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Sagarmal Jain: Jain Literature
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In the beginning of c. 3rd A.D. several independent works were composed on various secular subjects, such as, Astronomy, Astrology, Geography, Mathematics, Biology, Arts and Architecture, Linguistics and Medical science, i.e., Ayurveda, etc. It would be in the fitness of things to record some of the details about such works, viz. Lokavibhāga of Sarvanandi (c. 6th A.D.) and Tiloyapanṇatti of Yativṛṣabha composed in Prakṛta, are two important works on Astronomy and Geography respectivelly. Some more works like Umāsvāti's Jambudvipasamāsa and Kṣetravicāra (c. 3rd A.D.) and Bṛhatkṣetramāsa of Jinabhadragaṇi Kṣamāśramaņa (c. 7th A.D.) also dealt with Geography and some aspects of Jaina cosmology. Among these works. Kṣetravicāra is not available today. Jīvasamāsa and Jīvavicāra as well as Tandulavaicārika are the works, dealing with Jaina Biology, Pūjyapāda-Devanandi (c. 6th A.D.) had composed a treatise named Vaidyakaśāstra dealing with Ayurvedic medicines, but this work is also not available. Jyotiṣakarandaka is a prakirṇaka which also deals with Jaina Astrology. In the field of Grammer, Jainendra Vyakarana or Aindravyākarana of Indranandi (c. 6th A.D.), Śākaṭāyayaṇa Vyākaraṇa of Sākaṭāyana (c. 9th A.D.) and Svayambhuvyākaraṇa of Tribhuvana Svayambhu (c. 8th A.D.) are regarded as important works on grammer. Thakkaraperu's works Ratnaparikṣā and Dhātu-parikṣā as well as Vāstusara also belong to this category. It shows that Jain scholars have also written various works on secular subjects.
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