Sutrakritanga सूत्रकृतांग
The second Anga of the Jain canon. Mahavira systematically refutes every wrong philosophical position of his time — materialism, fatalism, agnosticism, wrong asceticism — and establishes the precise path of non-violence, right knowledge, and liberation. Twenty-three chapters across two books.
Teachings By
Lord Mahavira
Compiled By
Sudharma Swami
#2 Chief Disciple of the Lord
Translated By
Dishant Shah
Chapters
23 Total · 2 Books
Chapters 1–16
The Doctrine
On true doctrine versus false doctrine — the foundation of liberation. Twelve wrong views refuted.
Sensation
Karma ripens into experience. The wise one endures pleasure and pain with equanimity.
Consciousness
The soul that knows is fundamentally different from the matter it knows.
Rejection of Error
Attachment is the obstacle. The freed monk is free from all of it.
Equal Seeing
Attachment is the problem — always, in every form, toward every being without exception.
What Is True Religion?
A direct teaching distinguishing genuine practice from performance, ritual, and inherited belief.
Seeds of Lower Rebirth
Where carelessness and passion lead — the karma that pulls a soul toward lower existences.
The Great Existences
A comprehensive account of the realms karma can carry a soul to across the full range of existence.
The Nature of Reality
What is reality made of? A refutation of the Samkhya school and a precise Jain account of matter and soul.
The Survey of All Existence
How rare is this birth? A complete survey of every form of life across the Jain cosmos.
The Wanderer
The story of the monk who has cut all ties and wanders the world in complete non-attachment.
The Great Wanderer
The monk who goes further still — the deepest expression of total renunciation and freedom.
The True Monk and the Scholar
The fundamental difference between genuine renunciation and learned pride in mere scholarship.
Village Religion
The monk who moves through the world — how to practice in the presence of ordinary life.
Questions for the Knower
What is the path? What is bondage? Mahavira answers the most direct questions on liberation.
The Scripture Repository
The seal of Book One — a collected summary of the teachings preserved in this Shrutaskandha.
Chapters 17–23
False Monks
The marks of inner corruption — monks who behave like householders rather than genuine seekers.
The Queen's Path
High status is no obstacle to liberation. The story of Queen Mrigavati who chose the path.
The Solitary Monk
The life of the monk who practices alone — without teacher, without community, without support.
The Fourfold Order
The foundation of the Jain community — monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen and their interrelation.
The Jain Teaching
The proclamation of the Nirgrantha path as the true and complete path to liberation.
The Great Monk
The qualities and conduct that define a truly great practitioner on the renunciant path.
The Brahmin of Nalanda
The final chapter — absolute non-violence as the core of all true religion. The Jain answer to Brahmanism.