Adipurana

Pampa’s great work was the Adipurana (“First [or Original] Scriptures”), in which Jain teaching and tenets are expounded. Another epic of his creation is the Pampa-Bharata (c. 950; Bharata is both the ancient name for India and the name of a famous king), in which Pampa likened his royal master…

The Jain lay poet Pampa’s Adipurana (another text dealing with the lives of Rishabha, Bahubali, and Bharata) is the earliest extant piece of mahakavya (“high poetic”) Kannada literature. Jains were similarly influential in the Prakrit languages, Apabhramsha, Old Gujarati, and, later, Sanskrit. A particular forte of Jain writers was narrative,…

…great epics: Vikramārjuna Vijaya and Ādipurāṇa. The former is a rendering of the Mahābhārata, with the hero, Arjuna, identified with the poet’s royal patron, Arikēsarī. This felicitous epic is known for its succinct, powerful characterizations, its rich descriptions of Kannada country and court, its moving sentiments, and its harmonious blend…