Jinēndra Varṇī, one of the best-known

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 ...

scholars of the 20th century, is known for his pioneering five-volume ''Jainendra Siddhanta Kosha'' and ''

Saman Suttam ''Saman Suttam'' is the religious text created in 1974 by a committee consisting of representatives of each of the major sects of Jainism, Digambaras and Svetambaras, to reconcile the teachings of the sects. After a gap of about nearly two tho ...

'' compilation,Progressive Jains of India By Satish Kumar Jain, 1975, Shraman Sahitya Sansthan the first text accepted by all Jain orders in 1800 years. Jinēndra Varṇī was born in

Panipat Panipat () is a historic city in Haryana, India. It is 95 km north of Delhi and 169 km south of Chandigarh on NH-1. The three major battles fought in 1526, 1556 and 1761 took place near the city. The city is famous in India as the "C ...

in the year 1922 to a prominent

Agrawal Jain Agrawals are the descendent of Maharaja Agrasen who was a legendary Indian king of Agroha, a city of traders. He is the descendant of Kush, son of lord Ram and he was born in 35th generation after lord Ram. He is credited with the establishment ...

family. He struggled all his life with health problems. In 1938 he lost one lung due to

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in w ...

. Still he studied electrical and wireless

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

. Jinēndra Varṇī left home in 1957 and during his wanderings he joined the well-known

Ganesh Varni Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

, who ordained him a kṣullaka or junior monk. However, he was unable to follow the

vrata Vrata is a Sanskrit word that means "vow, resolve, devotion", and refers to pious observances such as fasting and pilgrimage ( Tirtha) found in Indian religions such as Jainism and Hinduism. It is typically accompanied with prayers seeking hea ...

s of a ''kṣullaka'' due to his health problems and returned to being a Śrāvaka. In 1983, approaching death, Jinēndra Varṇī began

Sallekhana ''Sallekhana'' (IAST: ), also known as ''samlehna'', ''santhara'', ''samadhi-marana'' or ''sanyasana-marana'', is a supplementary vow to the ethical code of conduct of Jainism. It is the religious practice of voluntarily fasting to death by ...

on 12 April 1983 and was ordained again a ''kṣullaka'' by

Acharya Vidyasagar Acharya Shri Vidyasagarji Maharaj (born 10 October 1946) is a ''Digambara'' Jain ''Acharya'' (Digambar Jain Monk) in present time. He is recognized both for his scholarship and ''tapasya'' (austerity). He is known for his long hours in meditati ...

. He died in

samādhi ''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 ...

on 24 May 1983.

See also

References

Further reading