Bārasa Aņuvekkhā – ‘The Twelve Contemplations’ – of Ācārya Kundakunda (circa 1st century BC) contains 91 verses (gāthā). ‘Aņuvekkhā’, ‘aņupekkhā’, ‘anuprekşā’, and ‘bhāvanā’ are synonyms; these terms are used in Prākrit, Apabhramśa, Sanskrit and Hindi languages, respectively. Contemplation means ‘meditating on the nature of the Reality’. The uniqueness of Ācārya Kundakunda’s exposition is that he has described each contemplation both from the empirical (vyavahāra) as we...

The science-of-thought (Nyāya) has always been an integral part of the four constituents (anuyoga) – prathamānuyoga, karuņānuyoga, caraņānuyoga, and dravyānuyoga – of the Jaina Scripture. Through Parīkşāmukha Sūtra, Ācārya Māņikyanandi (circa 7th-8th century A.D.) churned the nectar of the science-of-thought (Nyāya) from the ocean of the words of the master-composers like Ācārya Samantabhadra and Bhaţţa Akalańka Deva. The valid-knowledge (pramāņa) ascertains the true na...

"The valid-knowledge (pramāņa) is the definitive (vyavasāyātmaka) knowledge of the self (sva) and of the things not ascertained earlier (apūrvārtha)."

जिनशासन प्रणेता आचार्य समन्तभद्र (लगभग दूसरी शती) ने "युक्त्यनुशासन", जिसका अपरनाम "वीरजिनस्तोत्र" है, में अखिल तत्त्व की समीचीन एवं युक्तियुक्त समीक्षा के द्वारा श्री वीर जिनेन्द्र के निर्मल गुणों की स्तुति की है। युक्तिपूर्वक ही वीर शासन का मण्डन किया गया है और अन्य मतों का खण्डन किया गया है। प्रत्यक्ष (दृष्ट) और आगम (इष्ट) से अविरोधरूप अर्थ का जो अर्थ से प्ररूपण है उसे युक्त्यनुशासन कहते हैं। यहाँ अर्थ का रूप स्थिति (ध्रौव्य), उदय (उत्पाद) और व्यय (नाश) रूप तत्त्व-व्य...

Ācārya Samantabhadra’s Stutividyā (In Sanskrit and Hindi) (Jinaśataka) Main Author: Ācārya Samantabhadra Editor: Vijay K. Jain Divine Blessings: Ācārya Viśuddhasāgara Muni Publisher: Dehradun : Vikalp Printers, October 2020 Subjects: Jainism – Doctrines – Early works to 1800 Jaina Philosophy – Early works to 1800 Description: L + 222 p. ; 24 cm x 17 cm ISBN: 9788193272671 Format: Book; Hard-bound Language Note: Sanskrit and Hindi Keywords: sarvajña, divyadhva...

Pańcāstikāya means ‘five-substances-with-bodily-existence’ and these are: the soul (jīva), the physical-matter (pudgala), the medium-of-motion (dharma), the medium-of-rest (adharma), and the space (ākāśa). These five substances collectively constitute the universe-space (loka). Outside this universe-space (loka) is the infinite non-universe-space (aloka), comprising just the pure space (ākāśa). The substance-of-time (kāla dravya) which renders assistance to all substance...

English Translation: Vijay K. Jain; Editor: Vijay K. Jain Divine Blessings: Ācārya 108 Vidyānanda Muni Main Author: Ācārya Guņabhadra Other Author: Vijay K. Jain Foreword: Dr. Chakravarthi Nainar Devakumar Publisher: Dehradun : Vikalp Printers, September 2019 Subjects: Jainism – Doctrines – Early works to 1800 Jaina Philosophy – Early works to 1800 Faith, Knowledge, Conduct, Austerity, Liberation Description: xlvi + 240 p. ; 24 cm x 17 cm ISBN: 9788193272640 F...

It is well-known that demerit (pāpa) begets suffering and merit (dharma, punya) begets happiness. Therefore, the potential (bhavya) soul seeking happiness must refrain from demerit and follow incessantly the conduct that leads to merit (dharma).

The book deals with the Jaina Doctrines – Early works to 1800. It covers important tents like Faith, Knowledge, Conduct, and Liberation. lxiv + 342 p. ; 24 cm x 17 cm ISBN: 9788193272633 Format: Book; Hard-bound Language Note: In Prakrit; translation in Hindi and English; explanatory notes and prefatory matter in English. Keywords: three-jewels (ratnatraya), right faith (samyagdarśana), right knowledge (samyagjñāna), right conduct (samyakcāritra), repentance (pratik...

“The ‘niyama’ – right faith (samyagdarśana), right knowledge (samyagjñāna), and right conduct (samyakcāritra) – is the way to attain liberation and the fruit is the supreme liberation (paramanirvāõa). These three – the Three Jewels (ratnatraya) – have been described individually in this treatise.”

This profound treatise leads the reader to the path to liberation. The path consists in right faith, right knowledge and right conduct, together.

The term ‘knowledge’ is to be taken with each kind mentioned in the sūtra – sensory knowledge, scriptural knowledge, clairvoyant knowledge, telepathic knowledge and perfect knowledge (omniscience). That which reflects on the objects-of-knowledge through the senses and the mind, or that through which the objects-of-knowledge are reflected upon, or just reflection, is sensory knowledge.

The book emphasizes that the body and the soul are utterly different; we tend to pay attention to the body at the expense of the soul.

The one who entertains delusion that the body and the like are but the soul is the extroverted-soul (bahirātmā), the one who entertains no delusion about mental states – imperfections like attachment and aversion, and the soul-nature – is the introverted-soul (antarātmā), and the one who is utterly pure and rid of all karmic dirt is the pure-soul (paramātmā). Page 15

The book is a masterpiece work on Jainism, the most profound religion in South Asia. In its three sections, it discusses the ideas of knowledge, objects-of-knowledge and the conduct required to attain perfect knowledge, i.e., omniscience.

The man who, having grasped the Words of the Omniscient Lord, destroys delusion (moha), attachment (rāga), and aversion (dvesa), gets rid of all miseries, in a short time. - page 103