This manuscript contains a version of the work composed by the monk Śrīcandra in the 12th century, and is written in Prakrit language with an interlinear commentary in Gujarati. Thirty-eight of the forty-three folios forming the manuscript are richly illustrated by miniatures of different size and shape including charts and diagrams. The work concerns the Jain universe and the various creatures living in its different worlds.
The title, which can be translated as Jewel of summarised verses, refers to the fact that this text, probably the most popular cosmological work of the Jain Śvetāmbara tradition, is a condensed version of previous writings. The text deals with the complex structure of the Jain universe, describes the categories of living beings inhabiting the three worlds and how souls are born in different forms according to the theory of karma. It also emphasises the difficulty of gaining birth as a human being, the only form in which the soul can achieve the ultimate wisdom and be released from the cycle of rebirth.
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