online support
Somdev served as the royal priest in the kingdom of Dashpur, and his wife Rudrasoma gave birth to a brilliant child named Aryarakshit. Somdev, a knowledgeable scholar of the Vedas, garnered immense love and respect from both the king and the people. Rudrasoma, admired by the common people for her deep devotion to the Jain religion, held a high position in their hearts. Somdev decided to send his son Aryarakshit to Pataliputra for further studies, where he delved into the study of six angas (Jain canonical literature) as well as the Vedas.
After acquiring expertise in various fields of knowledge, Aryarakshit returned to Dashpur, where his arrival was celebrated with great enthusiasm and honored by the king and the people in a grand ceremony. Eager to pay his respects and bow down to his mother, Aryarakshit rushed to her, only to find her engrossed in practicing equanimity. Overwhelmed with emotions, he bowed down to her. However, his mother merely cast a loving glance at him, contrary to his expectation of her expressing boundless joy and love on his homecoming.
This unexpected behavior puzzled Aryarakshit, a learned scholar well aware of his mother's embodiment of simplicity, love, and affection. Despite her usual serene nature, she seemed unenthusiastic about such a glorious event. Curious, Aryarakshit asked his mother for the reason behind her passivity. In response, his mother explained that while his scholarly achievements would bring him honor, fame, and wealth, they held no meaning in terms of spiritual well-being or the upliftment of oneself and others. Even birds and animals could fulfill their basic needs, so she considered such learning meaningless.
Furthermore, she expressed her deepest desire for her son to study Drashtivad, a twelfth anga work, and acquaint himself with the spiritual path to attain self-realization. Determined to fulfill his mother's wish, Aryarakshit learned that Acharya Toshaliputra was camping near their town and only he could provide the desired teachings. Aryarakshit spent a restless night and, in the morning, paid his respects to his mother before approaching Acharya Toshaliputra. He requested the guru to teach him Drashtivad, to which Acharyashri explained that it could only be taught to a saint who had taken initiation as a possessionless shraman, a Jain ascetic. Upon hearing this, Aryarakshit wholeheartedly accepted the initiation and immediately began studying the Ekadashangi, the eleven angas. Driven by his thirst for knowledge, Aryarakshit approached Vajraswami, the greatest authority of his time, and intensively studied nine purvas, early canons, under his guidance. Recognizing his vast learning, Acharya Toshaliputra bestowed upon him the title of Ganacharya, a leader of a group of monks.
When Aryarakshit's brother Falgurakshit arrived to accompany him back home, he too was inspired to accept initiation through Aryarakshit's teachings. Both brothers returned to the town of Dashpur. Witnessing the spiritual awareness and keenness of her sons, their mother shed tears of joy. Subsequently, Somdev, the royal priest, Rudrasoma, the mother, and the entire family embraced initiation.
Over time, the ascetic Rakshit became renowned as Acharya Rakshitsuriji, recognized as the foremost spiritual leader of his era. Recognizing the needs of future generations, Acharya Rakshitsuriji compiled the agams into four anuyogas, post-canonical texts. Alongside the name of Acharya Rakshitsuriji, the name of Sadhvi Rudrasoma also gained immortality.
