ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 01

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

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A council was called in around 300 B.C in Pāțaliputra, according to the tradition of Śvetāmbaras, to put together the canon anew. It was found in it that the last of the great Holy Scriptures, the so-called 12th Anga, which comprised of the 14 works called Pūrva, were not any more in an authentic tradition. In spite of efforts this could not be saved. But the remaining holy works were preserved and they finally edited in the council of Valabhi (Gujarat) in the year after Mahāvīra under the leadership of Devarddhi and first time put down in script (till then, all the holy "scriptures" are said to have been committed only orally from teacher to pupil). The canon of Śvetāmbaras of today is according to their opinion, the corpus of work, which was fixed at time.
Digambaras agree with Svetāmbaras that Bhadrabāhu is considered to be the last teacher with knowledge of 14 Pūrvas. But according to them, the genuine canon is also forgotten. Subsequently the people who knew were few and finally only a fragmentary portion was written down by Puşpadanta and Bhūtabali, in the year 683 after Mahāvīra. Since then, all knowledge about the doctrine proclaimed by Mahāvīra could not anymore be derived from the Angas, but only from the works whose contents rest indirectly upon the lost canon.
While thus Śvetāmbaras boast to possess even today the genuine canon, albeit in incomplete form, Digambaras are of view that the canon is lost once for all and that the holy scriptures of Śvetāmbaras are not genuine; a collection of books written in a later period serve them as a guiding principle of their faith. They can be regarded as a secondary canon" in view of the authority they enjoy.
2.1 The meaning of Jaina Agama The preaching of nirgranthas (niggantha pavayana), Lord Mahāvīra and his disciples are called Agama. Agama is also known as Sūtra, grantha, śāsana, jñāna, vācanā, upadeśa, or pravacana. According to Śvetāmbara Jainas, the total number of authentic agamas is now deemed to be 45. They are:
a. Eleven Angas: 1. Āyāranga, 2. Sūyagadanga, 3. Thānānga, 4. Samavāyānga, 5. Viyāhapannatti,
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