Ganeshprasad Varni

Kshullak Ganeshprasad Varni was one of the foundational figures of the modern Indian Digambara intellectual tradition during the early 20th century. He was the founder of several schools and institutions of advanced learning including Syadvad Mahavidyalaya at Varanasi in 1905, Varanasi and SatarkSudhataringini Digamber Jain Pathshala, now Ganesh Digamber Jain Sanskrit Vidyalaya at Sagar.

Ganesh Prasad Ji Varni was born to Hira Lal and Ujyari Devi in village Hansera in district Lalitpur , who belonged to the Asati community. While the Asatis are mostly Vaishnava, his father had a deep faith in the Namokar Mantra. He used to live in a Jain neighbourhood and visit the Jain temple near his house in Mandawara. Influenced by lectures there, at the age of ten, he took a vow to take meals before sunset throughout his life. During his yajnopavita ceremony, he had an argument with the priest and his mother, and declared that he will be a Jain henceforth. his He passed the middle examination at the age of fifteen. He did not have any aptitude for shopkeeping, his fathers profession, and became a school teacher.

Source: Wikipedia