Muni Jinvijayji (27 January 1888 ― 3 June 1976) was a scholar of
orientalism,
archeology,
indology
Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies.
The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') is ...
and
Jainism
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 bein ...
from India.
Biography
Jinvijay was born in Rupaheli, Mewad near
Udaipur
Udaipur () ( ISO 15919: ''Udayapura''), historically named as Udayapura, is a city and municipal corporation in Udaipur district of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is the administrative headquarter of Udaipur district. It is the historic cap ...
on 27 January 1888 to Vriddhisinh and Rajkumari. His birth name was Kishansinh Parmar. He lost his parents at early age and after his contact with Muni Devihans, he was interested in Jainism. He was initiated as
Sthanakvasi Jain monk in 1903. He was later initiated in ''Samvegi'' order of
Shvetambara Jain monk and was given new name, Muni Jinvijay. He learned
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
and
Prakrit
The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...
literature under Kantivijay, a Jain ascetic from
Patan, Gujarat
Patan () is the administrative seat of Patan District in the Indian state of Gujarat and is an administered municipality. It was the capital of Gujarat's Chavda and Chaulukya dynasties in medieval times, and is also known as Anhilpur-Pata ...
.
Being bored of conventional life of ascetic, he renounced monkhood and decided to live as a professor.
He joined
Gujarat Vidyapith
Gujarat Vidyapith is a deemed university in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It was founded in 1920 by Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of the Indian independence movement, and deemed a university in 1963.
Etymology
"Vidyapith," in many languages of ...
as a principal of archeology department for few years on invitation of
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
.
He went to Germany in 1928 to study
Indology
Indology, also known as South Asian studies, is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent, and as such is a subset of Asian studies.
The term ''Indology'' (in German, ''Indologie'') is ...
. He returned to India in 1929. He participated in the
Salt March
The Salt March, also known as the Salt Satyagraha, Dandi March and the Dandi Satyagraha, was an act of nonviolent civil disobedience in colonial India led by Mahatma Gandhi. The twenty-four day march lasted from 12 March to 6 April 1930 as a di ...
of
Indian independence movement
The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947.
The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...
in 1930 and was imprisoned at
Nasik Jail where he met
K. M. Munshi
Kanhaiyalal Maneklal Munshi (; 30 December 1887 – 8 February 1971), popularly known by his pen name Ghanshyam Vyas, was an Indian independence movement activist, politician, writer and educationist from Gujarat state. A lawyer by profession, ...
. He joined
Shantiniketan
Santiniketan is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendranath Tagore, and later expanded by his s ...
as a professor of Jain literature and taught there from 1932 to 1936. He headed archeology department of
Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in 1939. He became honorary director of
Rajasthan Oriental Research Institute
Rajasthan Oriental Research Institute is an organisation established by Government of Rajasthan to promote Rajasthani culture and heritage and to accumulate and maintain the old Rajansthani folk art work and folk literature. It was established in ...
in 1950. He served as a head of history and archeology department of
Gujarati Sahitya Parishad
Gujarati Sahitya Parishad () is a literary organisation for the promotion of Gujarati literature located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It was founded by Ranjitram Mehta with the aim of creating literature appealing to all classes of society an ...
.
He retired in 1967. He died following lung cancer on 3 June 1976 at
Ahmedabad.
Works
He had published more than 20 books and edited and translated several others.
Selected works
* ''A catalogue of Sanskrit and Prakrit manuscripts in the Rajasthan Oriental Research Institute : Jodhpur collection''
* '' Prabandhakośa'' (editor)
* '' Prabandhacintāmaṇi'' (editor)
* ''Puratana Prabandha Sangraha
The ''Puratana Prabandha Sangraha'' ("Collection of Old Prabandhas") is a collection of Sanskrit-language legendary biographies and anecdotes written by multiple Jain authors of India. It was edited by the Jain monk Jinvijay from several manuscript ...
'' (editor), 1936
* ''Kumārapāla caritrasaṃgraha''
* ''Karṇāmṛta-prapā''
* ''Hetubinduṭīkā''
* ''Auktikapada''
* ''Uktiyaka''
* ''Sandesh Rasak Sandesh may refer to:
*Sandesh (confectionery), a Bengali sweet prepared in Bangladesh and India
* ''Sandesh'' (magazine), a children's magazine in West Bengal
* ''Sandesh'' (Indian newspaper), a Gujarati newspaper
* ''Sandesh'' (Pakistani newspap ...
'', 1945
Recognition
He was awarded the Padma Shri
Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
, the fourth highest civilian award in India, in 1961 for his contributions in field of literature and education.
References
External links
* *
{{authority control
Indian Jain monks
1888 births
1976 deaths
Religion academics
Indian Sanskrit scholars
Indian Indologists
20th-century Indian archaeologists
Gujarati-language writers
Recipients of the Padma Shri in literature & education
20th-century Indian Jain writers
20th-century Jain monks
20th-century Indian monks
20th-century Indian scholars
20th-century Indian translators
People from Udaipur
Indian religious writers
Scholars from Rajasthan