Draft:Achary Sunilsagar
Where to get help
How to improve a draft
You can also browse Wikipedia:Featured articles and Wikipedia:Good articles to find examples of Wikipedia's best writing on topics similar to your proposed article. Improving your odds of a speedy review To improve your odds of a faster review, tag your draft with relevant WikiProject tags using the button below. This will let reviewers know a new draft has been submitted in their area of interest. For instance, if you wrote about a female astronomer, you would want to add the Biography, Astronomy, and Women scientists tags. Editor resources
|  |
Sunilsagar | |
|---|---|
 Acharya Sunil Sagar Ji Maharaj | |
| Title | Fourth Pattacharya |
| Personal life | |
| Born | Sandeep Kumar Jain October 7, 1977 Tigoda, Sagar district, Madhya Pradesh, India |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Jainism |
| Sect | Digambara |
| Monastic name | Muni Sunil Sagar |
| Religious career | |
Period in office | 2010–present |
| Predecessor | Acharya Sanmati Sagar |
Acharya Sunil Sagar (born Sandeep Kumar Jain, 7 October 1977) is a Digambara Jain Acharya of the Adisagar "Ankalikar" tradition. He is the fourth Pattacharya (spiritual head) of the lineage, a position he assumed following the samadhi (ritual death) of his guru, Acharya Sanmati Sagar, in December 2010.[1][2]
He is known for his scholarship and writing in the Prakrit language and for his engagement with the ancient Brahmi script.[3]
Early life
[edit]Acharya Sunil Sagar was born Sandeep Kumar Jain on 7 October 1977 in the village of Tigoda, near Hirapur, Sagar district, Madhya Pradesh, India, to Bhagchand Jain and Munni Devi.[2][4] He was the eldest of five children; his siblings are Sanjay, Pradeep, Vinay and a sister, Archana.[2] His parents later themselves undertook religious vows: his father was later initiated as a Kshullaka under the name Sukhadsagar, and his mother became a Pratimadhari Shravika.[2]
Education
[edit]He began his early schooling at a local pathshala in Tigoda, followed by primary and middle schooling (classes 1 to 6) at Kishunganj, Damoh district, Madhya Pradesh. He then studied at Ganeshprasad Varni Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya in Moraji, Sagar district, earning a Shastri degree in Sanskrit and Jain philosophy, with studies including the Tattvartha Sutra, Gommatasara, and Dravya Sangraha.[2][5] He was pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce degree when he developed renunciate (vairagya) leanings.[2] In 1995, he took a vow of Brahmacharya (celibacy) at Beena Barha under Acharya Vidyasagar.[2]
Monastic initiation
[edit]He received Jain diksha (monastic initiation) on 20 April 1997, on the occasion of Mahavir Jayanti (Chaitra Shukla Trayodashi, Vikram Samvat 2054), at Baruasagar, Jhansi district, at around 20 years of age, under Acharya Sanmati Sagar of the Ankalikar tradition, and was given the monastic name Muni Sunil Sagar.[2][6]
On 25 January 2007 (Magh Shukla Saptami, Samvat 2064), at Aurangabad, Acharya Sanmati Sagar personally conferred upon him the title of Acharya.[2] Following Acharya Sanmati Sagar's samadhi on 24 December 2010, he was formally recognized as the fourth Pattacharya of the tradition on 26 December 2010, at Kunjavan, in accordance with his guru's prior written instructions; a public installation ceremony followed the same day at Gulalwadi, Mumbai.[2][7]
Ascetic practices
[edit]As a Digambara Jain monk, Acharya Sunil Sagar practices continuous foot-travel (vihar) between locations, eats once daily, and observes periods of silence (mauna), consistent with Digambara monastic norms.
Sangh and organizational leadership
[edit]As of the 2020 edition of his biography, Acharya Sunil Sagar had himself given monastic initiation to a total of 76 ascetics over his tenure, and led a monastic community (sangh) of 59 ascetics — 34 male (20 munis, 1 ailak, 13 kshullaks) and 25 female (12 aryikas, 13 kshullikas) — along with lay brahmacharis.[2]
Prakrit and Brahmi script scholarship
[edit]Acharya Sunil Sagar has authored more than a dozen works in Prakrit, including Sunil Prakrit Samagra, published by Bharatiya Jnanpith in 2016, and Prakrit Bodh, an introductory grammar of Prakrit; he has also authored around fifty works in Hindi, including Anutha Tapasvi and Vishwa ka Surya.[8][9][2] Several of his works have been translated into Kannada, Marathi, English, and Gujarati, among other languages.[2]
He was honored with the title "Prakritacharya" by Bhattarak Charukeerti Swamiji at Shravanabelagola in 2009.[10]
In August 2025, during the Adhyatmik Varshayog event in Ahmedabad, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel conferred on him the title "Prakrit Prabhakar" and released a Prakrit text authored by him.[11][12]
Public recognition
[edit]He has been received by several Indian public officials over the years, including Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria (2003, 2017),|publisher=Organiser |access-date=2026-08-03}}</ref> and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who released his biography Mahavigya in 2019 and honored him with the title "Rashtra Sant".[13]
Tradition and lineage
[edit]Acharya Sunil Sagar belongs to the Adisagar "Ankalikar" tradition, a lineage within the Digambara Jain monastic order:
- Acharya Adisagar "Ankalikar" (First Pattacharya, 1915–1943)
- Acharya Mahavirkeerti (Second Pattacharya, 1943–1972), known as "Ashtadash Bhashabhashi" (master of eighteen languages)
- Acharya Sanmati Sagar (Third Pattacharya, 1972–2010), known as "Tapasvi Samrat" for his extended fasting practices[14]
- Acharya Sunil Sagar (Fourth Pattacharya, since 2010)
Works
[edit]- Sunil Prakrit Samagra (2016), Bharatiya Jnanpith
- Prakrit Bodh
- Brahmi Lipi Chandrika
- Anutha Tapasvi
- Vishwa ka Surya
- Mahavigya (authorized biography by Saroj Shah, released by Ashok Gehlot, 2019; 2nd ed. 2020)
References
[edit]- ↑ "Acharya Shri 108 Sunil Sagarji Maharaj-1977". DigJainWiki. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Shah, Saroj (2019). Mahavigya: Acharya Shri Sunilsagarji – Jeevan Gatha (in Hindi). Mumbai: Acharya Adisagar (Ankalikar) Antarrashtriya Jagriti Manch.
- ↑ "Temples and Jain temples are all like shadows: Acharya Sunil Sagar". Patrika. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri 108 Sunil Sagarji Maharaj-1977". DigJainWiki. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri 108 Sunil Sagarji Maharaj-1977". DigJainWiki. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri 108 Sunil Sagarji Maharaj-1977". DigJainWiki. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri Sanmati Sagar Ji". Bhavlingi Sant. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Sunil Prakrit Samagra". Internet Archive. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Prakrit Bodh". Internet Archive. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri 108 Sunil Sagarji Maharaj-1977". DigJainWiki. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "CM Patel at Adhyatmik Varshayog 2025, Ahmedabad". CMO Gujarat. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel participates in Adhyatmik Varshayog 2025". ANI News. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Jain Muni Sunil Sagar and CM Ashok Gehlot in Dungarpur". Patrika. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
- ↑ "Acharya Shri Sanmati Sagar Ji". Bhavlingi Sant. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
External links
[edit]Category:1977 births Category:Living people Category:Jain monks Category:Digambara monks Category:People from Sagar district Category:Indian Jain religious leaders
- Reliable sources include: reputable newspapers, magazines, academic journals, and books from respected publishers.
- Unacceptable sources include: personal blogs, social media, predatory publishers, most tabloids, and websites where anyone can contribute.
Replace any unreliable sources with high-quality sources. If you cannot find a reliable source for the material, it should be removed.