Comtemporary Jain Legends

SR No.: 007736
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Atmanandji Maharaj
Publisher: Shrimad Rajchandra Ashram
Publication Year: 2015
Total Pages: 183
Language: English
Classification: Book_English, N000, & N025
File Size: 1 MB

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21. Pragna Chakshu Pandit Sukhlalji
Pragna Chakshu means the great man whose deep learning is his eye. Pandit Sukhlalji is considered to be an all-round figure of greatness of the present century. Even though he was blind, he was the true practitioner in the literature of truth; he was the greatest thinker of his times and highly learned in scriptures mainly of Jainism. He had dedicated whole of his life to the Indian culture. He is considered to be one of the most outstanding and the learned persons of Sanskrit in India. He was a seer without the power of seeing. It is a great surprise that a man without eyes edited a great book like "Sanmati Tark" in a modern scientific way wherein every line and every note of comment is full of his deep learning. He was very liberal in his views and therefore, his admirers include many more non-Jains than Jains. This is quite natural and pleasant also.
Birth and Childhood:
Pandit Sukhlalji was born 1881 corresponding to the Kodh (Dhrangadhra) the place of his matemal father or at Limbdi, the place of his grandfather. This was a village of the state Muli of the District Surendranagar in Saurashtra. Panditji was Visa Shrimali Vanik community of Dhakad-Dharkat generation a sort of merchant community. Sanghvi Talshi and his first wife Maniben were his parents. His mother expired when he was only four years old. He passed his childhood in Limbdi under the care of his distant relative Shri Mulji Kaka of Sayla in absence of his mother.
He was obedient, hard working and very much eager to learn. He was much interested in games. He was adventurous. Self-labor was duly expected in the families of merchants of village as they had to carry bunches of grass, bags of food grains, packages of joggers and other goods in shops and storerooms. They had to turn tiles of their houses. With all this, the child was much attached to games like playing cards, tops, balls etc. He was interested in horse-riding and swimming.
At school, he was always considered to be a student of first rank. He did his homework regularly but alongwith his school study he took interest in seeing and talking with Jain mendicants and nuns. He was afraid of sins from his childhood. He adopted various types of vows with the advice of Jain mendicants and maintained them rigorously. He obtained religious knowledge from Jain teachers. His father expired in 1919 AD.
Days of Blindness:
Pandit Sukhlalji has noted that he lost his eyesight at the age of 17. It is like this: It was summer of V.S. 1897. I went to Surendranagar to learn business activities after the festival of Holi-which falls in March. I was working in cotton ginning factory alongwith other boys. I was going for latrine at noon one day and I experience loss of eyesight at that time. I saw everything to be white. I fell that it must be due to scorching heat of the noon. One evening my uncle took me to go home with him in a horse cart. When I reached home, one old dame told that this boy would have smallpox. In the next morning, smallpox was actually seen on my body. The disease took long time and it was very acute on eyes. One eye was so much swollen that even the nose was affected and the eyeball came out. I had unbearable pain in both the eyes. Doctors and Vaidyas were surprised to see this. No medicine worked on me. I lost both of my eyes. Even though I was completely recovered from the smallpox, I could not see and I was permanently blind.
He was now dependent upon others. He had nose, ears and tongue but no eyes. Life was now very burdensome. There was no way out. But he maintained courage. He started his study vigorously with a view to come out from the troubles of life.
Study of Sanskrit at Limbdi:
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