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182 1: Śramaņa, Vol 59, No. 2/April-June 2008
and Mulagana are synonymous; therefore, Mulasamgha is actually the earlier name of the Yapaniya-Samgha. In due course, when the Yapaniya-Samgha was merged into the Nirgrantha Digambara tradition, the Digambara and Mūlasamgha became synonymous.
Bhagavatī Ārādhanā by Śivārya is also a work of the Yapaniya tradition, as its comrnentator Aparajitasūri was undoubtedly an Yapaniya. Even the Digambara origin of Vaddha-ārādhanā and another ārādhanā also does not prove that the original work was of Digambara origin. Many Śvetambara masters such as Haribhadra, Yasovijaya, etc. cannot be Digambara or Bauddha just because they have written commentaries on many Digambara and Buddhist works. The place of honour that Siddhasena Divakara has gained in the Digambara tradition is only because of the qualitative merit of his work. In my book, Jaina Dharma Kā Yāpanīya Sampradāya', I have clearly proved that Siddhasena Divakara, the author of 'Sanmatitarka' was the predecessor of the Śvetāmbara and Yāpanīya traditions. It is surprising that a serious scholar of History like Dr. Nagarajaiah has written that Abhayadeva, the commentator of Sanmatitarka was a Digambara. In the commentary itself Abhayadeva has mentioned himself as a disciple of Pradyumnasūri of Candragaccha. Not only this, in the last colophon of the Pārsvanatha-carita, he has been mentioned as Svetambara grāmanīya. Dr. Nagarajaiah contention that Siddhasena and Jaṭāsimhanandi were Neo-Digambaras is not logical. Siddhasena was a ācārya prior to the sectarian division and Jațasimhanandi was clearly an Yapaniya. The belief that all the ācāryas having 'sena' in his names are from the Sena sect is also not true. In all the three traditions - Digambara, Śvetāmbara and Yāpaniya - there have been a number of ācāryas whose names ended with the suffix 'sena! Therefore, it is not proper to call all ācāryas with the ending suffix 'sena' as Neo-Digambaras.
A sect by the name of Neo-Digambara never existed. If there ever has been any sect working as a bridge between Digambara and For Private & Personal Use Only
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