According to Jain tradition, the knowledge of scriptures—including the Jain Ramayana—was preserved through an unbroken oral tradition (śruta paramparā) for many centuries before being committed to writing. The earliest Jain texts were not written down until long after the time of Mahavira (599–527 BCE). The event of Shrut Panchami is celebrated by Jains as the day when the scriptures were first written down, which occurred several centuries after Mahavira’s nirvana.

The source of the Jain Ramayana:

• The Jain Ramayana stories are not direct retellings of the Hindu Valmiki Ramayana, but are Jain interpretations of the Rama story, adapted to align with Jain philosophy, values, and cosmology.
• These stories were preserved by Jain monks and scholars through oral transmission. The monks memorized the texts and recited them to disciples and laypeople.
• The earliest extant Jain Ramayana texts—such as the “Paumacariya” (also called Padmapurana) by Acharya Vimalasuri (c. 3rd–5th century CE)—were written centuries after the original oral traditions began.
• The writing down of Jain texts, including versions of the Ramayana, began when the oral tradition was perceived to be at risk, especially after famines and migrations that caused loss of knowledge bearers.
• Shrut Panchami commemorates the beginning of this process, but Jain scholars had already been composing and maintaining Ramayana narratives in oral form for a long time before.

In summary: The Jain Ramayana’s source was a rich oral tradition faithfully maintained by generations of Jain monks and scholars. This oral tradition was eventually written down after Shrut Panchami, but the stories, teachings, and interpretations existed and evolved in the oral tradition for centuries prior to being committed to writing. This is a common phenomenon in many ancient Indian traditions, where oral transmission preceded written texts.