Some Jaina Canonical Sutras

SR No.: 011033
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Bimla Charn Law
Publisher: Royal Asiatic Society
Publication Year: 1949
Total Pages: 229
Language: English
Classification: Book_English, Agam, & Canon
File Size: 24 MB

Page 112

SOME JAINA CANONICAL SUTRAS
hands plucked out his hair in four handfuls. After fasting for two days and a half Rṣabha put on divine robe which he discarded after a time and became naked.1 He tore out his hair and entered the state of homelessness in the company of 4,000 high nobles, royal persons, and Ksatriyas. Neglecting his body, he meditated upon himself for one thousand years. Outside the town of Purimatala, in the park called Sakatamukha, under the excellent tree nyagrodha, he, after fasting for three days and a half, being engaged in deep meditation, attained the highest knowledge and intuition called Kevala. He had 84 ganas and 84 ganadharas. He had an excellent community of 84,000 śramanas with Rsablasena at their head; 300,000 nuns with Brahmisundari at their head; 2 305,000 lay votaries with Sreyamsa at their head 3; 554.000 female lay votaries with Subhadra at their head4; 4,750 sages who knew the fourteen Pūrvas; 9,000 sages who were possessed of the Avadhi knowledge; 20,000 Kevalins; 20,600 sages who could transform themselves; 12,650 sages of vast intellect; 12,650 professors; 20,000 male and 4,000 female disciples who had reached perfection.
He instituted two epochs in his capacity of a Maker of an end: the epoch relating to generations and that relating to psychical condition. The former ended after numberless generations and the latter from the next muhurta after his Kevalaship. He after fasting for six days and a half died on the summit of mount Aṣṭāpada in the Samparyanka position, while in the company of ten thousand monks.
Ariṣṭanemi or Neminatha was born of Queen Śiva, wife of King Samudravijaya in the town of Sauripura (Soriyapura). He was named Aristanemi as his mother saw in a dream a nemi, the outer rim of a wheel, which consisted of rista stones flying up to the sky. Riding in a palanquin Aristanemi went right through the town of Dvārāvati to the park called Revatika and stopped under the Aśoka tree. There after fasting two days and a half, he put on a divine robe and in the company of a thousand persons he tore out his hair and entered the state of homelessness.5 He did not take care of his body for 54 days. On the 55th day he acquired the highest knowledge and intuition called Kevala after fasting
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The Digambaras make him a naked saint at the very outset. 2 The Digambaras give the number of nuns as 350,000.
3 Lay votaries, according to the Digambaras, wero 300,000 with Dradaratha at their head.
4 500,000 were the female lay votaries according to the Digambaras, among whom Suvrata was the chief one.
The Digambaras disagree here with the Svetambaras, as they believe that Aristanemi became a naked saint like all other Tirthankaras.
7B