neuters or twenty women in the old days used to attain perfection, one hundred and eight males used to do so; for the Jaina seem to think men more religious than women. All the twenty-four Tīrthaṅkara, ending with Mahāvīra, have obtained mokṣa and become Siddha, though it is still by the name of Tīrthaṅkara that the people love to speak of them.
In the country of Mahāvideha there are at present about one hundred and sixty Tīrthaṅkara, as well as many Kevalī, who will ultimately proceed to mokṣa. No one in the present age can proceed to mokṣa from Bharatakṣetra, which includes modern India.
There are fifteen different kinds of Siddha: those who have been Arihanta and have become Siddha are called Fina Siddha; those who, without even having been Arihanta themselves, have yet been the disciples of Arihanta are called Ajina Siddha.
A Tīrtha Siddha is one who has been previously a Tīrthaṅkara, and to be considered a Tīrthaṅkara a man must have been an ascetic, have preached, and have founded a community or Tīrtha consisting of at least four people (a monk and a nun, a layman and a laywoman). If a man die before he has preached or founded a community, he will nevertheless become a Siddha if he has had the requisite history behind him (for such a history automatically compels one to become a Siddha), but he will be called Atīrtha Siddha: for instance, the mother of Ṛiṣabhadeva became a Siddha, but an Atirtha Siddha, for at the time that she attained mokṣa no community had been founded.
Though the recognized path to Siddhahood is by becoming an ascetic, a householder of eminent holiness might nevertheless on his death pass straight to mokṣa, as King Bharata did, without ever having been an ascetic; such a jīva is called a Gṛihaliṅga Siddha. It is the glory of Jainism that, whatever its present practice, its doctrines steadfastly declare that conduct is greater than caste. It is possible for a non-Jaina who exhibits perfect holiness in his life to pass to mokṣa and become
