Nemisuri

Śāsana Samrāt Ācārya Nemisuri Mahārāja Sāheb
Śāsana Samrāt Ācārya Nemisuri Mahārāja Sāheb
Personal
Born	Nemchand 1872 CE Mahuva, Bhavnagar,Gujarat,India
Died	1948 CE
Religion	Jainism
Parents	Laxmichandbhai (father) Diwaliben (mother)
Sect	Śvetāmbara Tapa Gaccha
Known for	Protection of major Jain pilgrimage sites such asGirnar,Taranga,Palitana,Antariksh Parshvanatha Temple at Shirpur
Religious career
Predecessor	Vruddhichandraji
Initiation	1888 CE by Vruddhichandraji

Śāsana Samrāt Ācārya Nemisuri Mahārāja Sāhebwas a 20th century CEŚvetāmbaraJainascetic, philosopher, researcher, reformer, and the head of theTapa Gaccha.He is best known for his efforts in preserving theJain literatureand protection of major pilgrimage sites such asPalitana temples,Girnar Jain temples,andTaranga Jain temples.

Early life and education

He was born on theJainNew Year's day which falls on the first day of the bright half of theKartikamonth, in the year 1872 CE inMahuva,Gujarat.He was named Nemchand by his parents Diwaliben and Laxmichandbhai.

He received his early education in vernacular and English medium schools before pursuing business endeavors in the stock market. However, his interest soon shifted towardsSanskritand religious studies, leading him to study underJain asceticVruddhichandraji inBhavnagar.

Initiation

He was constantly surrounded by his preceptor and other ascetics. He devoutly studiedSanskrit,PrakritandJain scriptures.This began infusing a feeling of detachment from worldly life in him. This feeling increased with every passing day and when his father wrote to him about the passing of his grandmother, he responded by writing back that the worldly life was meaningless and that only diligence in religious studies proves to be meaningful.

His father felt that if Nemchand stayed in Bhavnagar anymore, he would turn towards monkhood, so he called him back. He sternly denied permission for renunciation. Nemchand and his friend Durlabhji, who was also desirous of monkhood, ran away to Bhavnagar to meet their preceptor.

Since Durlabhji's father had already died, he did not face troubles and was initiated into theChaturvidha Sangha.However, Vruddhichandraji denied initiation to Nemchand without his parents' permission. Nemchand wore a monk's dress and came to his preceptor. Looking at his courage, he initiated him into theChaturvidha Sanghaon the 7th day of the bright half of theJyeshthamonth in the year 1888 CE. Upon initiation, his name was changed to Muni Nemvijaya. Therajoharanthat was given to him was used by Ganivarya Muktivijaya earlier, a revered ascetic of theTapa Gaccha.

Ascetic life

Spiritual endeavors as a junior monk

As a young ascetic, Nemvijaya studied scriptures and eventually became aSanskritandPrakritscholar. In theChaturvidha Sangha,he is known for his strict discipline and austere religious practices. He is said to have preached non-followers and followers ofJainismabout the coreJainprinciples ofnon-violenceandcelibacy.Along with scriptural studies, he is said to have had observedashta-pravanchanamata.He is also said to have studied Siddhanta-chandrikaandSiddhanta-kaumudito learn grammar and later,Magha-naishadha.

In 1890 CE, his preceptor sent him toAhmedabadforyogodvahanunder Panyas Pratapvijaya before hisvadi-diksha.After he returned toBhavnagar,Danvijaya, a disciple of Ganivarya Muktivijaya, noticed Nemvijaya's keenness to learn. Later, he set up a religious school named 'Shree Buddhisinhji Jain Sanskrit Pathshala' atPalitanaand requested Nemvijaya's preceptor to send him there to teach logic and grammar to other ascetics. After his preceptor passed away, he studiedSiddha-Hema-Shabdanushasana,Hemachandra'swork on grammar. Later, he initiated the rituals of'Gyaan-Sadhna'and'Shaastrabhyaas.' He also revived the tradition of'Yogodvahana.'

Consecration asGaṇīvaryaandPanyās

Vruddhichandraji, Nemvijaya's preceptor, had requested Panyas Gambhirvijaya, his senior-most disciple, to assist Nemvijaya for ayogodvahanaofaagamas.As a result, in 1900 CE, Nemvijaya underwentyogodvahanaofaagamas,beginning atAhmedabad.The ritual concluded in 1902 CE, when he had performed ayogaof all canonical scriptures of theŚvetāmbarasexceptVyākhyāprajñapti.

In 1903 CE, he underwent the yoga ofVyākhyāprajñaptiand was offered the position of aGaṇīvaryaatVallabhi.Soon after that, he was offered the position ofPanyās.

Consecration asĀcārya

There was no competentĀcāryainTapa GacchaafterĀcārya Vijayanandsurihad passed away in 1896 CE. Panyās Gambhirvijaya and ascetic Manivijaya thought Nemvijaya to be fit for this position. In 1907 CE, this proposal was presented before thesanghaat the sixth'Akhil Bharatiya Jain Shwetambar Murtipujaka Conference.'It was accepted and Nemvijaya was then inducted into a ritual of'Navpada Oli'ofSurimantra-pancha-prasthana,a ritual necessary for the installation of anĀcārya.In 1907 CE, Nemvijaya was consecrated as anĀcāryaand was renamed as Nemisuri.

He became the firstĀcāryato have undergone the ritual of'yogodvahana'after a long spell of absence of suchĀcāryasin theTapa Gaccha.He is also said to have had been a strict disciplinarian in training his disciples.

Spiritual endeavors after consecration asĀcārya

After becoming anĀcārya,Nemisuri stayed and worked mostly inAhmedabad,Saurashtra,andKhambhat.He inspired the establishment of several libraries holdingJain literaturein these regions and inspired the renovation of temples and pilgrimage sites of historical importance.

He preached the principles ofJainismto fishermen living on the coastline ofGujarat.A few thousand fishermen are said to have given up the profession and take upJainism.A fisherman turned a Jain monk Acharya Rajtilaksuri is an example of such influence. After being preached by Nemisuri, fishermen ofDathaburned their nets to mark a change in their career. He also strongly opposed the practice ofanimal sacrifice.He also raised several lakhs of rupees to build, maintain, and settle debts of sanctuaries and shelter homes for animals.

He is also said to have brought about harmony in the community and between sects of Jainism by resolving several disputes amongst castes and Jainsanghasthrough arbitration throughoutIndia.In 1933 CE, he also led amuni-sammelan(transl. conference of ascetics) to resolve quarrels within different groups of ascetics and is said to have brought about harmony and unity within Jain ascetics.

As anĀcārya,he aimed to revive the tradition of virtuous, disciplined, and knowledgeable disciples. Consequently, he groomed several disciples through strict disciplinary practices.Prabhashankar Patnihad considered Nemisuri as his preceptor and is often said to have advised his son to visit Nemisuri to seek guidance when troubled. He also preached several kings, princes, and eminent scholars such asMadan Mohan Malaviya.He propagated and gave scriptural evidence that the idol-worshipping sect was the only true path tomoksha.Moved by his speech, thousands of followers of the newly-formed aniconic sects turned back to the idol-worshipping sect and becameMurtipujakaagain.During his time, only 25-30 ascetics were following the correct conduct as per theŚvetāmbara canon.An exponential increase in the number of such ascetics as seen today is attributed to Nemisuri,Vijayanandsuri,Rajendrasuri,Kamalsuri, and Gautamsagarsuri of Achal Gaccha.

Preservation of Jain literature

Nemisuri is said to have pioneered the publishing ofJain literaturefor ascetics and for the laypeople. He is also said to have inspired the establishment of several hundredpathshalas(transl. religious classes) for lay-followers ofJainisminGujaratandRajasthan.Such classes were meant for lay-followers of all ages and gender who wished to learn the scriptural tenets of Jainism.

In addition to the establishment of religious classes, Nemisuri inspired the establishment of several libraries to hold and preserve ancient manuscripts of canonical and non-canonical scriptures ofŚvetāmbarasacross Gujarat and Rajasthan. This led to a large-scale publication as well as preservation ofJain literature.

Apart from the establishment of religious classes and libraries and authoring several non-canonical scriptures of theŚvetāmbarasect, he supported a large-scale publication ofJain literatureauthored by the most prominentŚvetāmbara Jainascetics such asĀcāryaHemachandrasuri,ĀcāryaHaribhadrasuri,andMahopadhyaya Yashovijaya.With the publication of Jain literature, he was able to revive several rites and rituals such asanjan-shalaka,siddhachakra-pujan,andarihant-mahapujanwhich were lost over time due to limited access to literature. He also revived the tradition of 'yogodvahana' which was lost and was limited to very few ascetics for several years.

Protection of pilgrimage sites

He was actively involved in preservingŚvetāmbaras' Jain heritage in Western India. He mainly worked on pilgrimage sites such as Matara, Sherisa,Vamaj,Kaparda,and Kadambagiri. Major Jain pilgrimage sites such asPalitana temples,Girnar Jain temples,Taranga Jain temple,andShikharjiwere renovated under his supervision. He also actively guidedShri Anandji Kalyanji Pedhiin maintaining severalŚvetāmbarapilgrimage sites acrossIndia.He preached and inspired kings and royalties ofprincely statesofJaisalmer,Udaipur,Bhavnagar,andVallabhito protect animals as well as sites of pilgrimage and heritage.

The Kadambagiri pilgrimage site was under a community ofDarbars.Inspired by Nemisuri's sermons, they offered him a few plots of land on the mountain to facilitate reconstruction and renovation of the Jain temples atop the hill. He directed them to sell it toShri Anandji Kalyanji Pedhiinstead, citing Jain monks'vow of non-possession.

Literary contributions

Several non-canonical scriptures of theŚvetāmbaraschool are attributed to him.Some of them are as follows: -

1. Saptabhangiprabha
2. Nyayasindhu
3. Laghu Hemprabha Vyakarana

Death and legacy

In 1948 CE, he was atMahuvafor hischaturmasya.His disciples Nandansuri and Udayasuri were looking after a weak and bed-ridden Nemisuri. At 7:00pm on the day ofDiwaliin 1948 CE, he passed away near the spot of his birth. Two temples were erected, one at the spot of his birth and another at the site of his cremation. A shrine dedicated to him and with his footsteps was also erected at the spot of his death.

For his guidance on diverse matters such as preserving pilgrimage sites,Jain literatureand his austere conduct as a monk, Nemisuri was given the title of"Suri Chakravartin"(transl. King ofSuris(orĀcāryas)).

A 170-verse-long biographical Sanskrit poem named"Namu Guru Nemisuri Sansarma"dedicated to Nemisuri was composed byĀcāryaShilchandrasuri.He also authored a comprehensive biography of Nemisuri named"Śāsana Samrāt"inGujarati.He also described a ritual for worshipping the idols of Nemisuri through"Ashtaprakari Gurupuja".Another biography of Nemisuri was written by Jain monk Niranjanvijaya.Nemisuri served as an inspiration for several Jain ascetics later as well.Ramanlal Shah, a lay follower of Nemisuri also wrote a short biography of him.Another biography of Nemisuri was written by Acharya Kulchandrasuri.

Books at"Nemisuri Gyaanshala"are displayed at the annual celebration ofJñāna PanchamiinKhambhat.A website dedicated to his work, and media related to him was also created in 2023 -[1]"Mandan Parivar",an initiative by Ganivarya Trailokyamandanvijaya, a monk of Nemisuri's community, is a trust that performs works of charity and spreading the word ofJainism.

See also

• Ratnaprabhasuri
• Vimalsuri
• Bappabhattisuri