Kanji Swami (Kanji Swami Panth)

• Who he was: A prominent Jain teacher of the 20th century. He was born in 1890 in Umrala, Gujarat, and died in 1980. He started as a Sthānakavāsī monk, later became a celibate Digambara lay scholar and founded the Kanji Panth, a Jain lay-movement. He drew heavily on Kundakunda’s teachings (especially Samayasara and Pravachanasara) and on Shrimad Rajchandra, emphasizing inner understanding of the soul over external ritual. He helped popularize older Jain scriptures among lay practitioners and established many temples and study centers under the Kanji Panth. ( en.wikipedia.org)
• Core teaching (arth in Jain terms): The path centers on nischaaya nayā (the ultimate, pure perspective) and the discriminative knowledge of the true self versus the body and world. Liberation comes from realizing the soul as pure and separate from material appearances, rather than relying solely on external rites. Kanji Swami synthesized Digambara ideas with texts attributed to Kundakunda to guide practitioners, especially householders, toward self-realization. ( en.wikipedia.org)
• Tradition note: He was born in a Śvetāmbara Sthānakavāsī milieu but moved toward a Digambara-inspired lay path. The Kanji Panth is a distinct movement within Jainism, nominally Śvetāmbara but influenced by Digambara scriptural currents; it is not part of a traditional Digambara monastic lineage descending from Kundakunda. Different Jain communities view Kanji Panth differently, but its followers see themselves as Digambar Jains ( Mumukshu) focusing on Nishchaya Nayā. ( en.wikipedia.org)
• Where to read more (authentic Jain-focused page): You can read more here