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History of Jainism with Special Reference to Mathurā
The title gaṇin was used for the head of the gaña or the school.360 The title vācaka was used for the preacher361 or the teacher. 362 The title vācaka mentioned in these inscriptions is pointer of the fact that as early as the first century AD, the Jaina Church at Mathurā possessed a class of teachers who were duty bound to read and explain religious texts to the junior monks. The title vācanäcärya was current in Jainism even in the vs 1677,363 and the title väcaka is in use among the Jainas even these days. 364
The ācārya, or the senior monk, was called arya 365 or arrya 386 or ārya .367 Sometimes even the nuns were called arya368 instead of arya. The ordinary monk was called samana,369 i.e., sramana. The lay-devotee was called sävaka,370 i.e., śrāvaka. The female lay-devotee was called samana-sävikā,371 i.e., śramanaśrāvikā. Generally speaking, all Jaina monks were called ārya. The title ārya was used for the ganin also.372 The ācārya or the monk was called bhadata or bhadanta also.373 The ordinary male disciple was called amtevāsi374 or sisya.375 The ordinary female disciple was called astevāsinī76 or
360. OISJ, p. 42. 361. EI, I, nos. 3, 4, etc. 362. OISJ, p. 42. 363. HJM, p. 514 fn 6. 364. OISJ, p. 42. 365. EI, II, no. 20. 366. ASIAR, III, no. 3. 367. EI, I, no. 19. 368. Ibid., no. 2. 369. EI, II, no. 1. 370. EI, I, no. 30. 371. EI, X, Appendix, no. 102. 372. EI, I, no. 19. 373. EI, X, Appendix, no. 99. 374. Ibid., no. 93. 375. EI, I, nos. 9, 30, etc.
