In short
Acharya Manatunga composed the Bhaktamara Stotra, a devotional hymn to the first Tirthankara that remains among the most widely recited works in Jain literature. Both Digambar and Shwetambar traditions claim him and recite his hymn daily, even though each tells a different story about his life.
At a glance
- Rank
- Acharya
- Tradition
- Claimed by both traditions
- Era
- 7th century CE (some estimates run later)
- Key works
-
- Bhaktamara Stotra
- Namiun Stotra (Bhayahara Stotra)
Contribution
Manatunga wrote the Bhaktamara Stotra, a devotional hymn to Rishabhanatha (Adinatha), the first Tirthankara — among the most widely recited compositions in all of Jain literature, still chanted daily in homes and temples of both major traditions.
Life
His name appears only in the hymn's final stanza. Legend holds he composed it while imprisoned in chains — by King Bhoja in the Digambar account, or as a test of monastic power in the Shwetambar account — with a lock breaking free at each completed verse. The two traditions even disagree on the verse count: 48 for Digambars, 44 for Shwetambars.
Legacy
Rare among early Jain authors in being claimed, recited and revered equally by both major traditions, even as they tell different stories about him.
Both traditions claim this figure and disagree on details of his story, including the verse count of his best-known hymn — that disagreement is itself the honest, citable fact.