Hira Vijaya Suri

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Acharya Hira Vijay Suri(1527 AD) was an importent Jain Acharya.He belongs to Shvetambar tredation of Jainism.

[edit] Biography

Acharya Hira Vijaya Suri was born in an Oswal Jain family in Palanpur in Gujarat in 1527. His parents had died when he was still an infant, and he was brought up by his two elder sisters. He became the disciple of Vijayadana Suri in 1540 at the age of 13, and a new name Hira Harsh was given to him. He was taken to Devagiri- a center of Sanskritlearning in those days, for further education. He successively won the title of Pandit in 1550, 'Upadhyaya' in 1552 and Acharya (Suri) in 1553. This last title he won at Sirohi in Rajasthan.

Hence-forth he was known as Hira Vijaya Suri.In 1556 when his guru died, the Shvetambara community of Jainism selected him as their successer (bhattaraka). There was a great rejoicing among the Jains of Ahmedabad, when the Emperor's order was received. Many other learned Jain Monks sadhus decided to accompany the Suri to the capital. The Jain rules for the ascetics provide that they should live only on that much cooked food that a householder would give him out of the good cooked ordinarily for his household. But there would not be that many Jain households all along the way from Ahmedabad to Fatehpur Sikri to give alms to this large Group of sadhus (said to have been 67) accompanying Hira Vijaya Suri. Some householders therefore also traveled with this group. They would leave earlier than the sadhus in the morning, travel some distance and cook the daily food under a tree on the roadside, and wait for the party of sadhus to arrive there.Naturally, Hira Vijaya as a strict Jain ascetic did not avail of the elephants provided by the Governor of Gujarat but traveled on foot all the way.

Hira Vijaya Suri entered Fatehpur Sikri on Jyestha Krishna 12, in AD 1582. "The weary traveler was received with all the pomp of imperial pageantry, and was made over to the care of Abul Fazl until the sovereign found leisure to converse with him. After much talk upon the problem of religion and philosophy, first with Abul Fazl and then with Akbar, the Suri paid a visit to Agra. At the close of the rainy season he returned to Fatepur Sikri, and persuaded the emperor to release prisoners and caged birds, and to prohibit killing of animals on certain days. In the following year (1583) those orders were extended, and disobedience to them was made a capital offense. Akbar renounced his much loved hunting and restricted the practice of fishing. The Suri, who was granted title of Jagad-Guru or world teacher returned in 1584 to Gujarat by way of Agra and Allahabad.