Acharya Hemachandra
Encyclopedia
Acharya Hemachandra was a Jain
scholar, poet, and polymath
who wrote on grammar
, philosophy
, prosody
, and contemporary history
. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gained the title Kalikāl Sarvagya "all-knowing of the Kali Yuga
".
He was born in Dhandhuka
, Gujarat (about 100 km south west of Ahmadabad
), to Chachadeva and Pahini Devi. They named him Chandradeva. The Jain derasar
of Modhera
Tirtha
is located at his birthplace. As a young man, Chandradeva was initiated as a monk at a derasar and took the name Somachandra. He was trained in religious discourse, philosophy, logic and grammar. In 1110, at the age of 21, he was ordained as an acharya
of the Svetambara
sect of Jainism and was given the name Somachandra (popularly Hemachandra).
At the time, Gujarat was ruled by the Solanki
dynasty. Hemachandra rose to prominence under the reign of Mulraj and was an advisor to his successor Kumarpal
(1143–1173). During Kumarapala's reign, Gujarat became a reputed center of culture. Starting in 1121, Hemachandra was involved in the construction of the Jain temple at Taranga. His influence on Kumarapala resulted in the Jain religion becoming the official religion of Gujarat, and animal slaughter was banned.
gods and that he refused to bow down to Śiva
. When called upon to visit the temple
of Śiva with the king, Hemacandra readily bowed before the idol of Śiva, but said:
s of Sanskrit
and Prakrit
, texts on science and logic
and practically all branches of Indian philosophy.
His best known work, the epic poem Tri-shashthi-shalaka-purusha-charitra (Lives of Sixty-Three Great Men), is a hagiographical treatment of the sequence of teachers and their pupils who were instrumental in defining the Jaina philosophical position, their ascetisicism and eventual liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth, as well as the legendary spread of the Jaina influence. It still serves as the standard synthesis of source material for the early history of Jainism. The appendix to this work, Parishista-parvan, contains his own commentary and is in itself a treatise of considerable depth (translated into English as The Lives of the Jain Elders by Richard Fynes (Oxford University Press, 1998)).
He also wrote:
Hemachandra, following the earlier Gopala, presented an earlier version of the Fibonacci sequence. It was presented around 1150, about fifty years before Fibonacci (1202). He was considering the number of cadences of length n, and showed that these could be formed by adding a short syllable to a cadence of length n − 1, or a long syllable to one of n − 2. This recursion relation F(n) = F(n − 1) + F(n − 2) is what defines the Fibonacci sequence.
Jainism
Jainism is an Indian religion that prescribes a path of non-violence towards all living beings. Its philosophy and practice emphasize the necessity of self-effort to move the soul towards divine consciousness and liberation. Any soul that has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state...
scholar, poet, and polymath
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
who wrote on grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
, philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, prosody
Prosody (linguistics)
In linguistics, prosody is the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech. Prosody may reflect various features of the speaker or the utterance: the emotional state of the speaker; the form of the utterance ; the presence of irony or sarcasm; emphasis, contrast, and focus; or other elements of...
, and contemporary history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gained the title Kalikāl Sarvagya "all-knowing of the Kali Yuga
Kali Yuga
Kali Yuga is the last of the four stages that the world goes through as part of the cycle of yugas described in the Indian scriptures. The other ages are Satya Yuga, Treta Yuga and Dvapara Yuga...
".
He was born in Dhandhuka
Dhandhuka
Dhandhuka is a city and a municipality in Ahmedabad district in the state of Gujarat, India.- Geography :Dhandhuka is located at . It has an average elevation of 24 metres .Dhandhuka is located at 22°22′N 71°59′E / 22.37°N 71.98°E / 22.37; 71.98[1]...
, Gujarat (about 100 km south west of Ahmadabad
Ahmadabad
Ahmadabad may refer to:Afghanistan* Ahmad Abad, Afghanistan, a place in AfghanistanAzerbaijan*Əhmədabad, Goranboy, Azerbaijan*Əhmədabad, Sabirabad, Azerbaijan*Əhmədabad, Tovuz, AzerbaijanIndia* Ahmedabad , a major city in India...
), to Chachadeva and Pahini Devi. They named him Chandradeva. The Jain derasar
Derasar
A derasar is a temple for followers of Jainism, except for non-murtipujak Svetambaras. Derasar is a word used in Gujarat, Kutch and parts of Rajasthan, in other parts of India, the term Jain Mandir is used for all the Jain temples. Jain idols of Tirthankaras are worshipped there...
of Modhera
Sun Temple, Modhera
The Sun Temple, Modhera, at Modhera in Gujarat, is a temple dedicated to the Hindu Sun-God, Surya. It was built in 1026 AD by King Bhimdev of the Solanki dynasty...
Tirtha
Tirtha
In Jainism, a tīrtha |ford]], a shallow part of a body of water that may be easily crossed") is used to refer both to pilgrimage sites as well as to the four sections of the sangha...
is located at his birthplace. As a young man, Chandradeva was initiated as a monk at a derasar and took the name Somachandra. He was trained in religious discourse, philosophy, logic and grammar. In 1110, at the age of 21, he was ordained as an acharya
Acharya
In Indian religions and society, an acharya is a guide or instructor in religious matters; founder, or leader of a sect; or a highly learned man or a title affixed to the names of learned men...
of the Svetambara
Svetambara
The Śvētāmbara is one of the two main sects of Jainism, the other being the Digambar. Śvētāmbara "white-clad" is a term describing its ascetics' practice of wearing white clothes, which sets it apart from the Digambara "sky-clad" Jainas, whose ascetic practitioners go naked...
sect of Jainism and was given the name Somachandra (popularly Hemachandra).
At the time, Gujarat was ruled by the Solanki
Solanki
The Solanki was a royal Hindu Indian dynasty that ruled parts of western and central India between the 10th to 13th centuries. A number of scholars including V. A. Smith assign them Gurjar origin....
dynasty. Hemachandra rose to prominence under the reign of Mulraj and was an advisor to his successor Kumarpal
Kumarpal
Kumarpal was a famous ruler of the Solanki dynasty of Gujarat at Anahilavada, India. During his reign, Jainism became prominent in Gujarat. He was a devoted disciple of the great Jain polymath Acharya Hemachandra. Kumarpal was responsible for restoring ruined Somnath. He also built several...
(1143–1173). During Kumarapala's reign, Gujarat became a reputed center of culture. Starting in 1121, Hemachandra was involved in the construction of the Jain temple at Taranga. His influence on Kumarapala resulted in the Jain religion becoming the official religion of Gujarat, and animal slaughter was banned.
Hemachandra and Kumarapāla
Taking an approach of Anekāntavāda, Ācārya Hemacandra is said to have displayed a broad-minded attitude, which pleased Kumarpal. Certain people who were jealous of Hemacandra's rising popularity with the king complained that Hemacandra was a very arrogant person, that he did not respect the HinduHinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
gods and that he refused to bow down to Śiva
Shiva
Shiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
. When called upon to visit the temple
Hindu temple
A Mandir, Devalayam, Devasthanam, or a Hindu temple is a place of worship for followers of Hinduism...
of Śiva with the king, Hemacandra readily bowed before the idol of Śiva, but said:
I am bowing down only to that god who has destroyed the passions like attachment and hatred which are the cause of worldly life, whether he is BrahmāHe ensured that he remained true to tenets of Jainism, namely, that a Jain should bow down only to a passionless and detached God such as a Jina, and at the same time managed to please the king. Ultimately, the king became a devoted follower of Hemacandra and a champion of Jainism.BrahmaBrahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the...
, ViṣṇuVishnuVishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
, or Jina.
Works
A prodigious writer, Hemchandra wrote grammarGrammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
s of Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
and Prakrit
Prakrit
Prakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the literary and religious...
, texts on science and logic
Logic
In philosophy, Logic is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning. Logic is used in most intellectual activities, but is studied primarily in the disciplines of philosophy, mathematics, semantics, and computer science...
and practically all branches of Indian philosophy.
His best known work, the epic poem Tri-shashthi-shalaka-purusha-charitra (Lives of Sixty-Three Great Men), is a hagiographical treatment of the sequence of teachers and their pupils who were instrumental in defining the Jaina philosophical position, their ascetisicism and eventual liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth, as well as the legendary spread of the Jaina influence. It still serves as the standard synthesis of source material for the early history of Jainism. The appendix to this work, Parishista-parvan, contains his own commentary and is in itself a treatise of considerable depth (translated into English as The Lives of the Jain Elders by Richard Fynes (Oxford University Press, 1998)).
He also wrote:
- Kavyanushasana: poetics or hand book of poetry/manual of poetry.
- Desinamamala: a list of words of local origin
- Siddha-haima-shabdanushasana: PrakritPrakritPrakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the literary and religious...
and ApabhramshaApabhramshaApabhraṃśa is a term used by Sanskrit grammarians since Patañjali to refer to dialects that deviate from the norm of Sanskrit grammar. The term in Sanskrit literally means "corrupt" or "non-grammatical language". It is used as a cover term for the dialects forming the transition between the late...
grammars - Abhidhana-chintamani
- Dvyashraya-Mahakavya
Hemachandra, following the earlier Gopala, presented an earlier version of the Fibonacci sequence. It was presented around 1150, about fifty years before Fibonacci (1202). He was considering the number of cadences of length n, and showed that these could be formed by adding a short syllable to a cadence of length n − 1, or a long syllable to one of n − 2. This recursion relation F(n) = F(n − 1) + F(n − 2) is what defines the Fibonacci sequence.