QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON JAINISM :AHIMSA AND DAIRY PRODUCTS

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON JAINISM : AHIMSA AND DAIRY PRODUCTS

Qs.  1.  What is Kandamula and why are Jains not supposed to eat them?

Kandamula are vegetable roots by themselves and can be replanted as seeds to produce more of the same.  (According to the Jain categorization of living beings vegetables are one sensed living beings).Each root vegetable becomes a saadhaarana vanaspati, because it can produce many more of its kind.  Hence, much more violence is stated to be committed in consuming each such piece of vegetable.

Qs.  2.  Eggs are not fertile, so why are not Jains allowed to eat?

Eggs are not fertile and they will not produce a chicken, but each egg contains millions of minute living cells.  Hence eating the eggs will mean killing all those living beings.  Also consuming eggs creates a favorable psyche to consume meat and chicken.

Again eggs are full of numerous poisonous cells for the heart and other vital limbs of the body.  Mr.P.K.Shah, and the honorable Pramodaben Shah, have jointly produced a book:  “Compassion:  the source of non-violence”, this book contains extremely valuable information on this matter.  This small monograph should be referred to.  Jains will not subscribe to the mentality of consuming eatables, which on the face of it do not produce life, but are full of millions of live micro- cells within.  The community, especially the younger generation needs to be enlightened in this matter.

Q3.  Dairy products are animal products.  Why do Jains eat them?

Dairy products in ancient and also modern India up to about1940s, did not involve any violence at all as it does now, since dairy products have started being treated as a commercial product in India too and are being produced on an industrial scale.  As of now in India too nearly the same amount of violence is being committed directly or indirectly towards dairy animals, especially cows as in the United States of America and other countries.  As stated above 65-70 years past from now, cows were treated with incredible reverence in India in each Hindu family.  They were in truth worshipped as the most respectable divine mother of the family.  Their calves also were given the same loving treatment as the cow.  Hence Jain saints had no objection in consuming dairy products, within the prescribed time limits for milk, buttermilk, Ghee and yogurt.

In modern times Jain monks should not consume any dairy produce, anywhere, in any country.  Jain householders also should follow suit.

Since no violence was committed in the production and consumption of dairy products, it was not prohibited in the scriptures.

Qs.  5.  Why do Jains use milk, saffron (cruelty product), in Puja and other rituals?

Milk was used as a pure and non-violent product.  Use of some of the products like saffron, may belong to the period of Siddharaj Kumarpal (12^th cent.A.D.) of Gujarat, his entry into the Jain fold, and performance of Jain ceremonies with royal pomp and show under the influence of Brahmanic culture.  In Digambari Pujas nothing except carefully washed whole grains of rice, pure water, colored water for chandana, ( not artificially colored even with sandal paste, but with the paste of crushed (fallen) harasingara flowers, not plucked fresh from the tree or sweets purchased from the market, or prepared at home.  This has all come from Brahmanic – cultural influence.  Brahman priests in Hindu temples welcome sweets and fruits to be offered to the Dieties and apply a red colored paste or sandal paste on the forehead of the devotees as a mark of blessing and devotion to the god.  The sweets and fruits are then distributed among devotees as sacred Prasadam.

Qs.  6.  Why do we use milk in Shanti Kalasha?

Milk was used in the Shanti Kalasha as a symbol of purity and prosperity of the devotee’s heart and soul and as a nonviolent- product.We should not use milk or any other dairy product any more for any of our religious ceremonies.

Qs.  7.  During decoration of Murti (Aangi), why do Jains use silver / gold varakh, which are manufactured by using leather, a product of Cow’s intestine?

The use of decoration on the sacred statues of our Tirthankara’s might also have started during the reign of Siddharaja Kumarpal, which might have been consented to by Acharya Hemachandra as a mark of Royal patronage to Jain -Dharma

Qs.  8.  Does Jainism allow the usage of animals for medical research to cure deadly diseases?

This is a highly debatable issue.  Saving life and curing deadly diseases amongst human beings, the highest form of life, some would say this may be permitted, allowing only as little violence as possible and by using the lowest possible form of animal life, while others may not agree.  A reasonable stand may be not agreeing to experiments, wherein killing of animals is possible to avoid, and some alternate medium could be found to conduct laboratory experiments, but allow experiments where no alternative medium can be found for purposes of saving millions of human lives, the highest and most evolved form of life.  Jain scriptures are full of admiration for life as a human being.  It is the human being alone, not even gods, who can evolve their spiritual self into godhood.

Acarya Somadeva of the 9^th cent.  A.D.  has expressly stated in his Yashastilaka- Champu that “ all such worldly practices are acceptable for the Jains, by adopting which the Jain does not lose his Right Faith and none of his vows as a householder is transgressed.”

Qs.  9.  Jain views on suicide and the death penalty.

Suicide according to the Jain faith is positively sinful and most heinous crime.  But in case there is no alternative, no rescue from certain types of ailments and incurable fatal diseases, for example last stages of incurable forms of cancer or Aids or such other ailments, adopting the Jain Sanllekhana- vidhi will be the best course.  It means consciously taking away the life force when this body is incurably diseased, excruciatingly suffering and itself on the verge of dying and disintegration.  In the Jain tradition Sallekhana is known as Samadhi–marana, i.e., dying in a state of spiritual rapture.

Jaina views on Death penalty:

This is again a matter of subjective opinion.  It also depends on how dangerous a particular criminal has been in his actual life, how law interprets the case and what has been the nature and the amount of cruelty that the criminal has inflicted on his/ her victims.

Qs.  10.  What is the Jain view on having pets?

Jainism does not allow pets.  Hardly a Jain will be found who has adopted the practice.  Some pets do not survive their actual longevity of life without meat, this is one thing, and the amount of care and expenses involved in taking necessary care of the pets are exorbitant.  For the same amount, one human being could be saved, educated, given treatment and given a real human life.  Saving the lives of animals in veterinary care centers, hospitals, etc.  is different and permitted, even encouraged.  Let individual Jains evaluate the comparative merits between bringing up a needy human being as compared to having a pet and adopt a course one would think best.

Significance of Penances, Austerities and Vows

1.Penance and austerities are both treated and used as synonyms.  But while austerities may relate more to outward religious practices (Bāhya tapa), penance may concern more with Ābhyantara tapa.Vows are important to control our greed, desires and passions for worldly things living or non-living.  Hence vows have been categorized in many ways:  householders vows, vows of the saints, vows for men and housewives, vows about space and time-period, vows about things for general usage and articles of daily consumption such as food and drinks.  The whole purpose is cutting on our needs, desires, and passions, and observes as much self-control and non-violence as one can.  The increasing gradation of vows, with sāmāyika and meditation leads to Nirjarā, i.e., annihilation of karmas bound with the soul.

Taking of a vow is necessary for the practice of any type of penance till it becomes a habit and part of one’s daily life.  Once someone has reached this stage he/she will need no vows, because then such a one can never commit any sinful act, that goes against a pure religious life.

2.  Certain days are treated more pious than others, and the reason behind is the astronomical position of the sun and the moon, how they are situated, at what angles their rays are affecting our planet.

3.  Boiled water is free from one sensed water-bodied beings and remains so for up to 24 (?) hours, hence its use during fasting.  Filtered water is not free from such living beings, hence not permitted.

Philosophy and Literature

Qs.  1.  Is there hell in Jainism?  If yes, what is it called and the story behind it as well as the story behind the evil or devil?

Yes! there are not one but 7 hells in Jainism.  The names are given in the 1^st aphorism (sutra) of chapter 3 of the Tattvārthasutra.  There is no need to repeat the names.  The hells are said to be situated one below the other lower and lower.  The greater the intensity of passions/ Kashāyas and seriousness of the sin., the lower the sinner goes in the hells.  There is only one’s own evil or sin responsible for going down the hell. The Jain scriptures are full of stories of individual sinners going (not condemned by any external power) to the hells in accordance with their sins.

Qs.  2  Can you explain the scientific aspects of Jainism?  How can we claim Jainism is a scientific religion when there are inconsistencies in our scriptures such as:  the earth is flat and is the center of the universe; the moon is bigger than the sun, farther away from the earth than the sun; no one can reach the moon.  Also the location of hell is below the earth, and heaven is above the earth and many other claims that have been proven wrong.

Jainism is a very logical system, not based on blind faith, devoid of reason.  All its philosophical postulates (not mythology) are explained on the basis of sound reasoning, logic, cause and effect relationship and mostly scientific theories, principles and facts.

Let us not confuse ourselves with mythological propositions; like the height and ages of the Tirthankaras, the longevity of existence of beings in the hells or heavens (in accordance with their merits, penances and religious qualities), or that the earth is flat, it is not moving, and it is center of universe, or the depths and heights of heavens and hells, or that the moon is bigger than the sun and farther way from the earth than the sun, or that no one can reach the moon.  These matters have no bearing on the Jain thought.

The propositions that belong to the realm of Jain thought are the purpose of human life i.e.  the attainment of salvation, relationship of the soul with the universe, its karmas, their bondage with it and the nature of bondage, How do they effect the transmigration of the soul form birth to birth, the life of the soul in each body and the process of liberation through self exertion of the soul without the element of Grace from an external power.  They belong to the sphere of Jain thought.

Very thorough and detailed deliberations on these matters and their reasonable and logical explanations are found in texts on Jain Philosophy.  Let us check with the Ācārānga sutra, where the original teachings of Lord Mahavira are recorded.  (B)” We can only guess about such mythological topics were integrated with the original teachings.  Little critical light has been thrown on these topics by our revered modern scholars.  And my guess is:  These matters of heaven and hell etc.  were topics of great concern for thinkers in the ancient and middle ages.  Hence the Jain acāryas also pondered and expressed their ideas on them, otherwise contemporary philosophers of other religious systems would have questioned them and said your philosophy is not complete, you have nothing to say on these matters of vital concern to human life here and hereafter, like they are even today with religions of largest following.

Same is the case with the sun, moon, earth, their relative distance and movement etc.  as well as the ages and heights of the bodies of Jain Tirthankaras.  Such topics seem to have become a matter of one up man -ship.  If your gods are this big etc. our Tirthankaras were bigger.  Let us not forget the fact of all of the 11 Ganadharas of Lord Mahavira and many great acāryas after them, like Ācārya Hemachandra and many others had all come from the Brahman community and they were the topmost scholars of the Vedic Brahmanic tradition of scholarship.  So when they accepted the Jain Faith:  two factors must have been working on their minds:  one, the deep impact of Brahmanism, because of their long and intimate connections, which was absolutely natural and essential in many ways and two, that they intended to refute and outdo the legends of the Brahmins.  I do not see any other reason for such stories.  The positive and negative aspects of Jain mythology and philosophy have both been more or less discussed above.

Jainism a Scientific Religion:

To claim Jainism as a Scientific religion, we have a very sound basis; the beginningless beginning of the universe, the concept of six fundamental substances that constitute the universe (Time and space have now been merged into one since Einstein’s researches):  Jain philosophers are divided in their opinion of time as a Real Substance.  According to some time is a real substance, while others have treated time as an optional substance; a practical necessity to explain all events in time and space, During the ascendance of the soul into gradually higher Gunasthanas i.e.  stages of spiritual advancement, the element of time becomes secondary.  There are many other factors in the states of karmic bondage and fruition, wherein time plays only a nominal role.  There are many other elements in the Karma-theory where time remains just as an unimportant factor.

All philosophical and theoretical details of the karma theory are not possible to be explained in a question answer setting.

The way the 7 or 9 padārthas are treated is not science though but almost scientific.  The doctrine of Leshyas (coloring of the soul) according to the intensity of passions is now already a matter of scientific researches in the branches of psychology and neurology and related areas.  

It is possible to photograph colors of an individual’s status of mental/purity or impurity even after death by extremely sensitive Kirlian photography.  The color of the Aura of individuals can also now be photographed.  The details of nama karrna and its 93 or 141 subtypes explain the ancient concept of Jain –Psychology and Physiology.  Besides these doctrinal matters there are numerous other things, very scientifically and thoroughly explained by Jain thinkers:  e.g.  the six categories of Jivas from one sensed to five sensed with or without the developed faculty of mind; categorizing classes of living beings as earth, water, fire, air and vegetable bodied, and saying that there are 8400000 species of all living beings (this may not be exactly true though); and 5^th chapter of the Tattvarthasutra, which has discussed nearly everything about matter is awfully valuable from the point of view of ancient material sciences.  It opens flood gates of light on forms of matter, the formations of atoms and molecules, and provides incredible material on the science of matter.  It is a veritable document about the scientific attitude and insight of the ancient Jain-Thinkers.

Very well researched, well documented and well discussed couple of books have been written and available.  Those who are interested can have access to some of the following works:

1) Cosmology-Old and New by G.  R.  Jain (the 1^st book in this field)

2) Jain Doctrine of Matter by Dr.  J.C.  Sikdar

3) (a) Jain Biology, Botany and Zoology:  Dr. J.C. Sikdar, 

     (b) Jain Alchemy:  Dr.  J. C. Sikdar

(4) Many valuable monographs on Jain Mathematics by Dr.  L.C. Jain;

Many other works are also there, which have escaped my notice.

Last but not he least, what I want to emphasize is that we need to study and explain out to people interested in Jain studies, both the others as well as our own youngsters:  the Jain religion and philosophy in a logical, reasonable way.  There are elements of science hidden in the deeper, less known layers of our sacred literature and tradition that are waiting to be brought forward and put before the academic and scientific community.

We don’t need to be apologists for our system.  We should not try to make ritual and mythology as integral to our Religion.  They are there in every system, worth the name, but they are not the basis and not fundamental to the system.  Universality of the Jain Doctrines of Non-Violence, Non-Possessiveness and Non-Absolutism is there for anyone and everyone to see, know, understand and realize.

Social Issues:

1. Jain view on organ donation, tissue or organ transplantation from other species:  are they right or wrong?

Organ donation or organ transplantation from other species, where killing of the other living being is involved, is not permitted.  Organ donation without causing violence to the donor man/ woman or animal will not be objectionable.  Tissue transplantation without killing the donor will be permissible.

2. (A) Does Jainism incorporates many societal values into its religion, or does it remain separate from the society?

(B) There is a lot in the traditions that just are not found in the scripture.  Whether there is something specifically said in the religion about certain traditions, or rather that the culture has just integrated their values into the religion?

I have divided the above question into parts (A) and (B)

Here I am responding to part (A) first.

Jainism has incorporated all real life societal values in the form of four charities that provide for the four basic needs of life.  They are: 

(1) Aharadana:  offer food and alms to the hungry and the needy.

(2) Abhayadana:  Protect the weaker men and animals from threats to their life and liberty.

(3) Aushadhidana:  provide medicine and medical aid to all men, women and animals.

(4) Vidyadana; To impart education and knowledge to all:

This is the theory.  Now the question is how the above values are observed in actual practice?  We the followers of Jainism have narrowed the meanings.  Here are some examples:

Āhārdāna:  has come to be practiced as offering of food and alms to Jain monks and nuns only, further narrowed to those of one’s sect only,

Abhayadāna:  has been interpreted to mean protection to the lives of Jain- monks and nuns and weaker animals/birds etc.  from being killed by stronger animals and hunters etc.

Vidyādāna:  has been converted into shāstradāna i.e.  donation of sacred religious literature to the Jain monks and nuns, Jain scholars and faithful householders

Aushadhidāna: To provide for medicines and other medical help to all.

Luckily this category of alms was not narrowed down as much and was opened for Jain householders and needy common-men in the form of Jain charitable dispensaries and Aushdhālayas, both Ayurvedic and Homeopathic.  Later this category was widened into modern hospitals.  These however stand nowhere in comparision to the Agrawal Hospitals and Missionary Hospitals in India, both paid and unpaid.

Now to interpret the proviso of the four charitable activities in the modern context and in the context of Jain values of ahimsa, maitri and karuna:  these terms have been brought down into nearly negative values: , such as Ahimsa has been taken to mean just not to kill and not instigate to kill, while we the community have silently let all kinds of violence happen even in cases where possibly we could have stopped it, Meaning of the terms compassion ( nonviolence)and friendship is lost when common people around remain steeped in ignorance and poverty and keep dying because of hunger or disease; and when there is indescribable oppression, suppression, injustice, exploitation and social discrimination of high and low.  This situation has come to stay wherever it does because of three fundamental weaknesses of the human society; and they are:  selfishness of the haves on the one hand while ignorance and poverty of the have- -,nots on the other.  These three are the roots of most sins and evils being committed all over.

The 1^st of charities that is Āhārdāna, in the modern context should mean making means of livelihood available to the last man/ woman in the society so they could provide for their own food and stand for themselves against other evils, especially their own weaknesses and other needs.  In this context we may remember the International Organization with the motto “Help us to help others to help themselves”.  That is real Āhārdāna.  The whole world cannot feed the hungry and poor for all time.  Because that will be raising an army of sinful parasites upon the rest of the world.  But the means of livelihood and basic education will solve many rather most problems of humanity, including violence and crime.  This is about Āhārdāna; the other three forms of charity are subservient to this.

Centers of basic education and primary health care for creating health awareness amongst people need to be created.  Such steps taken will truly create a non-violent, peaceful society.

Here someone could raise a valid question?  How can a prosperous, well-bred community endowed with a religion, which inspires the highest of moral spiritual, political and economic values of prosperity and which was the religion of the democratic republic of Vaishali, during the period of Lord Mahavira; lay any claim on being a non-violent and religious human society when so much requires to be done on an urgent basis?

We could read the Chandanbala episode in the life of Mahavira in a different sociological perspective:  that she was a slave girl at the moment Mahavira took alms from her hands realizing the condition she was in.  He liberated her from that miserable situation, which sent a strong message of liberation, salvation and equality of women in the age of Mahavira in the whole country.  The story of Chandanbālā’s lineage might just have been cooked up like many other legends to make Mahavira into a super human-being.  Mahavira’s followers also were deeply influenced by Brahmanical –culture.  It would have been difficult for them to digest and assimilate the story of Chandanbālā if she were not shown to be genealogically directly related to him.  It was not that difficult to assimilate the story of Harikeshibala and others like him, because they were male monks, committed to great austerities and penances.  Still some miraculous stories are woven around them.

At this stage still another question raises its head and the question is how come a religion popular among the masses in the larger part of Indian plateau south of the Vindhya mountain ranges along with the north- western parts of the country, from the 6^th -7^th centuries B.C. to the 17^th century AD for well over two millennia was nearly wiped out of existence.  In the south lot of inhuman atrocities were inflicted on Jain saints, Jain temples and libraries were destroyed, many Jain temples were desecrated, and demolished or usurped and converted into Hindu temples.  Common people did not sympathize with them in their predicament; royal patronage was not forthcoming, sometimes even went against.  Exceptionally ever a royal house in power came forward to their rescue and support; and other unpalatable things fell to their lot? 
There must have come a period in the history of the Jain community that it cut itself away from the common poor folks of the country for whatever reasons.  This is an unfailing and everlasting lesson irrespective of a community, country or religion or period of history or any other factor that:  no one who gets cut off from the larger community of human beings will survive in the long run

(B) This part of the question requires further elucidation with specific examples?

Besides the four categories of alms giving which are ways of helping the society on the basic needs, the three basic principles of Jainism, the solid pillars of the spiritual and empirical edifice of this religion, the doctrines of (1) non violence (Ahimsa), (2) non possession (Aparigraha) and (3) non absolutism (Anekant) are meant to create an infra structure of a society that does not stand on survival of the fittest; where the weak, the poor, the defenseless and those without a personal or social support system to depend on, are eliminated by killing or enslaving or by usurping their land, their country and whatever.  These principles are an ever memorable universal declaration that all living beings have the inalienable right to live, have the freedom to hold a faith to their love and liking, and the freedom, the liberty and opportunity to choose a profession to make their living.

Both the positive (Compassion, friendship, fraternal sympathy and direct / indirect help) and negative aspects (not to kill.  Cause to kill, or watch killing or suffering of others indifferently) have been discussed above in some detail.  Recent history of the world is full of glaring examples of the value of nonviolence in the modern world.  Mahatma Gandhi was one such example, Martin Luther King Jr.  was another.  Today’s world needs nonviolence more than ever before.  And let us not forget the deep impact of the Jain community and its long and close association with Gandhi, strengthened by the personal factor that his mother was a Jain, on his life and work.  The influence of Gandhi on M. L. King needs not to be over emphasized.

Now we come to the doctrine of Non possession (Aparigraha).

This is the religious background behind the philosophy of alms-giving not in the spirit of obligation, rather as if helping one-self in earning religious merit.  The four kinds of alms giving, which in fact is a system of strong social support has been well described above.

Now come to non-absolutism (Anekant):

Without entering into the details of this doctrine, which is the very soul of Jainism, we will say it means:  perfect tolerance towards, with due respect and regard to other opinions:  be it a question of philosophy or religion or faith or any empirical matter concerning our day to day individual, social lives:  is the meaning of this term.  It has a direct relationship to the theory of relativity of science.  All truths have many facets and aspects, only few of them can be expressed in words in any situation at any given time.  The angles of conscious subjects of looking at the object/s are also many, varied and different.  No two subjects look at any object with the same angle at a given moment.  The opinions of subjects always depend on myriads of factors:  parents, community, society, religion, education, politics, particular training and so on.  No one opinion will be entirely correct and complete and no opinion whatsoever will be totally false, some iota of truth will always be there.  So why condemn one opinion as totally false and certify the other as the only one and the true beyond any doubt or correction and improvement or change or modification.  The lack of this attitude is the root cause of bloody fights and fratricidal inter- community, intra- community struggles expending into wars between countries.  We have already seen two world wars.  Unmitigated differences of opinion on the racial, cultural greatness, besides the insatiable personal ambition of becoming the greatest of all man in human history were the main factors that contributed to the destruction and devastation.

Intolerance about ways and methods of praying God (if there is really one) in the same or different forms with or without an idol has been, even amongst the followers of the same religion, same race and ethnicity, one of the biggest causes of bitter differences leading to unimaginable violence greater than ever before This is the most ironic of all.  Long drawn conflicts, clashes, battles and big wars have taken place on this account.  What can be more unfortunate and tragic than killing one another in the name of God ( whether one or many) or religion.  There can be no greater travesty of truth than this one thing.  Indian seers of ancient had declared millennia ago” truth is one, the wise have expressed it in many ways”.  This is what science is now coming to accept almost unequivocally.

The greatest of intellectuals the Justices in the Supreme Courts of great nations all over the world, seldom agree on a unanimous interpretation of the Letter of Law of the land and deliver judgments on majority or minority of votes.

Differences of opinion are the most natural thing among intellectuals.  We therefore have to learn to respect the differences and live happily and peacefully the in the society by accepting such other opinions that will lead to the good and well being of the largest number and will also not put the minority to unnecessary loss.  This is the message of the doctrine of Non – Absolutism.