Contributed by Peter Flügel
The Terāpanthins are the monastic members and lay followers of the Terāpantha, a Śvetāmbara Jain order. Associated with Rajasthan since its foundation in the 18th century, the Terāpantha sect is expanding rapidly among Jains inside and outside India.
The Hindi term terāpantha or terahpantha means either ‘your path’ or ‘path of 13’. Terāpanthins follow 13 main elements of Jain thought. They do not worship images but practise asceticism and ‘insight meditation’. The major characteristics of the Śvetāmbara Terāpanthin sect are the concentration of power in a single ācārya and a new type of ascetic – the male samaṇas and the female samaṇis. All Jains believe that they should avoid actions that produce bad karma because it blocks liberation of the soul. Terāpanthins also believe that believers seeking liberation should avoid actions that produce good karma too, because both good and bad karma ultimately obstruct salvation.
There is also a different group known as Terāpantha among the Digambara laity.
The Terāpantha was founded by Muni Bhikhan (1726–1803), who was later known as Ācārya Bhikṣu. He was born in the village of Kantaliya near Jodhpur in Rajasthan. His parents belonged to the Osvāl caste, which has always supplied a large number of recruits to the Terāpantha. Many Osvāls follow the tradition of worshipping idols while many others follow the Sthānaka-vāsins as well.
After his wife’s death, Bhikhan entered the monastic order of the Sthānaka-vāsin, who are against worshipping images. But Bhikhan left and formed a new group with 12 other men. Ācārya Bhikṣu’s opponents scorned it as the 'path of the 13 – terah-panth – but he understood it as meaning 'your group' – terā panth. He also interpreted the number 13 as referring to the following principal points of Jain doctrine:
The Terāpantha monastic order has an important feature which distinguishes it from other Jain monastic orders. Ācārya Bhikṣu set out the maryādā, a code of practice for ascetics, in which there is a single ācārya, who is a teacher-cum-group leader. He holds all the power in the sect and is chosen by his predecessor. Ācārya Bhikṣu established this rule to prevent schisms and the development of loose discipline.
The ācārya is a central autocratic leader who:
The ācārya takes all important decisions even though he is constantly moving around the country.
Name |
Dates |
|
---|---|---|
Birth |
Ācāryaship |
|
Ācārya Bhikṣu |
1726 |
1760–1803 |
Ācārya Bharimal |
1747 |
1803–1821 |
Ācārya Jītmal |
1803 |
1821–1881 |
Ācārya Maghrāj |
1810 |
1881–1892 |
Ācārya Manaklāl |
1855 |
1892–1897 |
Ācārya Dalchand |
1852 |
1897–1909 |
Ācārya Kālugaṇi |
1877 |
1909–1936 |
Ācārya Tulsi |
1914 |
1936–1997 |
Ācārya Mahāprajña |
1921 |
1997–2010 |
Ācārya Mahāśramaṇa |
1962 |
2010 to present |
There is also a chief nun – sādhvī-pramukhā – who is the head of the female ascetics but she is subordinate to the ācārya.
Since it was founded, the Terāpantha monastic order has grown more or less regularly, peaking during the 20th century.
Date |
Monks |
Nuns |
Total ascetics |
---|---|---|---|
18th century – Ācārya Bhikṣu |
21 |
27 |
48 |
1955 |
180 |
480 |
660 |
1975 |
151 |
506 |
657 |
1981 |
164 |
531 |
695 |
1999 |
145 |
543 |
688 |
Until 1980 mendicants in the Terāpantha order were either monks – sādhus – or nuns – sādhvīs – as in the other Jain monastic orders. In the modernisation process characteristic of his reign, Ācārya Tulsi created a new intermediate category. The males in this new ascetic class are called samaṇas and the females samaṇis. There are many more samaṇis than samaṇas.
Whereas traditional Jain mendicants are only allowed to go on foot, samaṇas and samaṇis may use transport. This is a very important innovation because it allows them to travel abroad on missionary tours. For many Jains living outside India samaṇas and samaṇis are the only Jain mendicants with whom they can have direct contact.
Year |
Samaṇas |
Samaṇis |
---|---|---|
1992 |
4 |
51 |
1996 |
4 |
81 |
1999 |
4 |
80 |
The Terāpanthin monks and nuns wear the usual non-stitched white monastic robes common among Śvetāmbara mendicants. They also permanently cover their mouth with a rectangular mouth-cloth – mukhavastrikā or muṃhapattī.
The samaṇas and samaṇis, however, wear a different type of stitched outfit and use their mouth-cloths only when speaking. These are not attached to their mouths.