''Samayasāra'' (''The Nature of the Self'') is a famous

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 ...

composed by ''

Acharya Kundakunda 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 ...

'' in 439 verses. Its ten chapters discuss the nature of '' Jīva'' (pure self/soul), its attachment to

Karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...

and

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, ...

(liberation). ''Samayasāra'' expounds the Jain concepts like ''

'', ''

Asrava ''Asrava'' (''āsrava'' "influx") is one of the '' tattva'' or the fundamental reality of the world as per the Jain philosophy. It refers to the influence of body and mind causing the soul to generate karma. The karmic process in Jainism is ...

'' (influx of ''karmas''), Bandha (Bondage), ''

Samvara ''Samvara'' (''saṃvara'') is one of the '' tattva'' or the fundamental reality of the world as per the Jain philosophy. It means stoppage—the stoppage of the influx of the material karmas into the soul consciousness. The karmic process in ...

'' (stoppage), ''

Nirjara ''Nirjara'' is one of the seven fundamental principles, or Tattva in Jain philosophy, and refers to the shedding or removal of accumulated karmas from the atma (soul), essential for breaking free from samsara, the cycle of birth-death and re ...

'' (shedding) and

(complete annihilation of ''karmas'').

History

''Samayasara'' was written by Acharya Kundakunda in

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 ...

The original ''Samayasara'' of Kundakunda consists of 415 verses and was written in

. The first verse (

aphorism An aphorism (from Greek ἀφορισμός: ''aphorismos'', denoting 'delimitation', 'distinction', and 'definition') is a concise, terse, laconic, or memorable expression of a general truth or principle. Aphorisms are often handed down by tra ...

) of the ''Samayasāra'' is an invocation: According to ''Samayasāra'', the real self is only that soul which has achieved

ratnatraya Jainism emphasises that ratnatraya (triple gems of Jainism) — the right faith (''Samyak Darshana''), right knowledge (''Samyak Gyana'') and right conduct (''Samyak Charitra'') — constitutes the path to liberation. These are known as the tripl ...

i.e. Samyak Darshan, Samyak Gyan and Samyak Charitra. These state when soul achieves purity is Arihant and

Siddha ''Siddha'' (Sanskrit: '; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of physical as well as spiritual ...

. It can be achieved by victory over five senses. According to ''Samayasāra'':

Commentaries

It has a number of commentaries on it. ''Atmakhyati'' or ''Samayasara Kalasha'', written by Acharya

Amritchandra Amritchandra (f. 10th-century CE) was a Digambara Jain Acharya who wrote commentaries on Samayasāra called ''Atmakhyati'' and ''Samaysar Kalasha'', Pravachanasara and Pancastikayasara. He also wrote independent books of Puruşārthasiddhyupāya ...

in 12th century CE, is a 278-verse

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 ...

commentary. ''Samaysar Kalash Tika'' or ''Balbodh'' was written by Pande Rajmall or Raymall in 16th century CE. It is a commentary of Amritchandra's ''Samaysar Kalasha''. ''Nataka Samayasara'' is a commentary on Rajmall's version which was written by

Banarasidas Banarasidas (15861643) was a Shrimal Jain businessman and poet of Mughal India. He is known for his poetic autobiography - ''Ardhakathānaka'', (The Half Story), composed in Braj Bhasa, an early dialect of Hindi linked with the region around M ...

Braj Bhasha The Braj language, ''Braj Bhasha'', also known as Vraj Bhasha or Vrij Bhasha or Braj Bhāṣā or Braji or Brij Bhasha or Braj Boli, is a Western Hindi language. Along with Awadhi (a variety of Eastern Hindi), it was one of the two predominant ...

in 17th century CE.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * Prakrit Jain texts Eastern philosophical literature Ancient Indian literature Jain texts {{Jainism-book-stub

History

Contents

Commentaries

See also

References

Citations

Sources