Teacher of Humanity

Author(s): C S Mallinath
Publisher: Pulchandji Ved

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that honour, not as being conferred on himself, as he modestly deemed he did not deserve it, but as being conferred on a Jain Sadhu. In consequence of the Acharyapada bestowed on him, the name Dharma Vijaya was changed into Vijaya Dharma, as is often done in the case of Jaini Acharyas, and the appendage of Suri was added to
it.
Vijaya Dharma Suri now thought of leaving Benares, in order to carry on his mission of preaching and propagating the religion of the Jina in other places. Before he commenced his journey, he caused a Pashushala, hospital for animals, to be established in Benares, in order to relieve the sufferings of the poor dumb animals,
Towards the end of 1911 Vijaya Dharma Suri left Benares and passing through Ayodlıya, Fyzabad, Lucknow, Cawnpore, Kanauj, Farrukhabad, Kayamganj and Firozabad he reached Agra just before the rainy season of 1912. Here he spent the Chaturmasa, the four months of the rainy season, caused a library to be opened and a free dispensary to be started, the funds for both the institutions having been provided by Sheth Laxmichand, a wealthy and generous-hearted gentleman of the place. During this stay at Agra, he caused a Gurukula, an institution in the form of a boarding-school, to be opened at Palitana, and
called it the Yashovijaya Jaina Gurukula.