Mahajanapada Period Questions and Answers – Page 2

Jain tradition identifies Jamali, Mahavira’s son-in-law, as his first disciple. Chetaka was the Licchavi ruler related to Mahavira’s mother, while Bhadrabahu and Sthulabhadra belong to later phases of Jain monastic history.

Mahavira preached in a form of Prakrit conventionally identified as Ardhamagadhi so that teachings were accessible beyond Sanskrit-educated elites. Pali is especially associated with the Theravada Buddhist canon, while Sanskrit and Tamil are not the standard answer.

After attaining kevala-jnana, Vardhamana was revered as Jina, the conqueror of passions, as Arhat, the worthy one, and as Nirgrantha, one freed from bonds. Buddha, Shakyamuni, Bodhisattva and Tathagata are Buddhist titles, while Adinatha refers to Rishabhadeva.

Mahavira is traditionally said to have attained kevala-jnana near Jrimbhikagrama on the bank of the Rijupalika River, under a sal tree. The Niranjana is associated with the Buddha’s enlightenment region, while Ganga and Yamuna are not the traditional Jain location.

Jain tradition describes Trishala as the sister of Chetaka, the Licchavi or Vajji leader of Vaishali. Bimbisara and Ajatashatru were Magadhan rulers, while Prasenajit ruled Kosala.

Mahavira’s childhood or personal name was Vardhamana. Nataputta is a Pali designation referring to the Nata clan, Gautama is associated with the Buddha and Siddhartha was both Mahavira’s father’s name in Jain tradition and the Buddha’s personal name.

Correct answer: 599 ईसा-पूर्व, कुण्डग्राम. According to Shvetambara Jain tradition, Mahavira was born in 599 BCE at Kundagrama near Vaishali. Many modern historical reconstructions use a later chronology around 540 BCE, so the question explicitly names the tradition to avoid treating one date as universally certain.

Jain tradition recognises Rishabhadeva, also called Adinatha, as the first Tirthankara. Neminatha is the twenty-second, Parshvanatha the twenty-third and Mahavira the twenty-fourth Tirthankara.

The Shakya gana-sangha, the Buddha’s clan, had its principal centre at Kapilavastu. Vaishali was associated with the Licchavis, Mithila with Videha and Kushinara with the Mallas.

The Licchavis of Vaishali were a leading and powerful republican clan within the Vajji confederacy. The Shakyas, Mallas and Videhas were important gana-sanghas but are not the conventional answer to the largest and most powerful republic formulation.