The ''Kalpa Sūtra'' ( sa, कल्पसूत्र) is a

Jain text 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 ...

containing the biographies of the

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 ...

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a 'ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the ''dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable passag ...

s, notably

Parshvanatha ''Parshvanatha'' (), also known as ''Parshva'' () and ''Parasnath'', was the 23rd of 24 ''Tirthankaras'' (supreme preacher of dharma) of Jainism. He is the only Tirthankara who gained the title of ''Kalīkālkalpataru (Kalpavriksha in this "Kal ...

and

Mahavira Mahavira (Sanskrit: महावीर) also known as Vardhaman, was the 24th ''tirthankara'' (supreme preacher) of Jainism. He was the spiritual successor of the 23rd ''tirthankara'' Parshvanatha. Mahavira was born in the early part of the 6t ...

. Traditionally ascribed to

Bhadrabahu Ācārya Bhadrabāhu (c. 367 - c. 298 BC) was, according to the ''Digambara'' sect of Jainism, the last '' Shruta Kevalin'' (all knowing by hearsay, that is indirectly) in Jainism . He was the last ''acharya'' of the undivided Jain ''sangha''. ...

, which would place it in the 4th century BCE, it was probably put in writing 980 or 993 years after the ''Nirvana'' (''

Moksha ''Moksha'' (; sa, मोक्ष, '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'' and ''mukti'', is a term in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. In its soteriology, ...

'') of Mahavira.

History

Within the six sections of the Jain literary corpus belonging to the Svetambara school, it is classed as one of the Cheda Sūtras. This Sutra contains detailed life histories and, from the mid-15th century, was frequently illustrated with miniature painting. The oldest surviving copies are written on paper in western India in the 14th century. The Kalpa Sutra is ascribed to

, traditionally said to have composed it some 150 years after the ''Nirvāṇa'' (

samadhi ''Samadhi'' (Pali and sa, समाधि), in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Ashtanga Yoga ...

) of Mahavira. It was compiled probably during the reign of

Dhruvasena The Maitraka dynasty ruled western India (now Gujarat) from approximately 475 to approximately 776 CE from their capital at Vallabhi. With the sole exception of Dharapaṭṭa (the fifth king in the dynasty), who followed the Mithraic mysteries, ...

, 980 or 993 years after Mahavira's death.

Importance

The book is read and illustrated in an eight-day-long festival of

Paryushan Das Lakshana'' or ''Paryushana is the most important annual holy event for Jains and is usually celebrated in August or September in Hindi calendar (indian calendar) Bhadrapad Month's Shukla Paksha. Jains increase their level of spiritual inte ...

by Jain monks for general people. Only monks can read the scriptures, as in Jainism, this book has very high spiritual values. Kalpasutra Mahavira Nirvana

Kalpasutra mentions nine Ganas and 11

Ganadhara In Jainism, the term Ganadhara is used to refer the chief disciple of a ''Tirthankara''. In ''samavasarana'', the ''Tīrthankara'' sat on a throne without touching it (about two inches above it). Around, the ''Tīrthankara'' sits the ''Ganad ...

s of

is mentioned as prime Ganadhara of Mahavira. Bhadrabahu's disciple Godasa is mentioned to have founded Godasa Gana.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * *"The Kalpa Sûtra" translated in English by

Hermann Jacobi Hermann Georg Jacobi (11 February 1850 – 19 October 1937) was an eminent German Indologist. Education Jacobi was born in Köln (Cologne) on 11 February 1850. He was educated in the gymnasium of Cologne and then went to the University of Be ...

is published by Motilal Banarsidass Publishers in Delhi in " The

Sacred Books of the East The ''Sacred Books of the East'' is a monumental 50-volume set of English translations of Asian religious texts, edited by Max Müller and published by the Oxford University Press between 1879 and 1910. It incorporates the essential sacred texts ...

" (Vol 22) (1989)

External links

; Translations
Kalpa Sutra text (1884 English translation)

The Kalpa sutra, and Nava tatva (1848 English translation)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalpa Sutra Atomism Jain texts Indian biographies