Jainism

The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives Jainism

Contributors: Amitabh Vikram Dwivedi Edited by: Paul Joseph Book Title: The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives Chapter Title: "Jainism" Pub. Date: 2017 Access Date: May 6, 2017 Publishing Company: SAGE Publications, Inc. City: Thousand Oaks, Print ISBN: 9781483359892 Online ISBN: 9781483359878 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781483359878.n345 Print pages: 936-913 ©2017 SAGE Publications, Inc.. All Rights Reserved. This PDF has been generated from SAGE Knowledge. Please note that the pagination of the online version will vary from the pagination of the print book.

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The word Jainism derives from the root word jin, which means “to conquer.” Jainism, one of the oldest religions, was founded in India and traces its history through a succession of 24 tirthankaras (“propagators of faith”), with Adinath as the first and Mahavira as the last. This entry discusses the history of Jainism and describes its beliefs toward violence and war. Core Values of Jainism Mahavira, born in 599 CE, was the historical founder of Jainism. He revived the philosophy of eternity, propagated by the previous 23 tirthankaras, and founded a religion. No other religion in the world identifies itself more closely with nonviolence toward all living beings than Jainism. This religion prescribes nonviolence and self-control, by which Jains believe that they can attain liberation. Jainism does not have a totally monochrome view toward nonviolence. Violence and killing are not the same in Jainism. An individual might inadvertently destroy minute living beings, yet not be deemed responsible for committing himsa (“violence”). The core ethical values of Jainism can be expressed in the phrase Ahimsa paramo dharmah: “Practicing nonviolence is the supreme form of religion.” For a Jain believer, nonviolence is the virtue of the virtues, and enactment to it is the greatest form of heroism. Ahimsa (“nonviolence”), in Jainism, is motivated by these two arguments: first, violence leads to unwanted results, and second, all living beings are essentially the same. Moreover, Acharya Hemachandra, a Gujarati Jain teacher of the 12th century, says that all disciplinary and religious practices are useless until violence is abandoned. The Concept of War and Ahimsa in Jainism Among many principles, ahimsa (“nonviolence”) and daya (“kindness toward living beings”) are the most essential. Ahimsa does not mean the mere abstention from killing but it includes any other kind of violence—intentional or unintentional—that may cause injury to all living beings. A Jain monk undertakes mahavratas (“great vows”), and a layperson practices pancha anuvratas (“five small vows”), and both these vows compulsorily include ahimsa. Nonkilling or nonviolence of any kind looks as if it would be a difficult or even impossible principle to follow in day-to-day life. The Jain monks, for example, put muhapati (“a mouth cloth”) on their faces to prevent small organisms from entering into the mouth and getting killed. Since such practices are not feasible while performing daily chores, Jainism provides three gunavratas (“virtue vows”) in addition to the five small vows for a layperson. These include bans on imparting war-teachings and on possessing weapons. But Jain texts permit virodhi himsa (“self-defense”) for the followers, an injury caused by a person either defending oneself or others or defending one’s land or religion. The text also gives reference to samkalpi, arambhi, a n d udyogi himsa, and instructs that samkalpi himsa (“committed violence”) should be avoided at any cost. However, when violence is unavoidable then people are advised to be discreet and show restraint. While doing your work, Jain texts advise to do it as humanely as you can; for example, it is the duty of the king to hang the murderer, and similarly, the soldiers are supposed to kill the enemies in the battlefield. The udyogi himsa (“professional or occupational violence”) thus remains mostly an unavoidable type of act of violence. The concept of war is always defensive and never offensive in Jainism. War, Warriors, and Tirthankaras (“the Monks”) in Jainism

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The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives

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Jain myths inform that all the tirthankaras (the monks) were Ksatriyas, the “warrior caste.” This religion always glorifies this caste over others, and advocates that they are superior to other people in the world. Rishabhdev, the first tirthankara, used to teach martial art to the people. His son Bharata was the first Chakravarti (“Emperor”) king of India for he subdued all the other rulers of India. Out of 24 tirthankaras, 4 were Chakravarti kings. The 22nd tirthankara, Neminath, was the cousin of the Hindu god Krishna. There was an incidence when Krishna was away, then he became the commander of the Yadavs’ army and defeated Jarasandh. Similarly, Pasharwa Nath, the 23rd tirthankara, helped the Naga king to defeat his enemy. The Jain texts prescribe the kings to do their duties, such as to rule the country, to protect the distressed, and to wage war. If a king does not maintain an army, he fails in his duty. But if a king commits violence knowingly then it is a sin. Thus, fighting in war or killing in war is an act or duty that is neither good nor bad. Though Jainism prescribes violence in war, anyone who does killing cannot escape from the mental agony. There were great generals, such as Buchana, Baladeva, Manichandra, and Singana, who took the vow of sallekhana (“to leave food”) and ended themselves. This act is described in Jain texts as prayaschit, “a kind of atonement,” for the deeds they did in their youth. This prayaschit act should not be confused with the Western concept of suicide. Furthermore, lawsuits have been brought against Jain believers in India for practicing fasting to death. This religion is also radically different from Hinduism or Islam where a warrior who dies during fighting goes to heaven and enjoys heavenly bliss. Jainism believes that God does not bless the hero or fighter and shower any divine grace on human beings. This religion finds the idea of damsels carrying human souls to heaven ridiculous, and it advocates that it is only through one’s acts that anyone can attain liberation. However, few hero-stones mentioned the names of kings and generals who went to heaven. Jainism Practices and Other Religions Jainism has survived many repressions. In one such incident in Madurai, Hindu devotees to Shiva murdered 8,000 Jain believers in the 8th century. Islam, during the Mughal Empire, also had a history of conflict with Jainism. Although Mughal Emperor Akbar, being impressed by the monk Hirvijaya in 1547, ordered banning on slaughter during the Jain sacred month, his great-grandson Aurangzeb desecrated and converted a Jain temple into a mosque. Following Jainism is not easy, as its principles and practices require extreme behaviors. Any Jain believers cannot be on agreeable terms with nonvegetarians. Other religions, such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam, are stigmatized by the followers of Jainism for promoting violence. Since not many popular and populous religions follow vegetarianism as strictly and ardently as Jainism, this religion is excluded and often ridiculed by the others. There is also a conflict in Jainism. The two sects—Swetambara and Digambara—do not communicate with each other; they also do not hold marriages and other cultural rituals with each other. Digambaras do not allow women into their sangha (“religious community”) whereas Swetambaras allow them to take ascetic vows to become nuns. The founder of Jainism, Mahavira, says that women are the greatest temptation in the world. One should not converse with them, not look at them, nor claim them as his own, nor do their work. See alsoIndia; Religion and War Amitabh Vikram Dwivedi http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781483359878.n345 10.4135/9781483359878.n345

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Further Readings Hinnells, John R., and Richard King. Religion and Violence in South Asia: Theory and Practice. London: Routledge, 2007. Jain, Sushil. “Jaina View of War, Warrior and Violence.” Itihaas: Indian History Resources. http://itihaas.tripod.com/jainism/war.html (Accessed May 2, 2014). Murphy, Andrew R. The Blackwell Companion to Religion and Violence. Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. Rosenfield, Clare, and Linda Segall. “Ahisma Is Not a Religion . . . It Is a Way of Life.” Jainism Literature Center. http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~pluralsm/affiliates/jainism/ahimsa/ahimsacr.htm (Accessed May 21, 2014). Sanglikar, Mahaveer. “Jainism and War: Practical Views of Jainism on Defense.” HubPages. http://jainismus.hubpages.com/hub/jaindare (Accessed May 21, 2014). W a b a s h C e n t e r. “Jainism.” http://www.wabashcenter.wabash.edu/syllabi/g/gier/306/jainism.htm ( A c c e s s e d M a y 2 1 , 2014).

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The SAGE Encyclopedia of War: Social Science Perspectives