The writing tool is called a Lekhan (લેખણ/लेखण)in Gujarati. Different tools have been used to write different types of scripts in India. In southern India, a stylus was used to inscribe on the palm-leaf manuscript. In North India a writing tool called Boru (બરૂ/बोरू) was and still is used for writing. Several varieties of the Boru are available, significant among these are Kala Boru (કાળાં બરૂ /काळा बोरू), Bas Boru (બાસ બરૂ/बांस बोरू), and Tajiya Boru (તજીયાં બરૂ/तजिया बोरू)(Punyavijayaji, 1936).

Kala Boru and Tajiya Boru were mostly used for writing Jain manuscripts. Unlike its name Kala Boru is actually reddish in colour. The Tajiya Boru is a ‘bulrush’ and is relatively brittle as a plant. However, its sharpened tip is resistant to abrasion and can last for a long time. This type of Boru is ideal for writing manuscripts, even contemporary Jain manuscripts are written with it.

A Tajiya Boru is reed which is cut into smaller pens of around 10–12 cm length. This unsharpened Boru is later prepared for writing by cutting its tip, with a slant cut. The cut is made at an angle of about 32–40°. This cut Boru is known as the Lekhan (લેખણ/लेखण). Other names of Lekhan are Vataran (વતરણું/ वतरण, in Sanskrit it is called अवतरण) and Kalam (કલમ/ कलम).

In the Jain-nagari script letters have a squarish rectangular shape; these letters demand a Lekhan which is suitable for writing the rectangular shapes. There were different tip sizes required for writing small, medium and large sizes of the texts. Thus, the Lahiya used to maintain various sizes of the Lekhan. Sometimes if the cut was not precise or the ink contained too much water then this Lekhan did not write properly on the surface as the script strokes got interrupted. To avoid this inconvenience, a small slit was made to allow the ink to flow smoothly through the tip of the Lekhan. Sometimes, a thick thread was rolled up near the tip of the Lekhan to absorb the excess ink, allowing the rest to flow smoothly.