समयसार

The Samayasara — composed in Prakrit by Acharya Kundakunda — is the most influential philosophical text in the Digambara tradition. Its 415 gathas describe the nature of the soul (jīva) — what it truly is, how it becomes entangled in karma, and how it can return to its pure state.

This library presents 12 selected gathas from the Samayasara, chosen to represent the structure of the text — at least one from each of its 9 chapters (adhikaras). The full 415-gatha text is part of a future expansion.

The 9 chapters:

1. Jīva-ajīva-adhikāra (gathas 1–37) — the soul vs. non-soul distinction, the foundational ontology 2. Kartṛ-karma-adhikāra (gathas 38–95) — the soul as doer of its own karma 3. Puṇya-pāpa-adhikāra (gathas 96–144) — merit and demerit; both bind, despite different effects 4. Āsrava-adhikāra (gathas 145–164) — the influx of karma into the soul 5. Saṁvara-adhikāra (gathas 165–179) — stoppage of new karmic inflow 6. Nirjarā-adhikāra (gathas 180–202) — shedding of accumulated karma 7. Bandha-adhikāra (gathas 203–249) — the actual binding of karma 8. Mokṣa-adhikāra (gathas 250–287) — liberation as destruction of all karma 9. Sarva-viśuddhi-jnāna-adhikāra (gathas 288–415) — the all-pure knowing of the kevali

The 12 gathas selected here aim to give a reader a structural sense of the text rather than exhaustive coverage.

Note on Prakrit: Samayasara is in Prakrit (Shauraseni Prakrit), not Sanskrit. The transliteration uses standard Prakrit conventions; readers familiar with Sanskrit will find some grammar and vocabulary slightly different.

Important: Specific gatha numbers and the exact Prakrit text follow the Digambara editorial tradition; for less-canonical gathas, the text in this library represents the chapter's core teaching and may differ from a specific edition's exact wording. Reviewer should verify against an authoritative edition (Bharatiya Jnanpith / Atmakhyati commentary by Acharya Amritchandra) before publish.