Jain literatureJain literature (Sanskrit: जैन साहित्य) refers to the literature of the Jain religion. It is a vast and ancient literary tradition, which was initially transmitted orally. The oldest surviving material is contained in the canonical Jain Agamas, which are written in Ardhamagadhi, a Prakrit (Middle-Indo Aryan) language. Various commentaries were written on these canonical texts by later Jain monks. Later works were also written in other languages, like Sanskrit and Maharashtri Prakrit.
DigambaraDigambara (dɪˈgʌmbərə; "sky-clad") is one of the two major schools of Jainism, the other being Śvētāmbara (white-clad). The Sanskrit word Digambara means "sky-clad", referring to their traditional monastic practice of neither possessing nor wearing any clothes. Digambara and Śvētāmbara traditions have had historical differences ranging from their dress code, their temples and iconography, attitude towards female monastics, their legends, and the texts they consider as important.
Kevala jnanaKevala gyana (केवल ज्ञान) or Keval gyan also known as Kaivalya means omniscience in Jainism and is roughly translated as complete understanding or supreme wisdom. Kevala jnana is believed to be an intrinsic quality of all souls. This quality is masked by karmic particles that surround the soul. Every soul has the potential to obtain omniscience by shedding off these karmic particles. Jain scriptures speak of twelve stages through which the soul achieves this goal. A soul who has attained kevala jnana is called a kevalin (केवलिन्).
ShatkhandagamaThe (Sanskrit: "Scripture in Six Parts") is the foremost and oldest Digambara Jain sacred text. According to Digambara tradition, the original teachngs of lord Mahavira were passed on orally from “Ganadhar” the chief disciple of Lord Mahavira to his disciples and so on as they had the capability of listening and remembering it for always. But as the centuries passed there was downfall in the in these cpabilities and so Aacharya Pushpdant and Bhutbali penned down the teachings of Lord Mahavir in Ṣaṭkhaṅḍāgama Therefore the Ṣaṭkhaṅḍāgama is the most revered Digambara text that has been given the status of āgama.
ŚvētāmbaraThe Śvētāmbara (ʃwɛˈtʌmbərə; śvētapaṭa; also spelled Shwethambara, Svetambar, Shvetambara or Swetambar) is one of the two main branches of Jainism, the other being the Digambara. Śvētāmbara means "white-clad", and refers to its ascetics' practice of wearing white clothes, which sets it apart from the Digambara "sky-clad" Jains, whose ascetic practitioners go nude. Śvētāmbaras do not believe that ascetics must practice nudity.
SamayasāraSamayasāra (The Nature of the Self) is a famous Jain text composed by Acharya Kundakunda in 439 verses. Its ten chapters discuss the nature of Jīva (pure self/soul), its attachment to Karma and Moksha (liberation). Samayasāra expounds the Jain concepts like Karma, Asrava (influx of karmas), Bandha (Bondage), Samvara (stoppage), Nirjara (shedding) and Moksha (complete annihilation of karmas). Samayasara was written by Acharya Kundakunda in Prakrit. The original Samayasara of Kundakunda consists of 415 verses and was written in Prakrit.
NiyamasaraNiyamasara is a Jain text authored by Acharya Kundakunda, a Digambara Jain acharya. It is described by its commentators as the Bhagavat Shastra. It expounds the path to liberation. Niyamasara deals with the three ethico-spiritual standpoints of understanding ultimate Reality – the Nishcaya naya, the Vyavahara naya and the Shuddha Naya. Niyamasara effectively removes doubts related to Parayayarthika naya and Dravyarthika nayas and elaborates on Vyavahara caritra.
BanarasidasBanarasidas (1586 1643) was a Shrimal Jain businessman and poet of Mughal India. He is known for his poetic autobiography - Ardhakathānaka, (The Half Story), composed in Braj Bhasa, an early dialect of Hindi linked with the region around Mathura. It is the first autobiography written in an Indian language. At the time, he was living in Agra and was 55 years old - the "half" story refers to the Jain tradition, where a "full" lifespan is 110 years. Banarasidas was born in a Shrimal Jain family in 1587.
ŚramaṇaA śramaṇa (श्रमण, ʃrɐmɐɳɐ) or samaṇa (𑀲𑀫𑀡; shāmén) is a person "who labours, toils, or exerts themselves for some higher or religious purpose" or "seeker, one who performs acts of austerity, ascetic". During its development, the term came to refer to several non-Brahmanical ascetic religious movements parallel to but separate from the Vedic religion (and its modern-day form Hinduism). The Śramaṇa tradition includes primarily Jainism, Buddhism, and others such as the Ājīvika.
UmaswatiUmaswati, also spelled as Umasvati and known as Umaswami, was an Indian scholar, possibly between 2nd-century and 5th-century CE, known for his foundational writings on Jainism. He authored the Jain text Tattvartha Sutra (literally '"All That Is", also called Tattvarthadhigama Sutra). Umaswati's work was the first Sanskrit language text on Jain philosophy, and is the earliest extant comprehensive Jain philosophy text accepted as authoritative by all four Jain traditions.
