Studies in the Bhagavati Sutra

Author(s): J C Sikdar
Publisher: Research Institute of Prakrit Jainology & Ahimsa Mujjaffarpur

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GENERAL EDITOR'S NOTE
The Viyāhapannatti (Vyākhyāprajñapti) or the Bhagavatī, as it is popularly known, is the fifth Anga of the Jaina scripture. It is encyclopædic in contents and gives a comprehensive glimpse of the various aspects of the life and society of ancient India over a range of several centuries beginning from the 6th century B. C. One can learn from it everything about ancient Jainism-its traditions and history, dogmatics, the life and activities of Lord Mahāvīra and his attitude towards other sects and thinkers and his peculiar method of exposition and expression. The Bhagavati is also a veritable promptuary of legends and parables,
Dr. Sikdar studied the text of the Bhagavatāsūtra with great care and patience under the guidance of two very eminent savantsthe late Dr. P. C. Bagcbi and Dr. H. L. Jain. His studies spread over a number of years, primarily at Viśva-Bhāratī University and later on at our Institute. As a devoted student of Ancient Indian History and Culture, he could with ease glean data from the Ardhamāgadhi text and weave them into a connected history of the various aspects of our ancient culture, political and economic conditions, social life and education. He bas also made an attempt to study the evolution of Jaina philosophical thought as embodied in the Bhagavatīsūtra and also the literary value of the work.
The tenets of Jainism in their original character have been fully preserved in the Bhagavatīsūtra, and their critical study, with a special reference to the corresponding ideas and concepts of Buddhism and other contemporary schools of thought, still remains a desideratum. Brilliant researches have been made in the field of general history and culture, but the specific issues and their bearing on our history and culture still remain obscure. This is even more true in the field of tenets and dogmas. Scholars should therefore come forward to evaluate the philosophical con