Ratnakaranda śrāvakācāra is a
Jain text
Jain literature () 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 canonical ''Jain Agamas'', which are wri ...
composed by
Aacharya Samantbhadra Swamy (second century CE), an ''
acharya
In Indian religions and society, an ''acharya'' (Sanskrit: आचार्य, IAST: ; Pali: ''ācariya'') is a religious teacher in Hinduism and Buddhism and a spiritual guide to Hindus and Buddhists. The designation has different meanings i ...
'' of the
Digambara
''Digambara'' (; "sky-clad") is one of the two major Jain schools and branches, schools of Jainism, the other being ''Śvetāmbara'' (white-clad). The Sanskrit word ''Digambara'' means "sky-clad", referring to their traditional monastic pract ...
sect of
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
. Aacharya Samantbhadra Swamy was originally from
Kanchipuram
Kanchipuram (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: '; ), also known as Kanjeevaram, is a stand alone city corporation, satellite nodal city of Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the Tondaimandalam region, from ...
,
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
. Ratnakaranda śrāvakācāra is the earliest and one of the best-known śrāvakācāra.
A śrāvakācāra discusses the conduct of a
Śrāvaka
Śrāvaka ( Sanskrit) or Sāvaka (Pali) means "hearer" or, more generally, "disciple". This term is used in Buddhism and Jainism. In Jainism, a śrāvaka is any lay Jain so the term śrāvaka has been used for the Jain community itself (for exam ...
or Jain lay practitioner. Hiralal Shastri
mentions 29 such texts from 2nd century CE to modern times.
[Shravakachara Samgraha, Part 4, Pages Ka-Kha, Hiralal Shastri, Jivaraj Jain Granthmala, 1998]
Overview
First verse of the ''Ratnakaranda śrāvakācāra'' is dedicated to
Vardhamāna Mahāvīra, the 24th
Tirthankara
In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...
:
:Namāh śri Vardhamāna-e nirdhutakalilātmane
:Sālokānāma trilokānāma yadā-vidyā darpanāyate! (1-1)
Tr.- I bow to Śri Vardhamāna Mahāvīra who has washed off
llthe impurities of
karmic filth from His Soul,
ndIn Whose Perception scintillate the three Worlds and the infinity of Space, as in a mirror !
Chapters
Seven chapters or parts of the ''Ratnakaranda śrāvakācāra'' are:
#Right Faith
#Characteristics of Right Knowledge
#''
Anuvrata''
#''Guņa vratas''
#''Śikşā vratas''
#
Sallekhanā
#Eleven
Pratimas
Translation
Ratnakaranda śrāvakācāra was first translated in English language in 1917 by
Champat Rai Jain. It was named "The Householder's Dharma" which means the conduct of a householder.
Notes
References
*
* P. S. Jaini, Reviewed work(s): Jaina Yoga: A Survey of the Mediaeval Śrāvakācāras by R. Williams, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Vol. 27, No. 3 (1964)
* Jaina yoga: a survey of the mediaeval śrāvakācāras, Volume 1 of Lala Sunder Lal Jain research series, Author R. Williams, Edition 3, Publisher Motilal Banarsidass Publ., 1991
* RATNAKARANDA SRAVAKACARA (Sanskrit-Hindi) By Acarya Samantbhadra. Translated into Hindi with 2 Appendices by Dr.
Jaykumar Jalaj. Preface by Dr. Paul Dundas, Pandit
Nathuram Premi Research Series, Volume 3.
External links
Text of Ratnakarand Shravakachar Translated by Adimati MatajiEnglish Translation of Ratnakarand Sravakachara
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratnakaranda sravakacara
Jain texts
2nd-century Sanskrit literature