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Preface
(kevalajñāna)-enters its dwelling, his body. He shines forth, illuminating the self and the others. (verses 263-264)
While the doctrines of the others have imagined liberation (of the soul) as absolute non-existence (śunya), the Jaina Doctrine has expounded liberation as absolute absence of auspicious (subha) and inauspicious (aśubha) dispositions due to attachment (rāga) and aversion (dueṣa) in the soul. Happiness and knowledge are the soul's own-nature (svabhāva). When rid of all karmic dirt, it naturally moves upward till the top of the universe, and remains steady forever atop the 'Siddha sila'. The liberated soul is endowed with self-dependent bliss. (verses 265-267)
This composition, 'Atmānusāsana', by Acarya Gunabhadra, detailing the four adorations (aradhana) of right faith (samyagdarśana), right knowledge (samyagjñāna), right conduct (samyakcāritra) and right austerities (samyaktapa) - will be enchanting to the hearts of men with noble thoughts. The potential-souls (bhavya), who ponder this composition continuously and wholly, soon get rid of all adversities and attain the Lakṣmi of liberation. May Lord Rṣabha Deva bring them propitiousness! (verses 268-270)
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Help from the earlier works
For my present work, I have taken help from earlier works, in Sanskrit, Hindi and English, of several learned authors.
Of primal importance is the commentary, though brief, in Sanskrit by Prabhācandra who is believed to have also written commentaries on Acārya Pujyapāda's Samadhitańtra and Acārya Samantabhadra's Ratnakarandaka-śrāvakācāra. His time is stated to be between the thirteenth and the fourteenth century, Vikrama-samvat.*
Muni Praṇamyasāgara (2017), worthy disciple of Acārya Vidyāsāgara, has written a comprehensive treatise on Atmanuśāsana with an
*
See Pt. Balchandra Siddhantaśāstrī (1980), 'Introduction' to "Gunabhadra's Atmānuśāsana", p. 28
(XXXIX)
