Jainism’s Agamas don’t come wrapped in a single, unchanging package. Over the centuries, different streams and scholars have shaped their own recensions and commentaries, sometimes sparking lively debates over what Mahavira originally taught.

1. Svetambara vs. Digambara
   • Svetambara tradition preserves 45 canonical texts, painstakingly compiled at Valabhi (around 5th–6th century CE). Those Agamas are divided into Anga-Agamas (core teachings), Upanga, and Mula-Sutras, each with detailed commentaries by later monks like Haribhadra and Hemachandra.
   • Digambara school holds that the original Agamas were lost a few centuries after Mahavira’s nirvana. Rather than the Valabhi texts, they revere works such as Shatkhandagama and Kashyapahuda, composed between the 2nd and 6th centuries CE. For Digambaras, these later treatises carry the torch of authentic doctrine.

2. Internal Svetambara Variations
   • Murtipujaka, Sthanakvasi and Terapanth subsects all recognize the 45 Agamas but differ in emphasis. Terapanthis, for instance, simplify ritual aspects, focusing more on ethical practice than elaborate temple rites. Sthanakvasis reject idol worship altogether, giving certain passages a fresh spin.

3. Layers of Interpretation
   • Medieval commentaries can be as transformative as the sutras themselves. Haribhadra’s Yogadṛṣṭisamuccaya and Hemachandra’s Yogashastra weave in Yogic themes, blending Agamic insights with broader Indic philosophies. This interplay can sometimes feel like trying to unpick yarn from a knitted sweater—commentary becomes inseparable from canon.

4. Modern Critical Editions
   • Over the past decade, initiatives like the Digital Jain Library and projects at Jain Vishva Bharati University have released critical editions, comparing palm-leaf manuscripts from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Karnataka. Fresh collations, backed by digital tools, are bringing new variants to light—reminding everyone that religious texts often exist in living, breathing form.

Whether reading a 1,500-year-old palm-leaf manuscript or scrolling through a 2025 PDF, the Agamas reveal layers of interpretation like geological strata—each layer offering its own glimpse of Mahavira’s timeless teachings.