Reading the Satpurush: The Body as Archive in Nineteenth-Century Jain and Hindu Traditions

This paper examines shifting religious authority in nineteenth-century Gujarat, where Hindu and Jain reformers used "print-rationality" to critique traditional institutions like the hereditary Hindu Gãdi and Jain yatis. Amidst this upheaval, a radical counter-narrative emerged centering on the Satpurush (realized being). The recognition of Pragji Bhakta (Hindu) and Shrimad Rajchandra (Jain) as living guides challenged existing power structures. To legitimize these figures against institutional opposition, their communities curated a "Soteriological Archive of the Body." Physical austerity, meditative postures, and lived virtues became sovereign proof of sanctity. This archive provided an alternative to both failing traditional offices and the “rationalism” of colonial-era religious reformers (Sudharaks). By prioritizing the experiential realization of the present guide (pratyakṣ) over absent authorities (parokṣ) and strict rationalism, these movements established the realized body as the ultimate historical and soteriological archive.