45 Jain Agams
Books Jain Jain Agaam
In most of the religions, there is one main scripture
book. Hinduism has Gita and 4 Vedas,
Christians have the Bible, Muslims have Koran, Persians have Avesta, and Sikhs
have Guru Granth Sahib, and Buddhists have 3 Pitikäs. Likewise, Jains also have their own scriptures called Ägams, also
called the Jain Shrut. Jains are people of books, they do not have one main
scripture book but they have many.
The teachings by an omniscient Lord Tirthankar to his
enlighten principal disciples, called Ganadhars was first composed in fourteen
Purvas and then in twelve Ang-Pravishtha-Ägams (an `Ang' being a `limb') by
Ganadhars themselves. All Purvas are included in one part of the twelfth Ang,
called Drastiväd. It is said one Jain
scripture that, "Having climbed the tree of perfect knowledge, an
omniscient Lord Tirthankar showers flowers of knowledge to enlighten principal
disciples, called Ganadhars. They
collected all these flowers in the cloth of the intellect, and have interwoven
them into the garland of Dvädsangi" (Dvädsangi means twelve
Ang-Pravishtha-Ägams).
