Acharya In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a preceptor and expert instructor in matters such as religion, or any other subject. An acharya is a highly learned person with a tit ...

Tulsi (20 October 1914 – 23 June 1997) was a prominent

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

religious leader. He was the founder of the Anuvrata movement and the Jain Vishva Bharti Institute, Ladnun, and the author of over one hundred books. Acharya Mahapragya, Acharya Mahashraman and Sadhvipramukha Kanakprabha were his disciples.

Biography

Acharya Tulsi was born on 20 October 1914 in

Ladnun Ladnu, also Ladnun, is a city and a municipality, nearby Nagaur city in Nagaur district in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is a Tehsil headquarters of Nagaur district. This city is famous as the birthplace of sacred Jain Aacharya Tulsi. It i ...

, in present

Nagaur district Nagaur district is one of the 33 districts of the state of Rajasthan in western India. Panchayati Raj was introduced here. It is the fifth largest district in Rajasthan and the area of the district is . The city of Nagaur is the district headqua ...

of Rajasthan, to Vadana and Jhumarmal Khater. Acharya Kalugani, then the leader of the Svetambar Terapanth Sangh, greatly influenced Tulsi. Tulsi was initiated into monkhood at age 11 in 1925. In 1936, Kalugani nominated Tulsi to be his successor in Gangapur at Rang Bhawan-the house of Ranglal Hiran, making him the ninth Acharya of the Terapanth Sangha. During his leadership of the Sangha, he initiated more than 776 monks and nuns.

Scholarship

In the 1970s, Acharya Tulsi began researching, compiling translations and commentaries on the

Jain Agamas Jain literature (Sanskrit: जैन साहित्य) refers to the literature of the Jain religion. It is a vast and ancient literary tradition, which was initially transmitted orally. The oldest surviving material is contained in the ca ...

. Acharya Tulsi, along with Yuvacharya Mahapragya, sought to rediscover

Jain meditation Jain meditation (''dhyāna'') has been the central practice of spirituality in Jainism along with the Three Jewels. Jainism holds that emancipation can only be achieved through meditation or Shukla Dhyana.' According to Sagarmal Jain, it aims t ...

and termed it ''preksha dhyan''.

Anuvrat movement

In 1949 he launched the Anuvrat movement (anu = small, vrat=vow, Anuvratas are the limited version of the

Mahavrata Jain ethical code prescribes two ''dharmas'' or rules of conduct. One for those who wish to become ascetic and another for the ''śrāvaka'' (householders). Five fundamental vows are prescribed for both votaries. These vows are observed by '' ...

s for the monks), based on the five Jain principles Truth, Nonviolence, Non possession, Non-stealing and Celibacy as applied in their limited version for the lay people. The movement encouraged people to apply the Anuvratas in their personal lives, even when dealing with non-religious aspects of the society. The movement also held that

dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

is not for ensuring happiness in the future lives but also for achieving happiness in the present life. The movement has continued under the leadership of his disciple Yuvacharya Mahapragya. He was raised to the rank of the ''

acharya In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a preceptor and expert instructor in matters such as religion, or any other subject. An acharya is a highly learned person with a tit ...

'' by Acharya Tulsi himself.

Institutions

In 1948 Tulsi established the Parmarthik Shikshan Sanstha, a spiritual training centre for female aspirants who wanted to lead the Jain monastic lifestyle.

Jain Vishva Bharati Institute Jain Vishva Bharati Institute is a deemed university in Rajasthan. History JVBI was established with the inspiration of Acharya Tulsi, the 9th Head of the Jain Svetambar Terapanth religious sect, in Ladnun, Dist Nagaur, Rajasthan. In 20ma ...

, an education and research institute was established in 1991 with inspiration from Acharya Tulsi. Traditionally Jain monks have been prohibited from travelling overseas. Tulsi developed the Saman Order around 1980 in an effort to spread the preachings of Jainism worldwide. This order follows the lifestyle of

sadhu ''Sadhu'' ( sa, साधु, IAST: ' (male), ''sādhvī'' or ''sādhvīne'' (female)), also spelled ''saddhu'', is a religious ascetic, mendicant or any holy person in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism who has renounced the worldly life. Th ...

s and sadhvis with two exceptions: They are granted permission to use means of transportation. They are allowed to take food which is prepared for them. This order can be termed as the link between the normal households and the Jain monks and nun.

As a wandering ascetic

Jain monks and nuns remain under a vow of moving on foot all their life. In Tulsi's lifetime he covered more than 70,000 km. His major wanderings included: * 1949: From Bikaner to Jaipur, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and back to Rajasthan. * 1955: From Rajasthan to Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and back to Rajasthan. * 1958: From Rajasthan to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Bengal, again Bihar, Uttar pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and back to Rajasthan. * 1966: From Rajasthan to Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and back to Rajasthan. * 1974: From Rajasthan to Haryana, Delhi, Punjab, and back to Rajasthan. * 1981: From Rajasthan to Haryana, Delhi and back to Rajasthan. * 1987: From Rajasthan to Haryana and Delhi and back to Rajasthan. In the course of these travels, Tulsi visited numerous communities and preached to Anuvrat-oriented life.

Call for Jain unity

Acharya Tulsi proposed harmonious cooperation among various Jain sects. To this end, he supported Acharya Vinoba Bhave in the publication of '' Samana Suttam'' a book accepted by all sects.

Recognition

* Title of Yug Pradhan in 1971 by the

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Murmu ...

V. V. Giri Varahagiri Venkata Giri (; 10 August 1894 — 24 June 1980) was an Indian politician and activist from Berhampur in Odisha who served as the 4th president of India from 24 August 1969 to 24 August 1974. He also 3rd vice president of India from ...

* Bharat Jyoti Award * Vakpati Award * The Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration in 1993 * A memorial named Mahashila Abhilekh has been erected in his memory in the village of Todgarh. * Coins of denomination of five Indian rupees issued in 2013, on the centennial of Tulsi's birth. * On 20 October 1998, the

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Krishan Kant Krishan Kant (28 February 1927 – 27 July 2002) was an Indian politician who served as the tenth vice president of India from 1997 until his death 2002. Formerly, he was the governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1990 to 1997. He was a member of Lok ...

released an Indian commemorative three-rupee postage stamp of Tulsi. Kant said that the Tulsi gave a new and contemporary direction to the high ideals of Jainism. * Coins: In 2014, the

Reserve Bank of India The Reserve Bank of India, chiefly known as RBI, is India's central bank and regulatory body responsible for regulation of the Indian banking system. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It is responsible for ...

issued two coins featuring Acharya Tulsi, five rupees made of nickel-brass5 Rupees Coin of 2013 Acharya Tulsi Birth Centenary
Youtube and 20 rupees. Finance Minister Shri P. Chidambaram released the commemorative coins to commemorate the birth centenary of Acharya Tulsi at Bikaner. * Acharya Tulsi Marg:

Salkia Salkia is a neighbourhood of Howrah city in Howrah district, West Bengal, India and is administered by the Howrah Municipal Corporation. Salkia is under the jurisdiction of Golabari Police Station and Malipanchghara Police Station of Howrah Ci ...

School Road, the most important road of Uttar Howrah, was renamed after the ninth Acharya Ganadhipati Acharya Tulsi of Terapanth Dharma Sangh on 9 February 2020. The programme was inaugurated by Cooperative Minister Arup Rai.

Acharya Tulsi Award

* Acharya Tulsi Kartitva Puruskar is an honour bestowed by the All Indian Terapanth Mahila Mandal. This award acknowledges any notable contribution by any woman or organization of women in the fields of religion, women empowerment, science, education, literature, arts, cultural studies, administration, social welfare etc. * This award was conceptualized in 2003 and till now awardees include Smt. Purnima Advani, the then president of Rashtriya Mahila Ayog, Smt. Kiran Bedi, the first woman IPS of India, Smt. Savitri Jindal, former member of Parliament of Haryana and a leading industrialist, and to Smt. Nilima Khaitan, the chief executive of Seva Mandir, Udaipur. * Dr. Sumitra Mahajan, past speaker of the 16th Lok Sabha has been nominated as awardee for 2019 for her outstanding contribution to society. She has been elected to the Lok Sabha eight times, one of only three members to do so. She is also the longest serving woman member. In the 2014 general elections, she amassed 4,66,901 votes and won a seat by the highest margin of votes in Madhya Pradesh.

References

External links

* आचार्य तुलसी नगर का शिलान्यास, 6 December 2013, http://dainiktribuneonline.com/2013/12/आचार्य-तुलसी-नगर-का-शिलान/ * कवि सम्मेलन में आचार्य तुलसी की महिमा का गुणगान Bhaskar News NetworkJul 06, 2015, http://www.bhaskar.com/news/RAJ-OTH-MAT-latest-beawer-news-022503-2200891-NOR.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Tulsi (Jain faith) People from Rajasthan 1914 births 1997 deaths Jain acharyas Indian founders Indian Jain monks 20th-century Indian Jain writers 20th-century Jain monks 20th-century Indian monks Jain reformers Śvētāmbara monks