Drstivada
Encyclopedia
Drstivāda is the last of the 12 Jain āgamas as per Śvetámbara
tradition said to be promulgated by Māhavīra
himself and composed by Ganadhara
Sudharmasvami. Drstivāda translated as “Disputation about views” was said to contain entire knowledge of 14 Purvas
or prior knowledge that is now considered to be totally lost. In fact, the tradition holds that Drstivāda is also completely lost. However, its contents have been referred and explained in Nandi and Samavāyānga Sūtra.
Parikarma contained Jaina calculatory science and the Sutra included discussions about creeds and doctrines. Purvagata contained fourteen subdivisions and contained discussions about Jaina doctrines and principles
. As the name suggests, Purvas
contain the knowledge prior to Mahavira
which was preserved only in oral form. Pūrvanayoga contained Puranic narratives, religious biographies as well as illustrative tales.
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...
tradition said to be promulgated by Māhavīra
Mahavira
Mahāvīra is the name most commonly used to refer to the Indian sage Vardhamāna who established what are today considered to be the central tenets of Jainism. According to Jain tradition, he was the 24th and the last Tirthankara. In Tamil, he is referred to as Arukaṉ or Arukadevan...
himself and composed by Ganadhara
Ganadhara
In Jainism, a Ganadhara "Troupe leader" is a primary disciple of a Tirthankara. All twenty-four Tirthankaras had ganadharas, but the number varied....
Sudharmasvami. Drstivāda translated as “Disputation about views” was said to contain entire knowledge of 14 Purvas
Purvas
The Fourteen Purvas, translated as ancient or prior knowledge, are a large body of Jain scriptures that was preached by all Tirthankaras of Jainism encompassing the entire gamut of knowledge available in this universe. The persons having the knowledge of purvas were given an exalted status of...
or prior knowledge that is now considered to be totally lost. In fact, the tradition holds that Drstivāda is also completely lost. However, its contents have been referred and explained in Nandi and Samavāyānga Sūtra.
Subject Matter of the Agama
Dristivāda was divided into five parts :-- Parikarma
- Sūtra
- Pūrvanayoga
- Purvgata
- Chūlikā
Parikarma contained Jaina calculatory science and the Sutra included discussions about creeds and doctrines. Purvagata contained fourteen subdivisions and contained discussions about Jaina doctrines and principles
Jain philosophy
Jain philosophy deals extensively with the problems of metaphysics, reality, cosmology, ontology, epistemology and divinity. Jainism is essentially a transtheistic religion of ancient India. It is a continuation of the ancient tradition which co-existed with the Vedic tradition since ancient...
. As the name suggests, Purvas
Purvas
The Fourteen Purvas, translated as ancient or prior knowledge, are a large body of Jain scriptures that was preached by all Tirthankaras of Jainism encompassing the entire gamut of knowledge available in this universe. The persons having the knowledge of purvas were given an exalted status of...
contain the knowledge prior to Mahavira
Mahavira
Mahāvīra is the name most commonly used to refer to the Indian sage Vardhamāna who established what are today considered to be the central tenets of Jainism. According to Jain tradition, he was the 24th and the last Tirthankara. In Tamil, he is referred to as Arukaṉ or Arukadevan...
which was preserved only in oral form. Pūrvanayoga contained Puranic narratives, religious biographies as well as illustrative tales.