Sthulabhadra (297-198 BCE) was the founder of Svetambara Jain order during a 12-year famine in

Maurya empire The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...

in third or fourth-century BC. He was a disciple of

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''. ...

and Sambhutavijaya. His father was Sakatala, a minister in

Nanda kingdom The Nanda dynasty ruled in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent during the fourth century BCE, and possibly during the fifth century BCE. The Nandas overthrew the Shaishunaga dynasty in the Magadha region of eastern India, and expanded ...

before the arrival of

Chandragupta Maurya Chandragupta Maurya (350-295 BCE) was a ruler in Ancient India who expanded a geographically-extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty. He reigned from 320 BCE to 298 BCE. The Maurya kingdom expanded to become an empi ...

. When his brother became the chief minister of the kingdom, Sthulabhadra became a

Jain monk Jain monasticism refers to the order of monks and nuns in the Jain community and can be divided into two major denominations: the ''Digambara'' and the ''Śvētāmbara''. The monastic practices of the two major sects vary greatly, but the maj ...

. He is mentioned in the 12th-century

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 ...

Hemachandra Hemachandra was a 12th century () Indian Jain saint, scholar, poet, mathematician, philosopher, yogi, grammarian, law theorist, historian, lexicographer, rhetorician, logician, and prosodist. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gain ...

Life

Sthulabhadra was a son of the

Dhana Nanda Dhana Nanda (died c. 321 BCE), according to the Buddhist text '' Mahabodhivamsa'', was the last ruler of the Nanda dynasty of ancient India. He was the youngest son of Mahapadma Nanda. Chandragupta Maurya raised an army that eventually conquer ...

's minister Sakatala and brother of Shrikaya. He is traditionally dated in 297 to 198 BCE. He loved and lived with a royal dancer in Dhana Nanda's court named Rupkosa. He denied ministry after the death of his father and became a

. His brother became the chief minister in Nanda empire later. He became a disciple of Sambhutavijaya (347-257 BCE) and

(322-243 BCE). He led an ascetic life for 12 years. He spent his ''

chaturmas Chaturmasya ( sa, चातुर्मास्य, lit=Cāturmāsya), also rendered Chāturmāsa, is a holy period of four months, beginning on Shayani Ekadashi—the eleventh day of the bright half, Shukla paksha, of Ashadha (fourth month of ...

'' at Rupkosa's home, during which she tried to lure him away from ascetic life but failed. Sthulabhadra in turn gave her vows of a Shravika (Jain laywoman). He is said to have learned the 14 ''purvas'' (pre-canons) from Bhadrabahu and is considered as last Shrut Kevali(all knower of Jain Scriptures) in Svetambara tradition, a claim which is rejected by

Digambara ''Digambara'' (; "sky-clad") is one of the two major schools of Jainism, the other being ''Śvētāmbara'' (white-clad). The Sanskrit word ''Digambara'' means "sky-clad", referring to their traditional monastic practice of neither possessing n ...

tradition. He was succeeded by his disciples Mahagiri and Suhasti. Digambara texts state that Sthulabhadra permitted the use loincloth during the 12-year famine, a practice that started the Svetambara order.Sthulabhadra, Ganesh Lalwani, Jain Journal, April 1985, p. 152 He is mentioned in the 12th-century Jain text by

References

Citations

Sources

* * * Jain acharyas Place of birth unknown 297 BC births 198 BC deaths Indian Jain monks 3rd-century BC Indian Jains 3rd-century BC Jain monks 3rd-century BC Indian monks 2nd-century BC Indian Jains 2nd-century BC Jain monks 2nd-century BC Indian monks Śvētāmbara monks {{India-reli-bio-stub