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philosophical systems or religions from the Vedas, Śrīmad frankly declares that the preaching of great persons such as the Tirthankaras contains a thousand times more knowledge than the Vedas, and he defines ārya dharma in terms of ātma dharma. He also comes out with the important doctrine of the six padas or statements of ātma dharma or ātma siddhi, such as the existence of the ātman, its eternity, its agency and the endurance of karmas by the atman, the liberation of the atman (from karmas), and the means of liberation. This philosophy of ātma dharma and ātma siddhi culminated in his well-known composition Ātmasiddhi in the year 1898, at the age of 29.
4. THE PERIOD OF PREPARATION FOR RENUNCIATION
The main outcome of the last period in Srīmad's life is his composition of his masterpiece, viz. the Ātmasiddhi in 1896 (V.S. 1952). It is the product of his deep philosophical thought and rich spiritual experience. Śrīmad builds his philosophy of ātma dharma and his spirituality of ātma siddhi on the foundation of the concept of the sadguru without whose guidance it is impossible for an aspirant to acquire self-knowledge and self-realization or liberation. Some important topics dealt by śrīmad in this year prior to the composition of the Atmasiddhi are the above mentioned six fundamental truths; his discussion regarding jñāna mārga, bhakti marga and karma mārga; his reference to the importance of the sadguru, satsanga, satśāstra; his mention of various possible defects in an aspirant such as kadāgraha, mithyātva, svacchandată etc.; his attempt to assert the unique place of the doctrine of ātma dharma and atma siddhi as preached by the Jain Tirthařkaras; Srimad's burning passion to renovate, reform and re-establish the 'original' Jainism; his usual confidence of playing the role of a sadguru and a Jain dharma pravartaka, on the one hand, and his hesitation to do so because of his householder's condition etc., on the other. In our opinion, Śrīmad's reflection on all these topics might have certainly led him to the composition of the Atmasiddhi which unifies and
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