A Western academic term used for the largely medieval texts that hold the Jain legendary history of the world. Recounting the life stories of the ’63 Great or Illustrious Men’, the writings are intended to provide role-models for later Jains. The main texts of Jain Universal History are the:

• Śvetāmbara monk Hemacandra’s Triṣaṣti-śalākā-puruṣa-caritra – Life Stories of 63 Great Men
• Mahā-purāṇa – Great Ancient Tale – of the Digambara writers Jinasena and Guṇabhadra.