Aryika Aryika Aryika, also known as Sadhvi, is a female mendicant (nun) in Jainism. In the traditional Digambara tradition, a male human being is considered closest to the apex with the potential to achieve liberation, particularly through asceticism. Women must gain karmic merit, to be reborn as man, and only then can they achieve spiritual liberation in the Digambara sect of Jainism. This view is different from the Svetambara sect that believes that women too can achieve liberation from "Saṃsāra" by being mendicants and through ascetic practices. According to Svetambara Jain texts, from "Kalpasutras" onwards, Jainism has had more "sadhvis" than
History of Jainism other Angas were written down. This is a traditional account of schism. According to Svetambara, there were eight schisms ("Nihvana"). According to "Digambara" tradition, "Ganadhara" knew fourteen "Purva" and eleven "Anga". Knowledge of "Purva" was lost around 436 years after Mahavira and "Anga" were lost around 683 years after Mahavira. The texts that do not belong to "Anga" are called "Angabahyas". There were fourteen "Angabahyas". The first four "Angabahayas", "Samayika", "chaturvimasvika", "Vandana" and "Pratikramana" corresponds to sections of second "Mulasutra" of "Svetambara". The only texts of "Angabahyas" which occurs in "Svetambara" texts are "Dasavaikalika", "Uttaradhyayana" and "Kalpavyavahara". Umaswati's "Tattvartha Sutras"