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Which Jain texts are included in the Shvetambara canon?
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Jainism
Statue of the Jain Tirthankara (saviour) Mahavira.
The Shvetambara canon, known as the agama, consists of 45 works that preserve the teachings of Jainism. While the number of texts has varied historically, scholars generally categorize the current canon into the following six groups:12
- 11 Angas: The main texts; originally there were 12, but the Drishtivada has been lost for centuries.12
- 12 Upangas: Subsidiary texts.12
- 10 Prakirnakas: Assorted or mixed texts.12
- 6 Cheda-sutras: Texts concerned with the rules of ascetic life and discipline.12
- 2 Chulika-sutras: Appendix texts focused on cognition and epistemology.12
- 4 Mula-sutras: Basic texts covering miscellaneous topics.12
These scriptures are believed to derive from the discourses of Mahavira, the most recent Tirthankara, and were compiled by his disciples. The canon was finalized at the council of Valabhi in the mid-5th century CE. It is important to note that the Digambara sect does not accept the authenticity of this canon, maintaining that the original teachings were lost.123