Acharya Bhikshu, formed in the Sthanakavasi line, separated with a small company in 1760 over what he judged a laxity in monastic discipline, and founded the order that took the name Terapanth. Its defining mark endures: every Terapanthi monk and nun owes obedience to a single acharya, and its thirteen principles keep the community's discipline in one hand. Bhikshu led the order until his death in 1803, through years of hardship and hostility.
Tagged: Jain Sthanakavasi Terapanth
The Event
- Date
- 1760-1803 (exact)
- Also called
- Bhikhanji, Swami Bhikhan
- Era
- Reform Currents; Standard periodization of Jain history
- Location
- Rajasthan; today Rajasthan, India
- Traditions
- Jainism
- Streams
- Terapanth, Sthanakavasi
- Key figures
- Acharya Bhikshu
Connections
- Sthanakavasi consolidated; follows_from
Primary Sources
- The Kalpa Sutra account of the Tirthankaras.
- The Agamas of the Shvetambara canon.
Secondary Sources
- Dundas, Paul. The Jains. 2nd ed., Routledge, 2002.
- Wiley, Kristi L. Historical Dictionary of Jainism. Scarecrow Press, 2004.
Provenance: HIST-0614; confidence 0.95; accessed 2026-10-27.
Related on This Site
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- Acharya Tulsi founds the Anuvrat movement History Event
- Lonka Shah History Event
- Sthanakavasi consolidated History Event
- The founding of the Sthanakavasi order History Event
- Sanskrit Language
- Namokar Mantra Prayer or Creed