A Note on Jaina Hymns and Magic Squares
Summary
Connecting religion and mathematics, this note examines Jaina hymns that encode magic squares. The author remarks that Indian hymns function not only as prayers but also as aids to meditation and mysticism. In Jainism, hymnology is considered one of the means to liberation and exists in Sanskrit, Prakrit, Apabhramsa and modern languages. Many hymns incorporate references to mantras, yantras and even mathematical concepts. Magic squares—grids in which the sums of numbers in each row, column and diagonal are equal—have long fascinated mathematicians, and works such as Ball’s *Mathematical Recreations* and Schubert’s *Mathematical Essays* discuss them. Jaina scholars like Sudhakara Dvivedi have studied magic squares in Sanskrit. The note cites a hymn attributed to Manadeva Sūri where the first hemistiches of certain verses yield numbers forming a fourth‑order magic square summing to 170. A diagram shows the arrangement of numbers. The author suggests that other hymns may encode odd‑ and even‑ordered magic squares and mentions research on magic circles and stars. The example illustrates how religious texts can incorporate sophisticated numerical patterns.
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Conclusion
The conclusion highlights that Jaina hymnology sometimes embeds magic squares, revealing an interplay between devotional literature and recreational mathematics. Such examples showcase the creativity of Jain scholars and their interest in numerology.