Thread by @SolarisePravesh

Long Thread

The marginalisation today of Tamil Jains ‘Samanars’ as they were once known is in stark contrast to their position and numbers.

Jainism flourished in Tamil Nadu in around 300 BC in recorded history with indigenous Tamils followers.
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#FreeTNTemples

The Tamil Jains shaped the religion, politics, culture and society of the Tamil region, with three of the five major Tamil epics ( Silapaddikaram, Civaka Cintamani, and Valayapathi) written by Jain authors.
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Tamil Jains were also instrumental in organising the first Dravida Sangam in 470 AD, believed in a casteless society, emphasised education for all and gave great respect to women religious teachers.
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Early Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions [Mangulam Jain Inscriptions] in Tamil Nadu dated to the 3rd BCE and describe the livelihoods of Tamil Jains Monks.

One of the Oldest known Tamil kings in the recorded History was recorded to follow the Jain religion. [Nedunjeliyan I].
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In The Hathigumpha inscription, found in the Udayagiri caves says that Jain King Kharavela broke the 113-year-old Tamira confederacy, which was a source of danger to his country.

Tamira is Damira, which means Dramida or Dravida, indicating Tamil Nadu.
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But who was the Pandya king mentioned in the Hathigumpha inscription? “It was probably Nedunchezhian, who is referred to in Purananuru as Ariya padai kadanda Nedunchezhian. Kharavela’s army must have marched up to Madurai.
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Jainism must have existed in South India well before the visit of Bhadrabhu and Chandragupta.

There are plenty of caves as old as the 4th century with Jain inscriptions and Jain deities found around Madurai, Tiruchirāppaḷḷi, Kanyakumari and Thanjavur.
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There are 26 caves, 200 stone beds, 60 inscriptions, and over 100 sculptures alone in Madurai Area. This is also the site where Jain ascetics wrote great epics and books on grammar in Tamil.
Let's not talk about the whole Tamilnadu.
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The reason for Tamil Jains' obscurity is that it is a smaller and endogamous community within the already small 0.4% Jain population in India. They are also mostly scattered in rural Tamil Nadu and hail from farming families, with little or no presence in the public sphere.
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