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Seventh Chapter
OUR ĀCĀRYAS, PILGRIMAGES,
TEMPLES AND IMAGES
LEADING JAIN ĀCĀRYAS
There have been thousands of Jain ācāryas (spiritual leaders or heads of specific groups of ascetics) in the lineage of Bhagavāna Mahāvīra for last two thousand five hundred years. With the purity of their knowledge and unblemished conduct they have not allowed the lamp lit by Bhagavāna Mahāvīra to be extinguished, in fact, they have kept it aflame. It would be appropriate to briefly introduce some of those brilliant ācāryas here.
On the day of Bhagavāna Mahāvīra's nirvana his principle disciple Ganadhara Indrabhūti Gautama attained Kevala-jñāna or omniscience. On the day of Indrabhūti's nirvana Sudharmā Swāmi attained omniscience. On the day of Sudharmā Swāmī's nirvana Jambū Swāmi attained omniscience. After this the lineage of those who attained omniscience (Anubaddha Kevalīs) ended. The last person to attain omniscience was Śrīdhara.
This was followed by the lineage of Śruta-kevali (those who acquire complete canonical knowledge given by Bhagavāna Mahāvīra) who were five in number - Nandi, Nandimitra, Aparājita, Govardhana, and Bhadrabāhu. Up to this point the Tirthařkara's Word in the form of twelve Angas was intact. There came a gradual decline in human capacity to understand and memorize. Ten ācāryas after Bhadrabāhu had the knowledge of eleven Angas and only ten of the fourteen Pūrvas
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