This encyclopaedia is vast collection of essays of more than thousand renowned jaina scholars, philosophers, historians, sociologists of the world dealing with various aspects of jainism. Jainism religion bhagwan mahavir jain symbol belief. So he could be called a reformer of the jain religion or rejunevator of the faith which was already and had a long tradition. Jainism is properly the name of one of the religious traditions that have their. Nayavada is a compound of two sanskrit wordsnaya standpoint, viewpoint, interpretation and vada doctrine, thesis. It is considered to be much more than a book, it is deemed to be the living guru of the sikhs. The doctrine of nayavada provides the framework for the doctrine of syadvada, since it clearly points out that reality can be looked at from many different standpoints, and that no standpoint can be claimed as the only valid one. What is jainism jainism is a religion and a way of life.
The word jain is taken from the word jina, which means getting victory over thy self and the peripheral world. Sanskrit verse from shivpuran lord rishabhdev jineshwar first tirthankar the omniscient and the all pervasive incarnated himself on the magnificent kailas ashtapad mountain. In fact the old jain literature such as the acharanga sutra and the kalpa sutra. Books by authors name books by authors name list of english books by author author name. Mahavira was not the founder of jainism in the sense that the buddha was the founder of buddhism. Svetambaras believe the split occurred when the chief monk acharyabhadrabahu predicted a 12 year famine. In india, they share this feature with the buddhists. The american people spend thousands of dollars to propagate the doctrines of the fall of man, the creation of the world out of nothing in six days by a personal god, vicarious atonement, absolution from sin by the shedding of innocent blood. A glance at its contents will reveal the fact that glasenapp has covered almost all the salient features of jainism. On the other hand, islam has just one central holy book and just one important prophet with whom all of them all emotionally connected. Therefore agam sutras were rarely documented and not widely. Thus one finds in the jain texts, deliberative exhortations on any subject in all its. For discussion of philosophies associated with the major religious traditions of. Mahavira was not the founder of jainism in the sense that the.
The application of the notion of scripture is complex in jainism. Worshipers look at its thousands of statues through mirrors in order no to insult the gods and goddesses with a direct gaze. Fundamental beliefs of jainism the soul is bounded by karma from the beginning of time the principles governing the successions of life cycles birth, life, and death is karma. Here is a selection of the most pertinent and the best of these, which succeed in presenting a comprehensive picture of its concepts, practices of the holy order and laity, and life in general. In jainism, knowledge depends on experience and experience is always partial, in the sense that reality in totality is never revealed.
Syadvada, in jaina metaphysics, the doctrine that all judgments are conditional. Since gautama buddha, founder of buddhism, belonged to the same region of magadha as mahavira the 24th tirthankar of jainism, and because both were contemporaries, it was assumed erroneously that jainism was contemporary of buddhism or was an off. Guru is a sanskrit word for teacher, and within sikhism it is the title given to the 10 spiritual leaders of sikhism dating from 1469 ad to 1708 ad as well as the sri guru granth. The texts had to be memorised since jain monks and nuns were not allowed to possess religious books as part of their vow of nonacquisition. What is known is not all aspects of the reality of an object, but only one or some. The book presents jainism in a way that is authentic and engaging to specialists and nonspecialists alike.
Holy book and place of worship of sikhism,jainism, buddhism. In fact, syadvada is the theory of the relativity of knowledge. Jainism asserts that knowledge attained is the knowledge of real objects. We can look at it in two specific ways, firstly from an organisational perspective, and then from the perspective of a souls progress to its final goal of moksha. Philosophy should serve as the light house in this struggle of life. These texts are the holy scriptures of the jain religion. Proceedings of the dot 2010 panel in marburg, germany. The monks of the digambara sect do not even possess clothing. Michael tobias has described nonviolanceahimsa in great details. Jainism is an eastern religion with origins in the indus river valley dating back to 3000 b.
The jain literature which was complied by ganadharas and srutkevlis is known as agam literature. Parshvanatha and mahavira, two historical tirthankars of jainism, had huge numbers of female devotees and ascetics. For thousands of years, jains have been practicing vegetarianism, yo. Mahavir jayanti is a religious festival in jainism which celebrates the birthday of lord mahavira. Also the religious books and scriptures were considered possessions and attachments for ascetics. The agam sutras show great reverence for all forms of life and strict codes of vegetarianism, asceticism, nonviolence, and opposition to war. Shvetambara monks are allowed to retain a few possessions such as a robe, an alms bowl, a whisk broom, and a mukhavastrika a piece of cloth held over the mouth to protect against the ingestion of small insects, which are presented by a senior monk at the time of initiation. It is a city so holy that not even priests can sleep there. Our intention behind our actions of body, mind, and speech bind us with karma. The aim of existence is to attain through the triratna of 1. Jainism was born in india about the same period as buddhism.
Jainism ritual practices and religious institutions. This point is proved by what is said in the following quotes from oldest hindu holy books that jainism existed before vedas were composed. The texts containing the teachings of mahavira are called the agamas, and are the canonical literature the scriptures of svetambara jainism mahaviras disciples compiled his. The holy book of jainism is a collection of texts known as agam literature or the agam sutras. Jainism is an ancient religion practiced in india flugel 199. Now, we can explain the seven fold judgments of syadvada. The founders of jainism fit into a general category of religious movements that emphasized as a means of spiritual development. Shatkhandagam and dhavala ratna karanda sravakachara of a. Rajchandra kalpasutra, acharangacomplete translation searchable texts. Instead they have a body of holy writings or scriptures. The jinas are considered more respectable than the gods. Bc as protests against the overdeveloped ritualism of hinduism, particularly its sacrificial cults, and the authority of the veda. Antiquity of jainism professor mahavir saran jain lord mahavira is not the founder of jainism.
It can be compared with einsteins theory of relativity, which is based on the principle that all motion is relative, regarding spacetime as a fourth dimension. The syadvada anekantavada is a gem, to say the least. Jainism is one of the most ancient religions that originated in eastern india and it was founded around the 6th century. Choose from 500 different sets of jainism and sikhism flashcards on quizlet. Jaina view of life a perspective in jaina philosophy and religion jaina view of life prof.
The jain religion does not have one sacred book like the bible or koran, but it has many. Anekant syadvada 1965 g 344 shah, chandulal jain marga aradhak samiti a. Learn jainism and sikhism with free interactive flashcards. The golden book of jainism humanitys oldest religion of. This religion advocates for the love towards other beings and the practice of nonviolence. All jains agree that, originally, there were fifty books of scripture, all of them miraculously produced by mahavira. The van voorst book contains selections from the foundational texts and. In class we will discuss and examine these books and make them appear less strange. Indianjaina dialectic of syadvad in relation to probability. Canonical literature of the shvetambaras, sacred books of the digambaras, and the tirthankaras from a history of the jainas, ashim kumar roy new delhi. Pilgrimage plays an important part in jain life for digambaras and some svetambaras. The scriptures are very many, which extended to poetry, drams, etc. Hence, the jain religion does not have one sacred book like the bible or koran, but it.
The present book is one of the best and stimulating books ever written by scholars on jainism. Ultimately hierarchy in jainism is driven by spiritual development, the result of personal striving. The pot exists as an earthen substance possessing red colour in summar at guwahati. In fact, the householders are supposed to evolve to the monkhood in the later stages of life as was the case with the hinduism in the vedic era. The religion of jainism can be traced to the emergence of 24 teachers who believed that the humans need. An introduction, is a thoroughly researched overview of the jain tradition, a religion and set of philosophical constructs that have influenced indian thought for over 2500 years. Religion 3634 jainism concordia university, winter 2016. Everyone knows gandhi but many dont know driving force behind gandhis ahimsa.
Jainism jainism ritual practices and religious institutions. There are certain ideas in indianjaina logic called syadvada which seem to have close relevance to the concepts of probability, and which can, therefore supply a convenient background to my own observations on the foundations of statistics. This succinct, completely engaging overview of jainism, the historical contexts of jain intellectual thought, and the relationship of. What are the major rituals, holy days, garments, ceremonies and symbols. From the point of its own substance, place, time, and nature, a thing exists. Samantabhadra chhah dhala of daulatram atmasiddhi of shri. In digamber jainism the original form there are more than thousands of jain literature books translated and described by numerous saints and people. The doctrine of prayascitta in hindu law and the jaina doctrine of karma. I know this will be a little long, but heres a quick summary on all the major things youd need to know about jainism. Pilgrimage pilgrimage in jainism temples on the shatrunjaya hills, gujurat an important jain site. Lord mahavir, popularly regarded as the founder of jainism, was the last of the tirthankars who flourished from 599 to 527 b. Ultimate goal of life is eternal release from karma. Syadvada is indispensable and helps establish the truth, according to samantabhadra.
Syadvada or saptabhangi naya is the most important part of jaina logic. List of books and articles about jainism online research. Hindus are in a similar position, even though they have the vedas, which can be considered the ultimate source of teaching. Followers of jainism are called jains, a word derived from the sanskrit word jina victor referring to the path of victory in crossing over lifes stream of rebirths by destroying karma through an ethical and spiritual life. Jainism lays heavy emphasis on nonviolence ahimsa and the believers of this religion, whether a monk or a householder, follow a very strict, well disciplined life. Unlike monotheistic traditions, the jains do not have a unique holy book that characterises their faith. Jaina tradition teaches that a succession of 24 tirthankaras saints originated the religion.
Mahavir jayanti teachings of lord mahavira my india. Jains see these texts, which are the transcriptions of lord mahavirs sermons, as sacred documents. Jainism, ajivika, and buddhism arose in the 6th cent. The world of jainism this is the best book on jainism. In jainism, however, syadvada and anekanta is not a theory of uncertainty, doubt or. A prathmanuyoga which involves mythological characters and stories of jainism the shastras holy books. Even religious scriptures were considered possessions and therefore. However, the historicity of mahavira is not crucial to the history of jainism. Moreover, the restrictions on certain women to enter ranks of nuns were not attributable to jainism alone, but the erstwhile patriarchal indian society as a whole. And we have a huge list of saints who are important. It is important to understand the latter two to understand the conditions under which jains have survived and maintained and practiced their religion. Organization of jainism the 2 sects of jainism digambar and svetambar divided 200 years after mahavira achieved enlightenment.
Within sikhism, the holy book is called the sri guru granth sahib. Their texts have never presented a theory for holy war. Jainworld is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of jain tradition of wisdom, compassion, equality, brotherhood, universal wellbeing and spirituality. Jain philosophy internet encyclopedia of philosophy.
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