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The Life And Mission of Shrimad Räjchandra
Shrimad Rajchandra Jivankala written by revered Brahmachäriji)
Translation by Manu Doshi
A Note from the Translators
Jivankalä depicting the biography of Shrimad Räjchandra was initially prepared by revered Brahmachäriji in 1934 during the presence of Laghuräjswämi and had received his approval. While dedicating it Brahmachäriji had written, "The contact of the rare, sagacious saint Laghuräjswämi has been instrumental in making my human life fruitful. Inheriting realization from Shrimad Räjchandra he has been endeavoring to instill its taste among others even at the old age of 80. Since this book could be prepared by virtue of his ascetic power, 1 humbly offer this flowerpetal at his feet."
It was later revised and some additional matter was inserted therein. The second edition of the book was accordingly published by Shrimad Räjchandra Ashram, Agäs in 1944. What Brahmachäriji had written on that occasion has been given herewith under the title "A few words from the Author'. A few additions were made thereafter while bringing out subsequent editions. The latest one is twelfth published in 2002.
Shrimad was the most enlightened personality that the world has seen during last few centuries. Even Mahätmä Gändhi took him as his spiritual Guide and has paid glorious tributes to him in his autobiography and on various other occasions. Jivankala' was instrumental in bringing me in contact with Shrimad's writings. After I went a little deep into it, I thought that if his life story is available in English language, it could be helpful in sending the message of pure Jainism to the English-speaking people. That gave me an inclination to write a short biography of the great man. It took concrete shape, when the Trustees of Agäs Ashram asked me to prepare the translation of Jivankalä. Initially I had a little the hesitation in accepting the assignment, because I was not feeling sure of my competency to undertake the task. Surprisingly however, as I started writing, the right English equivalents for the Gujarati terms continued to occur and I have been able to complete the work within a span of five months.
While preparing this translation I have remained faithful to the original matter and the structure of the book. The poems given in chapter 5 on 'Female Morality and chapter 9 on 'Shrimad's Writings Prior To Age 20' are significant for their poetic beauty. The prose translation cannot display that beauty. I was therefore looking for someone, who can render the poetic version thereof. Since no help was forthcoming, I have prepared the poetic version for a few of them leaving out the rest.
Similarly, the highest significance of Shrimad's mnemonic capability lay in orderly arranging the matter of 16 different languages based on the letters received at random. Since English was one of the languages, I had an intention to give it as a specimen. But the matter was unavailable and I had to satisfy myself by giving only the specimen of Sanskrit language in chapter 8.
There has also been a slight deviation in chapter 25. Quotations from Pushpamälä given therein contain a sentence, which has been left incomplete. Since that would not have any significance to the readers in the West, I have dropped it from the translation. Moreover, the main purpose of this translation was to present the original matter in simple English so that the English speaking public can get a clear idea of Shrimad's life and mission. With that end in view, I have split the complex sentences, where they seemed rather complicated.
A note for pronouncing the proper names and the transcribed words: In English the letter 'a' is used for making different pronunciations as in machine', mark, and 'mad'. For spelling proper
