Acharya Hemachandra

Acharya Hemachandra
Drawing of Hemchandra based on Vikram Samvat 1294 palm leaf
Official name	Acharya Hemchandra Suri
Religion	Jainism
Sect	Śvētāmbara
Personal
Born	Changadev 1088 (see notes) Dhandhuka
Died	1173 (see notes) Anhilwad Patan
Parents	Chachinga, Pahini
Initiation	Somchandra see notes Khambhat by Devchandrasuri

Acharya Hemachandra was a Jain scholar, poet, and polymath who wrote on grammar, philosophy, prosody, and contemporary history. Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gained the title kalikālasarvajña, "the all-knowing of the Kali Yuga".

Hemachandra was born in Dhandhuka, in present-day Gujarat, on Kartika Sud Purnima (the full moon day of Kartika month). His date of birth differs according to sources but 1088 is generally accepted. His father, Chachiga-deva was a Modh Bania Vaishnava. His mother, Pahini, was a Jain. Hemchandra's original given name was Changadeva. In his childhood, the Jain monk Devachandra Suri visited Dhandhuka and was impressed by the young Hemachandra's intellect. His mother and maternal uncle concurred with Devachandra, in opposition to his father, that Hemachandra be a disciple of his. Devachandra took Hemachandra to Khambhat, where Hemachandra was placed under the care of the local governor Udayana. Chachiga came to Udayana's place to take his son back, but was so overwhelmed by the kind treatment he received, that he decided to willingly leave his son with Devachandra.

Some years later, Hemachandra was initiated a Jain monk on Magha Sud Chauth (4th day of the bright half of Magha month) and was given a new name, Somchandra. Udayana helped Devchandra Suri in the ceremony. He was trained in religious discourse, philosophy, logic and grammar and became well versed in Jain and non–Jain scriptures. At the age of 21, he was ordained an acharya of the Śvētāmbara school of Jainism at Nagaur in present-day Rajasthan. At this time, he was named Hemachandra Suri.

At the time, Gujarat was ruled by the Chaulukya dynasty from Anhilwad Patan. It is not certain when Hemachandra visited Anhilwad Patan for the first time. As Jain monks are mendicants for eight months and stay at one place during Chaturmas, the four monsoon months, he started living at Anhilwad during these periods and produced the majority of his works there.