About Acharya Vidyasagar

Acharya Shri Vidyasagarji Maharaj (born 10 October 1946) is one of the best-known modern Digambar Jain Acharya. He is recognized both for his scholarship and tapasya. He is known for his long hours in meditation. While he was born in Karnataka and took diksha in Rajasthan, he generally spends much of his time in the Bundelkhand region where he is credited with having brought about a revival in educational and religious activities. His life is the subject of the 2018 documentary film Vidyoday released by Landmark Films.

Initiation

He was initiated as a Digambara monk in 1968 at the age of 22 by Acharya Gyansagar, who belonged to the lineage of Acharya Shantisagar, at Ajmer. His father Mallappa, his mother Shrimati, and two sisters took diksha and joined the sangha of Acharya Dharmasagar. Except for his eldest brother, his remaining brothers, Anantanath and Shantinath, followed him and were initiated by Acharya Vidyasagar as Muni Yogasagar and Muni Samaysagar respectively. His elder brother married and continued the blood line.

He was elevated to the Acharya status in 1972. An Acharya does not eat salt, sugar, fruits, milk, in addition to what is traditionally prohibited (like onions). He takes food once a day in the palm of his hand, one morsel at a time.

Works

Acharya Vidyasagara is a scholar of Sanskrit and Prakrit and knows several languages including Hindi and Kannada. He has written in languages such as Prakrit, Sanskrit, Hindi. His works include Niranjana Shataka, Bhavana Shataka, Parishah Jaya Shataka, Suniti Shataka and Shramana Shataka.

He has composed nearly 700 haiku poems which are unpublished.

He wrote the Hindi epic poem “Mukamati”. This has been included in the syllabus of Hindi MA programmes at various institutions. This has been translated into English by Lal Chandra Jain and was presented to the President of India. Several researchers have studied his works for masters and doctoral degrees.

His wanderings (Vihara)

When Acharya Vidyasagar leads his sangha during his vihara, passers-by kneel in reverence.

As a traditional Digambara Jain monk, Acharya Vidyasagar never stays in a single location for more than a few days, except for the four months of the rainy season (Chaturmas). He never declares where he will be next, although people try to guess his next destination.

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