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Jaina Canonical Literature
: 187
Svetāmbara and Digambara traditions. But Digambara tradition holds that out of twelve Argas, only some portions of Drstivāda are available, rest eleven Argas are extinct. On the basis of remaining portions of Drstivāda the works of Digambara tradition like Șatkhandāgama, Kasāyapāhuda and some other are composed. Digambaras accept that there were fourteen Angabāhya Āgamas, but they are also not available in their original form. Among the Angabāhya Agamas accepted to Digambara tradition, names of Sāmāyika, Stavana, Vandana, Pratikramaņa, Kāyotsarga, Pratyākhyāna, Kalpa, Vyavahāra, Uttarādhyayana, Daśavaikālika and Kalpyākalpya (Kalpikākalpikā) are also found in the list of the Nandīsūtra of Svetāmbara tradition. Rşibhāșita, an old Angabāhya-agama, is found only in Tattavärthabhāsya and Nandisātra. It has no mention in the list of Digambara tradition. Similarly the names of Pundarīka and Mahā-pundarika found in the list of Digambara tradition are absent in the list of Śvetāmbara tradition.
Unfortunately, all the works mentioned in Nandisūtra are not available today. Some of them are lost. Out of the twelve Angaāgamas, the 7th chapter of Acārānga (Mahāparijñā) and the major portion of Dșstivāda are said to be extinct. So far as the subjectmatter of 7th chapter of Ācārānga is concerned, in my opinion, it was mainly related to the Jinakalpa or strict code of conduct of naked monks. When the followers of this strict code of conduct disappeared gradually, no serious efforts were made to restore it and finally it was lost. Likewise, the twelfth Anga Drstivāda, which is said to be containing five parts (i) Parikarma, (ii) Sūtra, (iii) Pūrvagata, (iv) Anuyoga and (v) Cūlikā, seems to have dealt mainly with the philosophical doctrines of other schools of thought including the Pārsva tradition. Pūrvagata, the third part of Drstivāda exclusively dealt with the doctrines of Pārsva tradition, which later on was accepted as the doctrines of Mahāvīra. All these works were preserved only through the oral tradition, because Jaina monks and nuns were strictly prohibited to write on palm-leaves due to the strict observance
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