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The meaning of "Siddhaanam Buddhaanam"
Yoga Shastra, Third Light, Verse 123: "Nariin va" means either a man or a woman. In Jainism, to emphasize the importance of men, the word "purusha" (man) is used first. However, the word "nariin va" (or woman) is used to indicate that women can also attain liberation in the same existence, or by destroying their karma, they can cross the ocean of existence and attain liberation.
In the Digambara Jain sect, there is a sub-sect called "Yaapaniya Tantra" (Sangha) which believes in the liberation of women. There are questions raised:
* Is a woman self-existent?
* No, she is not.
* Is she then ineligible for liberation?
* No, she is not.
* Can she not attain right faith?
* No, she can.
* Is she not a human being?
* No, she is.
* Is she born only in an uncivilized form?
* No, she is not.
* Is she only a "Yugalini" with an immeasurable lifespan?
* No, she is not.
* Is she only of a cruel mind?
* No, she is not.
* Is she only of an impure body?
* Absolutely not.
* Is she not a follower of the "Vajra-Rishabhanaraach Sangha"?
* No, she is.
A woman is not devoid of religious inclination, she is not an opponent of the "Apoovarnakaran Gunasthanak" (the state of being free from the cycle of birth and death), meaning she herself is capable of achieving "Apoovarnakaran". A woman possesses the sixth to fourteenth "Gunasthanak" (stages of spiritual progress), but she remains only up to the ninth "Gunasthanak"?
* No, she is not.
Is she incapable of attaining the qualities of knowledge, etc.?
* No, she is not.
Is she only a follower of the path of unrighteousness?
* No, she is not.
Then why is it said that women cannot practice the highest Dharma (liberation)? This means that women can also practice the path of liberation and attain liberation in this very existence. The meaning is that after attaining right faith, a single act of salutation performed with utmost devotion is enough to cross the ocean of existence. Any woman or man who exhibits such a noble resolve will attain the "Kshapak" category (a category of liberated souls) and cross the ocean of existence. In this way, salutation is the cause of the resolve that leads to liberation. However, for the sake of explanation, the cause is considered as the effect, and salutation is said to be the means of crossing the ocean of existence.
Here, the question arises: If liberation is attained through salutation alone, then what is the fruit of observing good conduct? The answer is: It is not appropriate to say that, because the resolve that leads to liberation, which is attained through salutation, is itself the essence of good conduct.
The three verses of the "Siddhaanam Buddhaanam Sutra" are recited regularly because they were composed by Ganadhar. Many devotees recite two more verses after these three. They are as follows:
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