Jainism

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Jainism (pronounced in English as /ˈdʒeɪ.nɪzm̩/), traditionally known as Jain Dharma (जैन धर्म) , is a classical religion with its origins in the prehistory of India. The Jains, although a small minority in India now, have continued to sustain the shraman (श्रमण) tradition. Jainism is significantly influential in both the ethical and economic spheres in India. Jainism places great stress on compassion to all living beings. Self-control (व्रत vrata in Sanskrit) forms a central part of being a Jain.

A lay Jain is termed a shravaka (श्रावक) i.e. a listener. The Jain Sangha (संघ) has four components: monks, nuns, lay men and women.

Contents

Overview of Jain Dharma

According to Jain beliefs, Jain philosophy is a codification of eternal universal truths which at times lapse among humanity, but later reappear through the teachings of human beings who have gained enlightenment or omniscience (Keval Gnan). According to jain tradition, Lord Rishabha (ऋषभ) was the first human to receive the philosophy in this part of the universe, in the present cycle, and more recently Vardhaman Mahavira (599–527 BC), or Lord Mahavira (महावीर).

Jainism teaches that every single living thing is an individual and eternal soul, which is responsible for its own actions. Jains see their faith as teaching the individual to live, think and act in ways that respect and honor the spiritual nature of every living being to the best of one's human abilities. Jains view God as the unchanging traits of the pure soul, chief among them being Infinite Knowledge, Perception, Consciousness, and Happiness ('Ananta Gnana, Darshan, Chaitanya,' and 'Sukh'). The universe itself is seen as being eternal, having no beginning and no end, precluding God from being a creator.

The primary figures of Jainism are the Tirthankaras. Jainism has two main variants: Digambar and Shvetambar. Jains believe in ahimsa (or ahinsa), asceticism, karma, samsara, and the jiva. Jain philosophy has many scriptures written over a long period of time. One of the most cited scripture among all Jains is Tattvartha Sutra, or Book of Realities written over 18 centuries ago by the monk-scholar Umasvati (also known as Umasvami).

Compassion to all fellow living beings is central to being a Jain. Jainism is the only religion where all followers, both monks and lay persons, are traditionally vegetarian. In regions of India with strong Jain influence, often majority of the population is vegetarian. In many towns, the Jains run animal shelters. In Delhi, there is a bird hospital run by a Jain temple.

As part of its stance on nonviolence, Jainism goes beyond vegetarianism in that the Jain diet also excludes most root vegetables and certain other foods believed to be unnecessarily injurious. Observant Jains do not eat, drink or travel after sunset and always rise before sunrise.

Anekantavada, meaning simultaneous validity of multiple points of view is an important principle in Jainism. The Jains can be remarkably open minded. There are several Hindu temples that are administered by Jain individuals. The Jain Heggade family has run the institutions of Dharmasthala including the Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple for eight centuries. There are examples of Jains donating money for building churches and mosques. In India the Jains have often helped organize multi-religious discussions and functions. They have also sometimes been involved in activities to promote harmony among followers of rival faiths to help defuse communal tensions.

Jains have been an important presence in Indian culture, contributing to Indian philosophy, art, architecture, sciences and the politics of Mohandas Gandhi which led to Indian independence.

Universal History and Jain Cosmology

According to Jain beliefs, the universe was never created, nor will it ever cease to exist. It is eternal but not unchangeable, because it passes through an endless series of cycles. Each of these upward or downward cycles is divided into six world ages (yugas). The present world age is the fifth age of one of these "cycles", which is in a downward movement. These ages are known as "Aaro" as in "Pehelo Aaro" or First Age, "Beejo Aaro" or Second Age and so on. The last one is the "Chhatho Aaro" or Sixth Age. All these ages have fixed time durations of thousands of years.

When this reaches its lowest level, even Jainism itself will be lost in its entirety. Then, in the course of the next upswing, the Jain religion will be rediscovered and reintroduced by new leaders called Tirthankaras (literally "Crossing Makers" or "Ford Finders"), only to be lost again at the end of the next downswing, and so on.

In each of these enormously long alternations of time there are always twenty-four Tirthankaras. In the current world age, the twenty-third Tirthankar was Parshva, an ascetic and teacher, whose traditional dates are 877-777 BC, i.e., 250 years before the passing of the last Tirthankar Lord Mahavira in 527 BC. Jains regard him and all Tirthankars as a reformer who called for a return to beliefs and practices in line with the eternal universal philosophy upon which the faith is said to be based.

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The twenty-fourth and final Tirthankar of this age is known by his title, Mahāvīr, the Great Hero (599-527 BC). He too was a wandering ascetic teacher who attempted to recall the Jains to the rigorous practice of their ancient faith.

Jains believe that reality is made up of two eternal principles, jiva and ajiva. Jiva consists of an infinite number of identical spiritual units; ajiva (that is, non-jiva) is matter in all its forms and the conditions under which matter exists: time, space, and movement.

Both jiva and ajiva are eternal; they never came into existence for the first time and will never cease to exist. The whole world is made up of jivas trapped in ajiva; there are jivas in rocks, plants, insects, animals, human beings, spirits, et cetera.

Any contact whatsoever of the jiva with the ajiva causes the former to suffer. Thus the Jains believed that existence in this world inevitably means suffering. Neither social reform nor the reform of individuals themselves can ever stop suffering. In every human being, a jiva is trapped, and the jiva suffers because of its contact with ajiva. The only way to escape from suffering is for the jiva to completely escape from the human condition, from human existence.

Karma and transmigration keep the jiva trapped in ajiva. Achieving release from the human condition is difficult. The Jains believe that the jiva continues to suffer during all its lives or reincarnations, which are of an indefinite number. They believe that every action that a person performs, be it good or evil, opens up channels of the senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell), through which an invisible substance, karma, filters in and adheres to the jiva within, weighing it down and determining the conditions of the next reincarnation.

The consequence of evil actions is a heavy karma, which weighs the jiva down, forcing it to enter its new life at a lower level in the scale of existence. The consequence of good deeds, on the other hand, is a light karma, which allows the jiva to rise in its next life to a higher level in the scale of existence, where there is less suffering to be endured. However, good deeds alone can never lead to release.

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The way to moksha (release or liberation) is withdrawal from the world. Karma is the cause-and-effect mechanism by virtue of which all actions have inescapable consequences. Karma operates to keep the jiva chained in an unending series of lifetimes in which the jiva suffers to a greater or lesser extent. Thus the way of escape must involve an escape from karma, the destruction of all karma and the avoidance of new karma.

Then, at death, with no karma to weigh it down, the jiva will float free of all ajiva, free of the human condition, free of all future embodiments. It will rise to the top of the universe to a place or state called Siddhashila, where the jiva, identical with all other pure jivas, will experience its own true nature in eternal stillness, isolation and noninvolvement. It will be totally free. The way to burn up old karma is to withdraw from all involvement in the world as much as possible, and close the channel of the senses and the mind to prevent karmic matter from entering and adhering to the jiva.

S. Vernon McCasland, Grace E. Cairns and David C. Yu describe Jain cosmology after the following manner:

"In Jain tradition, the first teacher of the religion, Rishabha, lived in the third period of Avasarpini, during which half of the world cycle things are getting worse. Since evil had begun to be found, a teacher called a Tirthankara was needed in order for people to cope with the problems of life. In the fourth period, evils proliferated such that twenty-three more Tirthankaras came into the world to teach people how to defeat evil and achieve mokasha. The present time, part of the fifth period, is 'wholly evil.' Now, men live no longer than 125 years, but the sixth epoch will be even worse. 'Man's life span will be only sixteen to twenty years and his height will be reduced to the size of a dwarf. . . . But then the slow upward movement of the second half of the world cycle, Utsarpini, will begin. There will be steady improvement until, in the sixth era, man's needs will be fulfilled by wishing trees, and man's height will be six miles, and evil will be unknown.' However, eventually things will degenerate again, with a repeat of Avasarpini; Usarpini will come again afterwards, in a neverending cycle, according to Jain cosmology." (McCasland, Cairns, and Yu, Religions of the World, New York: Random House, 1969: pages 485-486)

Beliefs and practices



On the one hand, there are the monks, who practice severe asceticism and strive to make this birth their last. On the other hand, there are the lay people, who pursue less rigorous practices, striving to attain rational faith and do good deeds in this birth. Due to the strict ethics embedded in Jainism, the laity must choose a profession and livelihood that does not involve violence to self and other living beings.

In their effort to attain their highest and most exalted state of beatification (Siddhatva), which is the permanent release of the jiva from all involvement in worldly existence, the Jains believe that no spirit or divine being can assist them in any way. The Jains consider that gods cannot help the jiva to obtain release. This has to be achieved by individuals through their own efforts. In fact, the angels cannot even gain their own release until they are reincarnated as humans and undertake the difficult actions of removing the karmas.

The ethical code of Jainism is taken very seriously. Summarized in the Five Vows, they are followed by both lay people and monastics. These are:

  1. Nonviolence (ahinsa, or ahimsa)
  2. Truth (satya)
  3. Non-stealing (asteya)
  4. Chastity (brahmacharya)
  5. Non-possession or Non-possessiveness (aparigrah)

For lay people, 'chastity' means confining sexual experience to the marriage relationship. For monks/nuns, it means complete celibacy. Nonviolence involves being strictly vegetarian. The Jain is expected to follow the principle of non-violence in all his/her thoughts, words and deeds. There are some Jains who wear masks over their mouths and noses to avoid any possibility of breathing in tiny insects.

Mahatma Gandhi was deeply influenced by the Jain emphasis on a peaceful, non-harming way of life which is common to the Jain philosophy and made it an integral part of his own philosophy.

Jain Symbols


Jains have few core symbols. One Jain symbol incorporates a wheel on the palm of the hand. The holiest one is a simple unadorned swastika or svastika.

Major Jains symbols include:

Jain Literature


The oldest Jain literature is in Ardha-Magadhi and Maharashtri Prakrit (Agamas, Agama-tulya, Siddhanta texts etc). Many calssical texts are in Sanskrit (Tatvartha Sutra, Puranas, Koshas, Shravakacharas, Mathematics, Nighantus etc). Jain literature was also written in Apabhramsha (Kahas, rasas, grammars etc), Hindi (Chhah-dhala, Mokshamarga Prakashaka etc), Tamil (Jivakachintamani, Kural etc), Kannada (Vaddaradhane etc.). See Jain literature for more details.

Jain Worship and Rituals

Jains have built temples where images of their Tirthankaras are venerated. Jain rituals can be elaborate and include offerings of symbolic objects, with the Tirthankaras being praised in chant. In some Jain sects, temples and images are not required.

Every day Jains bow their heads and say their universal prayer, the Namokar-mantra. All good work and events start with this prayer of salutation and worship.

Namo Arihantanam: - I bow to the Arahantas, the perfected human beings, Godmen.
Namo Siddhanam: - I bow to the Siddhas, liberated bodiless souls, God.
Namo Aayariyanam: - I bow to the Acharyas, the masters and heads of congregations.
Namo Uvajjhayanam: - I bow to the Upadhyayas, the spiritual teachers.
Namo Loe Savva Sahunam: - I bow to all the spiritual practitioners in the universe, Sadhus.

Eso Pancha Namokaro: - This fivefold obeisance mantra,
Savva Pavappanasano: - Destroys all sins and obstacles,
Mangalanam cha Savvesim: - And of all auspicious repetitions,
Padhamam Havai Mangalam: - Is the first and foremost.


In the above prayer, Jains salute the virtues of their five benevolent. They do not pray to a specific Tirthankar or monk by name. By saluting them, Jains receive the inspiration from the five benevolent for the right path of true happiness and total freedom from the misery of life. Jain prayers do not ask for any favors or material benefits from their Gods, the Tirthankaras or from monks and nuns.

Jain worship may or may not involve temples. The sadhumargi Shvetambar Jains and the followers of Shrimad Rajachandra sect do not have temples. The Taranpnathi Jains have temples, but have books in place of idols.

Jain rituals include:

  • Pancha-kalyanaka Pratishtha
  • Pratikramana
  • Guru-vandan, Chaitya vandan etc.

The Jain rituals for marriage and other family rites are distinct and uniquely Indian.

Digambar and Shvetambar Traditions


It is generally believed that the Jain sangha became divided two major sects, Digambar and Shvetambar, about 200 years after the nirvana of Mahāvīr. Bhadrabahu, chief of the Jain monks, foresaw a period of famine and led about 12,000 people, to southern India. Twelve years later, they returned to find that the Svetambar sect had arisen. The followers of Bhadrabahu became known as the Digambar sect.

The Digambar monks do not wear any clothes, the Svetambar monks wear white clothes. The nuns of both sects wear white clothes.

However historians have noted that there was no clear division until the 5th century. The Valabhi council of 453 resulted in editing and compilation of scriptures of the Svetambar tradition.

Excavations at Mathura have revealed many Kushana period Jain idols. In all of them the Tirthankaras are represented without clothes. Some of them show monks with only one piece of cloth which is wrapped around the left arm. They are identified as belonging to the ardha-phalaka sect mentioned in some texts. The Yapaniaya sect is believed to have have originated from the Ardha-phalakas. They followed Digambara practice of nudity, but held several beliefs like the Svetambaras.

Both traditions are further subdivided into several sects. In recent decades, attempts have been made to bring the sects together. In 1974, a new religious text Samana Suttam was compiled by a committee consisting of representatives of all the sects.

Geographical spread and influence

It has been advanced that the pervasive influence of Jain culture and philosophy in ancient Bihar gave rise to Buddhism.

The Buddhists always maintained that by the time Buddha and Mahavira were alive, Jainism was already an ancient and deeply entrenched faith and culture in the region. For a discussion about the connections between Jainism and Buddhism see Jainism and Buddhism.

At 4 to 5 million adherents, Jainism is among the smallest of the major world religions, but in India its influence is much more significant than the numbers would suggest. The Jains live throughout India, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat have the largest Jain population among Indian states. Other states of India with relatively large Jain populations among its residents are Karnataka and Mahya Pradesh.

Jainism has a large following in the Indian region of Punjab, especially the town of Ludhiana. There were many Jains in Lahore (Punjab's historic capital) and other cities before the Partition of 1947. Many then fled to the Indian section of Punjab.

It is practiced by adherents in all the metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai as well as Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad.

There are 85 Jain communities in different parts of India and around the world. They speak local languages and sometimes follow different rituals. However they all follow essentially the same principles.

Outside of India, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania & Uganda) have large Jain communities. Smaller Jain communities exist in Nepal, Japan, Singapore, Australia etc. Jainism as a religion was at various times found all over South Asia including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Burma, and Afghanistan.

Jain philosophy and culture have been a major cultural, philosophical, social and political force since the dawn of civilization in South Asia, and its ancient influence has been traced beyond the borders of modern India into the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean regions. Jainism is presently a growing faith in the United States as well, where several Jain temples have been built. American Jainism tends to accommodate all the sects in its institutions.

Over several thousand years, Jain influence on Hindu philosophy and religion have been considerable, while Hindu influence on Jain temple worship and rituals can be observed in certain Jain sects. For a detailed discussion see Jainism and Hinduism.

Jain Contributions to Indian Culture

While the Jains are only 0.4% of the Indian population, their contributions to culture and society in India have been considerable.

The Jains are among the wealthiest of the Indians. They are also among the most philanthropic, they run numerous schools, colleges and hospitals. They have been the most important patrons of the Somapuras, the traditional temple architects in Gujarat.

According to the 2001 census, the Jains are the most literate community in India. India's oldest libraries at Patan and Jaisalmer have been preserved by Jain institutions. The Jains have contributed writings in many of the India's classical and popular languages. Some of the oldest known books in Hindi and Gujarati were written by Jain scholars. In Kannada almost entire early literature is of Jain origin. Many of the Tamil classics are also Jain. Practically all of the known texts of Apabhramsha language are Jain works.

Jainism and Indian Archaeology

Decipherment of Brahmi James Princep in 1788, permitted reading of ancient inscriptions in India, which established the antiquity of Jainism. Discovery of Jain manuscripts, a process that continues today, has added significantly to retracing the history of Jainism.

Jain archaeological findings are from Maurya, Sunga, Kushana, Rashtrakuta, Chalukya, and Rajput and later period.

Several western and Indian scholars have contributed to the reconstruction of Jain history. They include western historians like Bühler, Jacobi, and Indian scholars like Iravatham Mahadevan who has worked on Tamil Brahmi inscriptions.

Archaeological evidence such as various seals and other artifacts from the Indus Valley Civilization (c. 3000–1500 BC) has been cited by some scholars as attesting to the faith's roots in pre-Indo-Aryan migration India.

Holy sites

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There are many Jain tirthas (pilgrimage sites) throughout India.

Holy days

The Jain Calendar gives the dates for major Jain festivals, vratas and fairs.

Jainism and other religions

India has a rich history of diverse philosophies. The term Hindu includes followers of Vedic, Vaishnava, Saiva and other traditions. These traditions share a common cultural background with Jainism. Buddhism, like Jainism, represents the ancient Shramana tradition of india. Along with Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism share the concept of dharma. Connections among these are discussed at:

Even though Jainism is of Indian origin, it shared some principles with the Hellenic tradition, specially with Stoic and Pythagorean philosophies of Europe. A comparison with modern western religions can be found at:

See also

- * Tamil Jains


References

Introductory:

  • Duli C. Jain (Editor), Studies In Jainism: Primer, Jain Study Circle, 1997.
  • Vastupal Parikh Jainism and the New Spirituality, Peace Publications, 2002.

Detailed Introduction:

  • Natubhai Shah, Jainism : The World of Conquerors, Motilal Banarsidass, 2004.
  • Padmanabh S. Jaini, Jaina Path of Purification, Motilal Banarsidass, 2001.
  • Paul Dundas, The Jains, Routledge, 2002.
  • Kurt Titze, Jainism : A Pictorial Guide to the Religion of Non-Violence, Mohtilal Banarsidass, 1998.
  • Kristi Wiley, Historical Dictionary of Jainism, Scarecrow Press, 2004.

Specialized Sources:

  • Fisher -- Living Religions (5th Edition) (2003), p.130
  • Bhaskar, Bhagchandra Jain, Jainism in Buddhist Literature. Alok Prakashan: Nagpur, 1972.
  • Campbell, Joseph, Oriental Mythology, 1962.
  • Nakamura, Hajime, Gotama Buddha: A Biography Based on the Most Reliable Texts. Kosei Publishing: Tokyo, 2000.
  • Ramachandran, T.N., Harrappa and Jainism 1987.
  • Subramaniyam, Ka Naa, Tiruvalluvar and his Tirukkural. Bharatiya Jnanpith: New Delhi 1987.
  • Thomas, Edward, Jainism, or the Early Faith of Asoka. Asian Educational Services: New Delhi, 1995 (reprint of the original by Trubner: London, 1877).


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