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A beacon of great light, guiding towards the truth and preventing collisions; it was instrumental in helping him reach the shores of liberation.
This vast collection of scriptures was created by the grace of the Chalukya dynasty's jewel, the supreme sage, Sri Kumarapala, the king. The king was very curious about the science of yoga; he had recited many scriptures on the yoga science of that time, but his mind was not satisfied. Therefore, Acharya Shri, due to the intense request of King Kumarapala, composed this science of yoga. | By studying this collection of scriptures daily, the king became an expert in the science of yoga from the Jain perspective.
The revered Acharya Shri played a huge role in making Gujarat a place of non-violence and righteousness. King Kumarapala was your devoted follower, yet you did not ask him for any favors for your comfort. Your talent was multifaceted. Poetry, meter, rhetoric, grammar, ethics, yoga, history, lexicon, logic, hymns, devotion, evidence, etc. | You did not leave any subject untouched, on which you did not wield your pen. Yoga Shastra, Svopjnavritti, Dwayashraya Kavya, Abhidhanachintamani, Pramanamimamsa, Anekarthasangraha, Trishatishalakapurushcharitra, Siddhahemashabdanusasan, Linganusasan, Chhandanusasan, Kavyanusasan, Mahadevastotra, Anyayogavyavchhedhika (stotra), Ayogavyavchhedhika, Vitragastotra, Prakritvyakaran, Haimdhaatuprayan, etc. are your vast scriptures. In this way, along with the pursuit of self-welfare, your literary pursuit was also unmatched.
Your guru was Acharya Shri Devchandrasuri. Once, while wandering, Acharya Shri visited Dhundhuka. To listen to his nectar-like words, Pahini (Hemachandracharya's mother) also came to the shelter with her son Changdev (Acharya Shri's name in the householder stage). Acharya Shri Devchandrasuriji, seeing Changdev's unique appearance, characteristics, and actions, predicted that he would become the savior of the community in the future, becoming proficient in all scriptures and a benefactor of self-welfare, and made a special request to his mother to hand him over. The mother initially hesitated; but understanding it as a supreme favor, she happily handed over Changdev. Later, his father, Shri Chaching Seth (Modhvanik), reached Kर्णपुरी near Acharya Shri. After much debate with Acharya Shri, impressed by him, Chaching Seth happily gave his permission to initiate Changdev. At the age of about 8-9, in Vikram Samvat 1154, Changdev was initiated by his guru, and named Somdev. By the grace of his guru, Somdev Muni became proficient in all scriptures. Seeing his competence, Acharya Shri Devchandrasuri, in Samvat 1166, | gave Somdev Muni the position of Acharya at the age of 21, and named him Hemachandracharya.
After becoming an Acharya, Hemachandracharya gave a new turn to the politics of Gujarat. The then king of Gujarat, Siddha Raj Jaisingh, wanted to make Kumarapala his successor. One reason behind this was that Kumarapala
was indebted to Acharya Shri's favors, secondly, he wanted to carry out the work of non-violence in Gujarat; thirdly, he wanted to spread the principles of Jainism among the people of Gujarat. The credit for making King Kumarapala a Shaiva devotee and a righteous person goes to Acharya Shri.
Acharya Shri, from time to time, gave religious inspiration to King Kumarapala, and saved him from going on the path of irreligion. Impressed by Acharya Shri's vast literary creation, King Kumarapala and the contemporary learned listeners and kings | bestowed upon him the title of 'Kalikalasarvjna'.
Acharya Shri's literary creation has made him immortal. I am fascinated by many of Acharya Shri's works. I read the Yoga Shastra written by you. Seeing its vast Svopjnavritti, I was inspired that why not, present this Yoga Shastra with a vast explanation in Hindi translation; so that the common people can benefit from the experienced words of Pujya Acharya Shri Maharaj. In the courage of my Hindi translation, I got the opportunity of the learned coordinator thinker Muni Shri Nemichandraji Maharaj. With his help in the revision and editing of this book, I | was able to present this Yoga Shastra to the discerning readers along with the Hindi translation. If any principle-contradictory statement has been written in the translation due to a visual defect, carelessness, then the discerning reader will forgive me. If any noble person suggests any mistake to me, I will gladly accept it.
_ I hope that the religious readers will benefit from this collection of scriptures and develop themselves; with this good wish,