Several generations of Digambara scholars wrangled with the dense strands of the Bhagavati Sūtra, producing glosses that remain the go-to guides for anyone eager to dig into Jain cosmology and doctrine. The earliest surviving commentary is Amṛtachandra’s Bhagavatī-Vṛtti (8th century CE), which slices through terse sutras with clear, verse-by-verse explanations. Not long after, Vidyānandi’s slim yet incisive Tīkā (late 8th/early 9th century) sharpened doctrinal points, often quoting older Āgamas now lost to time.

Sūhastisūri’s Bhagavatī-Tīkā (9th century) takes the baton further, weaving in illustrative anecdotes and cross-references to Puruṣārthasiddhyupāya and other classics. By the 10th century, Devasena’s Bhavārthapañjikā arrives, wearing its encyclopedic ambition on its sleeve—this voluminous gloss seats Bhagavati’s verses within the entire Jain scriptural universe. Fast-forward to the 19th century and Devendrasūri’s Bhagavatīsārālokapanjī, a Sanskrit commentary peppered with Hindi paraphrases, designed to make those intricate metaphysical maps more accessible to monastics and lay readers alike.

These traditional expositions have sparked renewed interest in the digital age. In 2024, the Jain e-Library Project at the University of Mumbai released critical editions of Amṛtachandra and Sūhastisūri’s works, while the World Congress of Jaina Studies (2025, Varanasi) featured panels on medieval exegesis of the Bhagavati Sūtra. Modern scholars—both in India and abroad—have produced supplementary Hindi and English commentaries, weaving in contemporary research from Indology and comparative philosophy.

Together, these commentarial layers form a mosaic rather than a single narrative—each commentator brings fresh lenses to topics like the soul’s journey, the structure of the universe, and the ethics of non-violence. For anyone eager to see how Jain thinkers across centuries have unraveled those compact sutras, this body of work offers a fascinating, ever-unfolding roadmap.