga and announced to one and all: 'All the poor, the brahmins, the heralds, the foreigners, and everyone else who is not a Jain must get out.' Among them were 13 chiefs who opposed the Jains. TO THE ENJOYMENT OF THE DEVOTEES OF HARA, THEY ATTACKED THE JAINS, SURROUNDED THEM, AND FOUGHT WITH THEM HEAD TO HEAD. In a rage, they cut off their own heads, and holding their severed heads in their left hands, they wielded their swords with their right arms. They attacked with great ferocity. They shouted and reeled and whooped and danced, and their swords flashed. AS FOR THE JAINS, THEY SCREAMED WITH FRIGHT AND SWOONED. AND THE DEVOTEES KILLED THEM AND CUT OFF THEIR HEADS. Then they continued on with their famous deeds and songs. FIRST, THEY COUNTED THE 1700 JINA VASADIS [TEMPLES] AND SMASHED THE HEADS OF EVERY ONE OF THE JINA IDOLS. THEN THEY RIPPED DOWN THE FLAGS FROM THE VASADIS. IN EACH AND EVERY VASADI THEY SET UP A LINGA. When they had finished with all this, they put their own heads back in their proper places.... O base creature, don't you know the eternal power of Nacayya? It was only yesterday that this happened. DON'T YOU EVEN KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR DESPICABLE GOD, JINA? WHAT MORE IS THERE TO SAY? IS IT ANY BIG MATTER TO DESTROY YOU BEASTS?"

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Somanna (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"In a place called Huligara lived a Shuli devotee named Somanna [who became blind].... Now with the exception of himself, everyone else in his town was a Jain, and they hated him because of his devotion. 'Why should you go on starving yourself? We will take you to the temple right now,' said the Jains. But instead those deceivers took him to the Surahonna vasadi. 'Bow down, this is your Three Eyes,' they said.... [They continued,] 'You can get up now; that is enough. Jina is pleased with your worship. Now you can become a Jain and live here,' said the Jains. Somanna was enraged. 'You fools, I wouldn't lift up my hand to Jina or anything of the kind. This is actually a manifestation of the linga. Come on, I will show you what I mean,' he said. Somanna then went inside the vasadi [Jain temple] and removed the poultice from his eyes. With great difficulty he got up and opened his eyes. AS SOON AS HE DID SO, THE JINA IDOL BROKE INTO PIECES. THEN SHIVA EMERGED FROM WITHIN AND STOOD ON THE REMAINS OF THE JAIN IDOL. The god [Shiva] who is mounted on a bull established himself in his new form in the temple of Surahonna and took the name Somesha in recognition of Somanna's devotion. Why do you need a mirror to see the bracelet on your own head! THE BROKEN JINA IDOL IS WITNESS ENOUGH. O Jain, the story is well known. How can you help knowing what happened in Huligara!"

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990.

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The Story of Vaijakavva (from BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"ALL THE BEASTLY JAINS WHO FILLED THE TEMPLES AND CROWDED THE STREETS RECEIVED WELTS, AND THE SKIN PEELED OFF THEIR BACKS FROM THE BLOWS. They cried out and doubled over with pain. As the blows rained down, they instinctively tried to protect themselves with their hands and rushed hither and thither.... They opened their mouths and wept for grief. THEY CLIMBED THE JAIN VASADIS [TEMPLES] AND TUMBLED BACK DOWN FROM THEM.... THESE JAINS HAD COME ALONG AND CAUSED A LOT OF TROUBLE THERE IN ABBALURU WITH THEIR CLAIMS THAT THEIRS WAS THE ORIGINAL RELIGION.... SO I SAID, 'BY THE TIME THE SUN RISES TOMORROW THE BIG JAIN VASADI THAT IS KNOWN AS HIRIYAVASADI WILL FALL DOWN, ALONG WITH ITS WALLS. THE HEAD OF YOUR GOD WILL BE SPLIT AND LIE IN DUST. When that happens, you may truly call me a servant of Shiva....' WHEN I GOT THERE, THE VASADI SHATTERED AND FELL DOWN. THE JINA IDOL CRUMBLED AND FELL IN A HEAP. ALL THE PEOPLE, INCLUDING THE JAINS, WERE AMAZED, AND EVEN TO THIS DAY NO VASADI STANDS IN THAT CITY. DO I NEED TO CONTINUE WITH THESE STORIES? FROM NOW ON, THE JAINS WILL SUFFER THE MISERIES OF AN OLD WHORE.... NOT ONLY THAT, I WILL TEAR DOWN ALL THE JAIN VASADIS IN KALYANA SO THAT THERE WILL NOT EVEN BE ONE LEFT FOR A SAMPLE. FURTHERMORE, I WILL SMASH ALL THE IDOLS OF JINA. THIS IS MY VOW. IS THERE ANY REASON WHY I SHOULD NOT SUBJECT YOU TWO-LEGGED BEASTS TO THIS?.... The Jains gave him acknowledgement of his victory, written by the king. And they all came and bowed down before the assembly of devotees [of Shiva]. On each person's face the devotees impressed the marks of Shiva. With cries and roars, the heroic assembly of maheshvaras rose up. THEY QUICKLY DESTROYED ALL THE JAIN VASADIS AND BROKE THE HEADS OF ALL THE JINA IDOLS. WHEN THEY WERE FINISHED, THERE WAS NOT A TRACE OF A JAIN VASADI OR A JINA IDOL IN ALL OF KALYANA. IN A FURY, THE DEVOTEES HARASSED AND KILLED EVERY KNOWN JAIN AND SMASHED THEM ALL INTO THE GROUND. The devotees of Black Throat responded by praising the peerless courage of Ekanta Ramayya. Meanwhile, Basava worshipped Ekanta Ramayya as if he were Sangamesha."

(emphasis added)

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The Story of Soddaladevu Bachayya (from the BASAVA PURANA, ch. 6):

"According to ancient principles, the evidence of shruti and smriti, and the knowledge derive from Vedanta; according to Nyaya, Vaisheshika, and the other shastras; according to the import of the great puranas and agamas; according to all the standards of physical and inferential evidence; and according to adamant logic, he established that there is only one cause for the manifestation of the world and its maintenance and destruction. That God is alwasy in a state of bliss, and he is the husband of Ambika. He is the lord of animals, and he is the prime mover. All of the other gods are mere mortals. SO HE DECAPITATED THE JAINS AND CUT OFF THE NOSES OF THE FOLLOWERS OF VISHNU. HE DROVE OUT THE NONDUALISTS [ADVAITINS], HE DESTROYED THOSE WHO ARGUE IN FAVOR OF HATRED, AND HE HUMBLED THE ATHEISTS."

-- BASAVA PURANA chapter 6, written by Palkuriki Somanatha, 12th century A.D., translated from Telugu (emphasis added) Source: Rao, Velcheru Narayana. SIVA'S WARRIORS: THE BASAVA PURANA OF PALKURIKI SOMANATHA. Princeton University Press, 1990. 47.138.18.163 (talk) 03:51, 26 April 2023 (UTC)[reply]