Pure Freedom- The Jain Way of Self-Reliance

By Mr. Amar Salgia

This is an introduction to a philosophy that shares its principal value with each and every one of us. That value is something we have in common with every single living thing everywhere in the universe, through all conditions and at all times: the value of Life itself.

Followers of the philosophy include men, women, families and whole societies committed to the world's primary testament of universal love and respect for all creatures. The philosophy is not reliant on anything mystical or mythological. It is realistic, highly descriptive and logically complete. Its teachings systematically reveal a way of understanding the true and testable nature of the universe and our own selves. Through the code of living that flows from this philosophy it claims to bring incalculable practical advancement to adherents and the tremendous living world of which we are a part. Jain philosophy is not a protest or offshoot of another creed. Since early times its principles have successfully motivated the leaders and followers of certain other faiths to embrace and represent many of its original ideas and ethics. Coming from the region of South Asia, the Jain tradition dates before the beginning of Indo-European culture and is one of the oldest world religions. Yet the Jain tradition is a historical tradition. While the Jain path to freedom comes to us from a remote period in man's history, the most recent Jinas to actually deliver its message to humanity were Lord Parshva (877-777 BCE) and Lord Mahavira (599-527 BCE). They were not founders of any religion, but only the last of 24 "Crossing-makers", or Tirthankaras, great omniscient teachers who lived at various times in man's cultural history. These Crossing-makers accomplished the highest spiritual goal of existence and then taught their contemporaries the way to reach it by crossing over to the safe shores of spiritual purity. By example, they imparted their path to the rest of humanity and inspired one of the most intellectually prolific, philanthropic and ecological traditions in world history.

That spiritual path's living heritage is today called Jainism.

Soul : One aspect of Jain philosophy is its rigorous investigation of the substances that make up the cosmos and the natural principles by which they interact.

A basic fact of reality is the independent existence of the soul. A second basic fact is that the universe the soul inhabits is a tremendously large system made up of components. It runs on fixed but impartial natural laws which are beyond the control of any being, power or substance. No almighty or cosmic force exists which can alter its principles of operation.

A Jain term for the soul is jiva, "life". Soul is inherently alive and self-sustaining. Just like this universe we live in, souls are eternal and permanent in their essential nature but ever changing in the expression of that nature. They exist forever and reincarnate into various worldly strata, species and forms, all in relation with corresponding bodily limitations and differing mental abilities.

A worldly soul continues to suffer this beginning-less cycle of birth, death and rebirth until the cycle is broken. Jainism comprises a body of knowledge showing us the way to do so, by directly addressing the soul of man and our situation in the universe. Jain teachings are summarized in six statements :

I. Soul Exists.
Pure soul is the real me. I exist and I am real. I am something different from my body and from anything I might choose to imagine, contemplate or visualize in my mind.
II. The Soul Is Eternal and Independent.
I have always existed and will always exist. I was never created and cannot be destroyed. I am the only thing that has affected my state in the past, and the only thing that does so now and in the future.
III. The Soul Is Responsible For Its Own Actions : The Mental, The Verbal & The Physical.
I am the only force that controls my activities be they conscious, subconscious or unconscious. Ultimately, nothing other than or outside of me makes me do what I do, feel what I feel, or see things the way I see them.
IV. The Soul Experiences Repercussions From Its Actions.
Nature dictates that I am affected by my own mental, verbal and physical activity, for which I am alone responsible. Spiritually those effects alter my ability to know reality and perceive the truth about myself.
V. The Soul Can Attain Liberation.
I have the ability to reach the highest human attainment, which is to know and perceive the full truth about me, about this world, and about life itself, across all changes of time and space. When reached, this experience of total knowledge, perception, control and freedom is final, everlasting, and my own true nature.
VI. There Is A Way To Liberation.
I can reach that state of perfection by a path of Right World-view, Right Knowledge, and Right Conduct. They are a spiritual way of seeing myself in relation to the rest of the universe, learning to understand things just as they are, and living in a way which respects and honors my own spiritual nature and that of every other living soul.

The soul is a real thing indeed, but has properties unlike those of matter and energy. The soul is unique in that it is the only substance in the universe which is conscious of itself. One's own soul is what lives, sees, hears, knows, feels, experiences and understands. It is not something that can be pursued or desired like an external object. Moreover, as we will see, our innate spiritual nature allows no room for ego, supremacy or narcissistic pride.

Every single soul, animating each living organism, has the same inherent attributes. Those of prime concern in Jain philosophy are.

1. Infinite happiness and self-reliance
2. Infinite power to know reality, omniscience
3. Infinite spiritual strength and will power
4. Infinite perception
5. Inherent immunity to any sense of attraction (attachment) or repulsion (aversion)
6. Incompatibility with the processes of birth, death and rebirth
7. Having no material properties, nor any inherent physical proportions
8. Being neither superior nor inferior relative to any other souls.

Together, these pure soul attributes are the Jain concept of "God". Jains worship and meditate upon these characteristics of the soul. When we see how a life ruled by likes and dislikes is not in our true nature, we begin to stop seeking pleasures, feelings and distractions from the world around us and open a way to a limitless perfection within. Disciplined contemplation of the soul's attributes, spiritual meditation, self-control, penance, independence from ego, and voluntary reduction of material needs and desires are essentials of a path to manifesting these qualities in our own lives. As an extension of this quest for freedom, Jains revere and venerate those human beings of the past, present and future who have attained or shall achieve final liberation by realizing their actual spiritual nature. Jain worship or veneration for perfected souls is simply a profound respect for the most difficult human accomplishment. Wherever these great souls are in the universe, wherever born, they are solemnly appreciated. By honoring spiritual heroism, by meditating upon its attributes, the same attributes tend to become manifest in us. It's in the nature of life itself that our thoughts, speech and behavior absorb the character of that towards which we direct our consciousness. By reflecting on the attributes of the pure soul, our understanding of our own spiritual nature begins to grow and guide us.

We begin to realize that those independent and unobstructed traits of "God" are our own real attributes - only latent and obscured amidst a spiral of misplaced self-concepts we have created for ourselves since eternity.

The God concept inspires us to clear the worldly clutter from our lives and remember our spiritual nature. And that is all we may ever need. God is not an external person, place, thing or power, but a certain state of our own existence.

Those having attained that state can be described as spiritually perfect. True perfection implies no desire or aversion regarding anything of the world. There is no deity that rewards or punishes, no creature compelling us to act or not act. The path to liberation is an individual path, and no one apart from our own souls can shoulder reality for us. Our own actions and perceptions develop the effects we as conscious beings ultimately experience.

We are alone responsible, and responsibility for one's spiritual fate is not a prison. To someone conditioned by the ways of weakness and negligence, self-accountability seems frightening. But for a truth-seeker committed to freedom, responsibility is our liberator.

We are mortals, and we can find in ourselves the ability to cut loose those debilitating psychological patterns that hold us captive but are alien to our pure selves. Real heroes are able to secure complete independence from the arbitrary whims of pleasure and pain. A true omniscient lives in realization of the soul's own faculties of infinite knowledge, perception, will power and happiness: in total awareness of the past, present and future conditions of oneself and all that exists.

Jain scriptures say: "Though a person should conquer thousands and thousands of valiant foes, greater will be his victory if he subdues nobody but himself." (Uttaradhyayana Sutra, verse 349)

The state of the accomplished soul is the goal of existence. There's nothing otherworldly or transcendental about the infinite traits we each have with us, which are the essential part of us, every moment of our lives. When born into a human form, any worldly soul is ultimately capable of attaining it. The chance for liberation is very rare and precious for a soul because human birth is difficult to secure. Only the human animal has an ability to discern right from wrong, to exert self-control and to practice spiritual meditation and penance. The cycle of birth, death and rebirth can be broken. The soul can purify itself and be free. A free soul by itself, without any material body, is called a Siddha. "God" is the soul unobstructed, inherently free from ignorance, delusion, incapacity and sorrow. Pure soul is the epitome of nobility and detachment. It is eternal, individual, autonomous and synonymous with our true nature. It sees no return to transmigration. A journey to liberation starts not with breaking from the world or with blind faith. It is the way of experimenting realistically in the laboratory of one's own conscious aspects, with the aim of rationally understanding oneself. Jain philosophy is not a cult of personality. Jains do not seek favors from a creator god and don't live in fear of a jealous dictator. No trickster in the sky shares his wants and needs with us. No external being gladdens and disappoints us. Boundless peace and altruism are found within our own souls. Ones who defeat worldly lusts, who gain victory over weakness and obstruction, and who radiate with perfect conduct are an example for all humans, and indeed all living beings, to strive to follow.

Following the example, the way of the Jinas, we can also choose to begin our own spiritual journey - in this very lifetime!

The Mechanism of Karma : If our souls are inherently brilliant all by themselves, then what's preventing us as individuals from realizing this brilliance? The answer is our association with a material phenomenon called karma.

Karma in Jain philosophy is very different from other notions. In Jainism, karma is not a divine law or mystical principle, nor does it signify fate, luck, or predestination.

"Karma" refers to a natural, ongoing, physical process that is inherent in the physics behind the soul's eternal relationship with the universe. To understand the mechanism of karma is to know the very basis of the workings of one's consciousness. Unlike the soul, karma is not something alive. It is also not a group effect or something passed down from generation to generation (though the worldly effects of our actions and choices certainly can be). It is also not orchestrated by a deity. It's merely a fact of our souls' existence in the cosmos. Each individual soul is the ultimate controller of its own karma.

But just what is "karma"? Basically, to speak of karma is to speak of karmic matter. Being material in nature, karmic matter lends itself to scientific measurement. This subtle material force is the "fuel" that runs the soul's cycle of reincarnation, its continual birth, death and rebirth through various forms and sufferings. Breaking the cycle means being fully rid of all karmic matter. The karma concept is closely intertwined with Jain physics and its discrete axioms concerning matter, energy, subatomic particles and cosmology. This is one of many areas where recent scientific investigations converge with Jain philosophy. (A phenomenon called bioelectromagnetism closely resembles the mechanism of karmic flux and is being researched in laboratories across the world. Thought and physical activities sustain an energetic field that surrounds and pervades an organism. This field stores energy and has limiting effects on an organism's sense perception, behavior and mental abilities.)

Jain scholars of times past produced volumes of calculation and description of karma, verifying precisely how it works, how it affects the soul, how to deal with it, and how to be totally free of its entire role in our existence.

To understand how mental attachments, ignorance, sensual gratification, and immoral conduct cause spiritual bondage, and how right knowledge and moral conduct can help the soul achieve liberation, we need to investigate the Jain vision of reality. According to Jainism, the cosmos consists of six fundamentally different kinds of substances. Each "substance" has its own distinctive qualities and modes. The two substances of interest here are (1) souls and (2) matter-energy. Jain philosophy sees matter and energy as interconvertible. They are simply two modes of the same substance. The Jain word for it is pudgal, a term that combines two words meaning "coming together" and "breaking apart". This reveals the Jain teaching about matter-energy, as that which is formed by particles aggregating and destroyed by their disintegration. "Matter" can refer to both the mass of things and to the energy potentials that structure mass, making and remaking it in its diverse forms. Karma is a faint and invisible form of matter-energy that surrounds us throughout the universe. When bound to the soul as a karmic field, it acts as a collection of delusion-producing potentials, which cloud and hinder a soul's faculties of knowing, perceiving, acting in its true nature, and knowing its innate spiritual bliss. While embodied, this physical association with karmic matter directly alters the soul's thought-inclinations, perceptions of reality, understandings of information, and, consequently, its actions while embodied as an organism. Through the karma mechanism our actions affect us not only in future lives but first in the immediate here and now.

The essence of the soul is consciousness, and its chief characteristics are perception, knowledge, and spiritual strength. In its pure state - not associated with karmic matter - the soul's happiness is pure, its knowledge is omniscient, and its will power is unlimited. But karmic matter-energy is like a shackle binding the soul. The karma that surrounds and becomes bound to the soul hinders its bliss, obstructs its perception, and limits its capacity to exert freedom. Although these subtle karmic particles, which pervade the universe, are indistinguishable from each other in the free state, when attracted to the soul they take on the characteristics of the mental, verbal or physical actions that attract them. Causes for the influx of karma to the soul fall under the four categories of psycho-physical activity (yoga), irrational or deluded belief (mithyatva), destructive passion (kashaya), and lack of control and discipline (avirati).

The worst kinds of karma are those which are attracted to the soul by actions proceeding from ignorance and a desire to cause harm. These are said to be destructive karmas, for they "destroy" the soul's insight into its own nature. Consequently, they generate false views of both the self and the material world, and stimulate the psyche with a multitude of attachments and aversions. Those attachments and aversions, those attractions and repulsions in the soul's consciousness, generate such vices as anger, pride, deceptiveness, greed and violence. These in turn destroy pure conduct and lead to further karmic influx and bondage. The complexities of the karma mechanism are soundly explained in Jain works on the subject. The main point is this: all karmic bondage is accumulated through the soul's actions producing it. Furthermore, the specific characteristics and effects of the attracted karmic matter are determined by the nature of the actions that attract it. And those actions of ours can be done in our thoughts, through our speech, or with our bodies. The intensity and duration for which an attracted karma binds a living soul is determined by the intensity and duration of the passions motivating the act, as well as by the nature of the act itself. Once the karma has produced its full effects, it dissipates and returns to a free and undifferentiated state.

But those karmic energy potentials that have not yet produced all their effects continue to adhere to the soul in the karmic field. When an organism's karmically determined life span is up, the soul departs from its physical body and, enmeshed by the remaining karmic matter, is conceived into another physical body of precisely the kind merited by the previously accumulated karmic determinants.

So now we have a mechanistic way of viewing spiritual liberation: the soul's annihilation of all its stored karma.

We can see why a goal of liberation must guide our lives, for karmic bondage means not only the life of a human being but also untold lifetimes spent embodied as other forms of life.

This understanding of karma is never a disposition to fate. Jains don't believe in fate or in predestination. In fact, most of what happens in the universe and in our world is the result of random processes. Such things may have little or nothing to do with any soul's karma (hence they are called nokarma, or pseudo-karma). What is karmically determined is our predisposition to deal with whatever might occur in this random world. Do we blame and suffer through adversity, falsely accusing others and burning in resentment, or do we patiently grow wiser through it? Do we become elated by fortune and pleasure, blinding ourselves with greed and mental attachment, or do we view them with peaceful detachment? We may allow circumstances of the world, which are out of our control, to force us into high emotion or sadness, passion and jubilance. Or, we could see ourselves as souls fortified with infinite happiness and vision, and with a spiritual ability to break our karmic bonds and see circumstances for what they really are and change them appropriately. One may acquiesce in one's karmic predispositions or one may rise above and conquer them forever. The choice is ours, not fate's.

In that sense, we as individual, embodied souls are the ultimate cause of all true adversity we may experience. We are each the master of our own existence. We are our own best friend and our own worst enemy. We independently make our own happiness and our own misery. Every other living creature is similarly responsible for its own condition. Through karmic influx and bondage, and the false senses of reality they create in us, adverse tendencies like aggressiveness, conceitedness, deceitfulness, greediness, attraction and repulsion steer us away from acknowledging our inherent nature. And without a foundation of this understanding, we continue to roam the world outside expecting true happiness from things containing none. Jainism doesn't drown us in the terrors of karma nor does it languish in unhealthy, cowardly fatalism. Karma is not a monster out to get us. The fact of karma is our inalienable right to take full control of destiny.

Nonviolence, Right Conduct and Austerity : The mechanism of karmic matter is a unique and integral part of the Jain world view. Understanding exactly how karma works is the key to stopping its influx, its association with the soul, and its effects on our existence. Stressing individual initiative as it does, and rejecting the notion of external or divine intervention, the Jain view of proper living and good conduct is simply a logical consequence of the reality of karma. This reality demands vigilance and awareness in all our thoughts, words and deeds.

The quest for liberation is the march of our existence. Jains willingly undertake a code of conduct to check the inflows of karmic matter, and more importantly to arrest and wear off karma. Five essential principles, with all their logical conclusions, bring about a way of life most in tune with our innate spirituality:

Nonviolence : or Ahinsa, starts with a vision of other beings not as categories or objects, but as unique individuals. It is an affirmative awareness of how our actions affect others, and a pro-life world view that extends to every living organism. All souls have a right to live out their spiritual and karmic destinies without violent intervention. All living organisms - large and small, simple and complex - cherish and cling to their own lives just as we do ours. Like us, they seek happiness and struggle to avoid pain and misery. Ahinsa simply means living and acting accordingly, in universal friendliness (maitri) flowing from universal fearlessness (abhaya). Violence doesn't come from clenched fists or weapons. Philosophically, "violence" is the delusion we bring to our own selves through any thought, speech or bodily activity that runs against our pure spiritual nature. In other words, every kind of violent action that a person might do gets its form from the individual's own false conceptions of himself, or herself, and of reality. "Nonviolence", on the other hand, is living according to the soul's true attributes, freeing us from any desire to hurt, injure or kill another living thing, in any way. In practice nonviolence means striving consciously to avoid bringing direct or indirect harm to oneself or to any other life. Ahinsa also means adhering to the truth while respecting the feelings and emotions of other people and creatures. It is to forgive and humbly request forgiveness (kshamapana) from others for any pain or harm we may have caused them, knowingly or unknowingly. And it means meeting our needs and fulfilling our legitimate worldly duties while making sure that, to sustain our own lives, we cause no more than a bare minimum amount of violence to all other, equally precious lives embarked on individual paths to individual destinies.

The remaining four principles of right conduct simply elaborate on this first notion of life's infinite worth.

Truth : or Satya, is freedom from all desires and actions to deceive or practice deception with regard to both others and ourselves. An intense regard for truth and rational means of arriving at truth.

Non-Stealing : or Asteya, is the insight that everything we could ever need for reaching spiritual perfection already exists in our midst, wherever we may be. We only need to identify and understand these components to receive optimal support. Once we see this, we realize that desiring the possessions of others is irrelevant and unnecessary.

Chastity : or Brahmacharya, means command and control over the mind and body that frees us from compulsions that allow sexuality to disorder or dominate our lives.

Non-Possessiveness : or Aparigraha, is freedom from attachment to worldly things. Merely having material things or wealth is not the problem. Our downfall is viewing those external things as connected to our essence. Seeing one's condition as dependent on or connected to objects and people leads to violence, greed, dishonesty and other vices that harm others and our own selves at a variety of levels. Non-possessiveness enables us to renounce our psychological ownership over things and give up our "need" for them. It means recognizing that worldly material possessions, though not necessarily "bad", are really unnecessary when considering the worthiest spiritual goal of life. How can a person ever begin to realize these freedoms? To a Jain it all starts with a simple decision, with choosing not to ignore, oppose, underestimate, lay aside or lavish against the spiritual value of one's own being, and of every living being. Whereas sensual gratification - not to be confused with "happiness" - dulls the intellect, realizing freedom means deciding to let our nature of pure independence lead our thoughts, perceptions and aspirations. When a person commits his or her life to them, the five principles become as much a personal manifesto as a declaration of liberty. They define a way of thinking, feeling and living that is most faithful to the inherent attributes of the soul. They allow us to arrest the destructive aggressive urge, cut asunder the desire to deceive, eliminate the want of other's possessions, fence in the sex drive, and liberate us from the otherwise endless hankering for material things. In practicing these five principles there are two different levels: (1) the total and uncompromising practice followed as voluntary vows that define the institution of Jain monks and nuns, which are called the "great vows", or mahavrat, and (2) the slightly relaxed but equally attentive way of life prescribed for ordinary laymen and laywomen, called "small vows" or anuvrat. These two ways of life differ from each other only in their extent, while they share the same underlying value system and spiritual goal.

Male and female ascetics are monks and nuns - or more simply "renouncers", ones who forgo all mental attachments and ownership - who live a rigorous code of conduct and self-restraint. They own no possessions and have no fixed residence. They are not hermits but instead travel constantly and only by foot. They do not touch wealth and are thoroughly chaste in mind, speech and body. They do not prepare any food for themselves or others, nor work as clergy or ecclesiastical officials. Jain ascetics guard their speech, thoughts and actions so as not to violate any of the five principles, or inadvertently support vices in others. They create the discipline required to be circumspect in walking, cleanliness and hygiene, and while lifting and setting down objects, all so as not to harm any small living creatures. They peacefully endure whatever discomfort or challenges the environment and other humans may pose. Nonviolence, truth, non-stealing, chastity and non-possessiveness do not in any way mean "repression" or the "negation" of anything. What these principles do is affirm the only constant and everlasting thing in the experience of being alive: the soul. The Jain ascetic aims to become closer to the soul by living life with meticulous attention to every thought, word and deed. Striving to think, speak and control themselves flawlessly, while protected and guarded by the five principles of conduct, a renouncer begins the passage of a spiritual conqueror. "A great sage," say the scriptures, "becomes a refuge for all sorts of afflicted creatures, like an island that the seas cannot overwhelm." (Acharanga Sutra 1:6:5)

Like all Jains, Jain renouncers engage in penance, fasting, self-restraint and spiritual meditation, but are able to do so free from the restrictions of worldly life. The lay community supports their physical needs, freely providing pure food and drink and temporary shelter from which monks and nuns admit a bare minimum required for sustaining the body. They own nothing, demand nothing and take nothing. But in committing themselves to spiritual perfection what they give is the inspiration of spiritual priority and a peace unaffected by materialism or pride. This monastic way of life optimally limits the influx of karmic matter to the soul. Disciplined meditation on the soul with penance and austerity cause the gradual shedding of karmic matter, making our existence blossom with greater spiritual clarity and more liberating self-control. It should be pointed out that this monastic institution of non-worldliness and detachment is never an invitation for irresponsible social delinquency. Moreover, there is nothing "extreme" about Jain asceticism. It is a most rigorous way of life for sure, but the rigor derives from inner peace, not the circuitous stress or narcissistic paranoia of the worldly. The voluntary life of a Jain ascetic involves the very highest standard of self-accountability with regard to the five principles. Jain lay people live those same principles, but in relaxed form. Jain men and women have worldly responsibilities. They strive to fashion their careers to benefit society and living beings now and for the long term. To the very greatest extent possible, a Jain's work and investments must not directly or indirectly involve harming living organisms, nor encourage violations of the five principles by others who might be affected. Jains avoid supporting or consenting to such activity in any way. Jains work to conduct business and other affairs honestly and with integrity, always aware of themselves that such endeavors never give rise to the slightest greed, aggression, deception or deluded pride. Many pursue careers related to engineering and the sciences. Jains marry and raise families based on the five principles of conduct. As life partners, Jain husbands and wives are committed to love and family continuation and so may enjoy sexual relations within marital bounds. As soul partners committed to each other's spiritual advancement, they may similarly support each other's terms of voluntary penance, quiet meditation, austerity and sexual abstinence in thought, speech and action.

Right conduct boosts our awareness of every way in which we interact with the worlds outside us and inside our bodies. But one kind of interaction gets special attention. In feeding ourselves we consume and break down nutrients severed from the biosphere. Eating is our most basic and routine transaction with the living world. Its sole purpose is to nourish the body. In areas of ethics, economics, agriculture, ecology, psychology and the preparation of food, Jainism applies scientific scrutiny to everything this necessity might entail. Vegetarianism is a way of life for all Jains, who see it as a corollary of universal compassion. Uncompromising vegetarianism is physical nonviolence at its simplest and most personal level, that of survival. Jains are strict in this lifestyle, consuming organisms only from the plant kingdom. Possessing just one bodily sense (touch) plants are considered to have the least possible sensitivity to pain. While the Jain diet does, of course, involve harm to plants, it is regarded as a means of survival that inflicts only a bare minimum amount of violence towards living beings. Jains believe in no biological hierarchy that could allow man to arbitrarily dump certain species or classes of living things into an "expendable" or "kill-able" category while safeguarding only a few species, groups or individuals. From a spiritual perspective killing is never acceptable regardless the species. Like all organisms, plant lives value survival in their own unique ways whether we care or not. For this reason, killing and eating even plants for our basic needs is accepted only as a necessary evil that needs to be carried out with the utmost care and moderation. Many forms of plant material (including such things as roots and certain species of pods and fruits) are also excluded from the Jain diet because they provide a world for many microorganisms and tiny creatures. While the soul and body are different entities, each is important to the spiritual path. Both monastic and lay Jains undergo penance and austerities (tapa). Austerity is an essential force in stopping and wearing off karmic matter. The pure soul has no physical needs, personality flaws or weaknesses. Austerity and penance are simply ways of purging oneself of the mental and physiological blocks that hinder our ability to experience the soul in that way. They remind a truth-seeker of a truly free nature.

All penances and austerities are voluntary and undertaken through vows, or solemn commitments, that one personally undertakes. A person guards oneself in practicing such vows, and the karmic consequences of knowingly breaking a vow are one's own responsibility. The various kinds of austerities allow us to use both the limitations and properties of the body as a practical advantage. There are two kinds of austerity: internal and external. Internal austerity takes birth within ourselves. It involves (1) ownership and repentance of sins and shortcomings, (2) reverence and humility towards others, (3) rendering service to other sincere truth-seekers, (4) various studies and reflections with a view to gaining rational knowledge, (5) renouncing the feelings of "I" and "my", letting go of external objects and one's worldly self-image, and (6) spiritual meditation, which offers a direct glimpse of the soul. External penance is avoiding indulgence and controlling one's bodily needs. These may involve (1) fasting, which means consuming nothing (even at night); (2) consuming a measured amount less than what hunger or thirst might demand; (3) vowing secretly to accept nourishment if and only if certain arbitrary conditions are met; (4) daily renunciation of delicacies unnecessary for basic nutrition; (5) residing alone in a secluded place devoid of organisms; and (6) physically enduring natural environmental conditions (heat, cold, etc.) with calm, detachment and equanimity.

Jain scriptures summarize: "Morality is perfect forgiveness, humility, straightforwardness, purity, freedom from greed, truthfulness, self-restraint, austerity, renunciation, detachment and continence." (Tattvartha Sutra 9:6)

Liberation's path may seem steep but it is not insurmountable. Perfect conduct through the mind, speech and body sounds difficult, but ultimately it's not impossible. Following Jainism is about learning to strive and to let go, to move further and further beyond what we once thought were limitations on our capacities for understanding, discipline, empathy and compassion. As individuals we might not attain final liberation in this lifetime, but whatever the situation we can try our very best to understand and silence those recursive patterns of thinking, perceiving and acting that lead us away from an everlasting happiness that is intrinsic to our being.

Non-One-Sidedness (Anekantavada) : Truth is knowledge of reality. According to Jain philosophy, truth is a vast and wondrous complexity.

However, reality is extremely difficult to fully grasp because of its four aspects: (1) its extension over time (past, present, future), (2) its extension across space, (3) the mix of changing forms and fixed qualities that characterize the different substances which make up the universe, and (4) the fact that those substances and forms are constantly undergoing new beginnings (origination) and endings (destruction) while still remaining permanent, all at the same time. We often see some individuals pushing what they feel is the only correct point of view. The dogma monger sees his or her perspective on human experience and the world as the only one that matters or makes sense. He tends to dismiss, ridicule or condemn those holding a different perspective. He may also prompt antagonism. In doing so he commits violence against others in his thoughts and speech which all too often leads to physical violence by people mistaking dogma for intelligence.

We've heard it said that in order to understand things as they truly are we need to be "objective". However, unless we know how to detach ourselves from the things we wish to understand, and comprehend that true objectivity starts with letting go of all our forgone views and biases, we can never be objective. We are each clouded by an environment that prejudices us, by past experiences that have shaped us, and by fixed notions about the world that seem to make sense in our limited minds. If we would approach our own natural omniscience we could fully comprehend this great universe. We would see the origins and destinies of every soul and substance, including our own selves. Persons who have attained such autonomy, whom Jains refer to as Jinas or Kevalins, experience this state of omniscience at all times. We, however, aren't quite there yet. Our situation is different. Our five senses are our indirect means to knowledge, but whatever they may grasp is always partial, and not always reliable. We see this partiality in the proverbial study of an elephant by seven blind men. Each man touches only part of the elephant and concludes that the creature is like a tree trunk, a rope, a fan, a wall, and so on. The same applies to our views and beliefs. We worldly souls tend not to rise above the limitations of our senses and experiences. So, our individual concepts of reality are not just incomplete, they are valid only from a particular point of view. "Absolute truth" cannot be grasped from any one point of view, by itself, because any viewpoint is dependent on the time, place, nature and state of both the viewer and whatever is being viewed. Hence, we can point to an infinity of partially valid perspectives. What appears true from one point of view is open to question from another. Naturally, we need to benefit from the labors of seeing things from different perspectives - including ones we might not prefer initially - in order to gain any kind of realistic impression.

This attitude begins a science of thinking called Anekantavada, which is the principle of "non-one-sidedness". Anekantavada is an informed and engaging method of reason. Such a principle does not ask us to try balancing in our minds a "multiplicity of viewpoints" regardless of whether they hold merit or not. It is also not the same as "relativism", or the belief in no absolutes. Rather than denying the existence of absolute truth, Anekantavada only reaffirms it - but with the cutting admission that truth is such an intricate and multifaceted thing that no single belief system, no tower of dogma, no "grand unifying theory", and no faith or religion can ever do it justice. Two philosophical developments of this principle are known as Nayavada, which is the scrutiny of contentions through a variety of different perspective modes, and Syadvada, which is the truth-analysis of any given statement using disparate combinations of (1) its affirmation, (2) its negation, and (3) the admission of its inexpressibility. While academic in nature, these methods of insight are a major contribution to epistemology and logic.

Anekantavada is intellectual humility that empowers the mind. It is an essential part of being nonviolent in our minds and our speech. It shows us why we shouldn't wed ourselves to rigid opinions that disconnect us from reality or stifle the pursuit of fuller understanding. It also demonstrates why we should not cower to ambiguous or nihilistic positions with little or no sense of right and wrong. Non-one-sidedness encourages us to examine and be critical of all beliefs and contentions from many different angles, helping us recognize the value of others' opinions and perspectives as well as the limitations of our own. Fostered by a mature, non-absolutist view of human experience, on a different level Jains are able to appreciate the sincere insights of those who may interpret Jain philosophy and teachings in new or innovative ways.

Scripture : The themes of ethnic warfare, empire building, eroticism, ethnocentrism and ill will towards other religions, which seem fairly common in the religious world have no place in the Jain tradition.

Jain scriptures are based on what is called the Purva, a collection of 14 ancient texts that contained the direct teachings of the last Tirthankar, Lord Mahavira. A number of parallel scriptural traditions continue to preserve the essence of the Purva, and were composed in several erudite languages such as Prakrit, Sanskrit and the southern idiom of Tamil. The literary tradition of the Agama Sutras, for example, is a great library of parables and analyses on a wide variety of subjects. All Jain traditions regard two thinkers' writings with deep respect: the works of the monks Kundakunda (1st century) and Umasvati (2nd century). Owing to lifelong experiences of deep meditation and rigorous conduct, both were great interpreters and simplifiers of profound and complex ideas. Kundakunda's writings include the Treatise on the Self (Samaya Sara) and the Treatise on Five Universal Substances (Panchastikaya Sara). Umasvati composed the Book of the Realities, or Tattvartha Sutra, whose 10 chapters stand among history's most influential moral classics.

Scriptural "authority" is not a force of command nor does it come from the zeal of anyone's supposed monopoly on truth. It comes from the dictates of individual experience and the extent to which scripture's words and teachings correspond to it. A Jain requirement on the authority of any scripture is put forth at the beginning of the Samaya Sara (verse 5) : "That higher spiritual unity, differentiated from alien conditions, I will try to reveal as far as I can. Accept it if it satisfies the condition of truth or correctly discernible knowledge (pramana). But if I fail in my description, you may reject it." Jain literature in general covers an incredible range of subjects that are far too numerous to list. With exceeding care and depth Jain scholars of past centuries composed large works on spiritual discipline, philosophy, physics, astronomy, music theory, business and social ethics, epistemology, botany, taxonomy, physiology, mathematics, linguistics, history and politics. Within each field Jainism has been a wellspring of entire schools of thought that so far have only begun to be researched in a modern context. In modern times the Jain scripture tradition has remained alive as ever. Around the year 1900 a brilliant young layman named Shrimad Rajachandra wrote the highly respected Soul Liberation, or Atma Siddhi, illustrating the character of a pure soul and its freedom from bondage. And from 1973 to '74, scholars from all different traditions assembled to compile the Book of the Independents, or Samana Suttam, which is a single scripture conveying the most resonant verses from the past 2500 years of Jain literature.

Relevance to Humanity And Global Issues : Life's purpose is not to "convert the world" to some belief. Jain principles aim to civilize the heart, endow the will, and emancipate the intellect.

The central themes of the Jain way of life are nonviolence, non-one-sidedness, and non-possessiveness. Nonviolence (Ahinsa) sees the autonomy of life of every living being. Non-one-sidedness (Anekantavada) strengthens the autonomy of thought of every individual. Non-possessiveness (Aparigraha) supports the autonomy of self-control, of striving to minimize our personal consumption of things. It also means viewing negligent lifestyles that abuse or overtax the ecological fabric of life as excessive and unethical. If you understand that every soul is autonomous you will never trample on its right to live. If you see every being as a thinking individual you will not trample on his or her thoughts and emotions. If you ultimately feel that you own nothing and no one, you will not trample on the planet or the natural economy on which our survival depends. Thousands of years ago these principles of inner peace were the only way to global peace. Today it is still the case.

Jain philosophy harmonizes the religious and the scientific, the spiritual and the physical. Jainism is the union of personal independence and social and ecological interdependence. Failing to grasp the two fundamental principles of life - that of spiritual-physical interaction and that of cause and effect - has a profound impact: We face personality problems because of a distorted self-identity, either as a purely spiritual or purely material being. We face social disorder because individuals and nations do not see themselves as ultimately responsible for their actions. We face economic decline because we ignore the fact that a symbiosis among living organisms, in balance with the physical world, is the ultimate source of all wealth. We face environmental problems because we do not recognize our own connection with the biosphere nor hold ourselves accountable for the violence we inflict on it. In the "here and now" a human being is accountable to his or her spiritual self. Individuals are responsible for their own conduct toward other beings and the world, as well as the outcomes of their activities. Comfort is nowhere to be found in fickle wants and wishes. Compared with other creatures, man's "superior" abilities come with the superior responsibility to be self-restrained in exercising them. Living life following animal behavior or childish likes and dislikes is denial of that responsibility. Jainism doesn't offer prophets or incarnations to help save us from ourselves. Jains are not waiting for a future god or event to relieve man of the fruits of his own actions or to whisk him away from the mess he has made. We are innately able to create moral progress in the world outside, but only by first doing so within our own lives. Throughout a long and prolific history, Jains have stood for and worked toward certain ideals. The Jain tradition started and grew in what is now India, a dramatic landscape of harmony and strife, diversity and division. There, Jains have been a very active force shaping ethics, literature, commerce, agriculture, philosophy, the arts, and the sciences. Historically, Jain values have strongly influenced the beliefs, practices and moral conscience of the Hindus, Buddhists and others.

Whether political leaders, scholars, authors, activists, or ordinary citizens, by setting an example Jains have lived and promoted such values as the following:

Nonviolence & Vegetarianism : Traditional India's religious tolerance and vegetarianism took birth in the Jain tradition. In ancient times, South Asia was a predominantly animal-exploiting culture. The gradual impact of Jainism would change that forever.

By preaching and practicing, Jains encouraged all kinds of leaders throughout the region to promote vegetarian living, regard for animals, and an inquisitive attitude of respect for other beliefs and philosophies. In the 16th century, for instance, Jain monks inspired the powerful Muslim emperor Akbar to renounce hunting and to outlaw on holy days all blood sports and animal slaughter everywhere in his vast empire. During a much earlier period, Jain ethics motivated India's Hindu Brahmin priesthood from an ancient creed of war gods, animal sacrifices and "soma" intoxicants to a way of life that even now continues to support Ahinsa, vegetarianism and abstinence. In modern times, Jain influence on the great independence leader Mahatma Gandhi was strong and is well documented. Gandhi's upbringing in the midst of a Jain community and his close friendship with the thinker Shrimad Rajachandra allowed him to develop his now famous views on peace and self-reliance. The same wisdom inspired Martin Luther King, Jr. along with many other peaceful revolutionaries throughout history. Today, Jain leaders engage in finding peaceful and practical solutions to violence in the world's sociopolitical landscape. In the 20th century a number of serious conflicts between governments, warring parties, and clashing ethnic groups were calmed and resolved through the sage words and ideas of Jain ascetic monks, such as Acharya Tulsi (1914-97) and Acharya Sushil Kumar (1926-94). The ideals of compassion and non-possessiveness build a strong sense of social service. Jains have led the founding and maintaining of homeless shelters, orphanages, rehabilitation centers, hospitals and free clinics. In both rural and urban environments Jains also pursue a long tradition of running sanctuaries (panjarapolas) dedicated to protecting and nursing injured, abused and starving animals.

The Capitalist Mindset : Centuries before "capitalism" was ever conceived, a Jain way of life gave rise to the world's first true capitalists. Jainism supports private ownership of property and technology, but while calling on the proprietor to use it wisely and for the benefit of beings less fortunate. Realistically promoting values like vegetarianism and the nonviolent use and acquisition of natural resources demands an awareness of the economics of supply and demand. Jains see wealth as mainly a prerequisite for philanthropy, a tool for benefiting the world. Greed, materialism, attachment, and over-acquisitiveness are condemned extensively in the Jain faith. However, it is a fact of history that Jains have been one of the most prosperous, yet peaceful communities in the world. While often financially well-endowed, Jain societies have been legendary for their discipline, honesty and integrity.

This is no accident or contradiction, as scholars and historians would agree. Jainism's meticulous emphasis on self-evaluation, personal restraint, non-one-sided thinking, detachment, asceticism, pacifism, and cause-effect reasoning have been the very foundations of capitalistic thinking. (The great economist Max Weber caught a glimpse of this vis-à-vis the "Protestant ethic".) When understood and practiced, they naturally cultivate self-accountability, discipline, trustworthiness, attention to detail, long-term thinking and regard for efficiency. Such values have moved Jains to view financial success not as an end by itself, but as the result of an ethically performed job, and a certificate of honest management. Jains have continued to use personal wealth to create schools, colleges, universities and major scholarly publishing houses. Today, they are among the leading industrialists, business strategists and entrepreneurs in South Asia and increasingly so in the U.S. high technology industries.

Democratic Principles & Social Equality : No war or violent campaign was ever waged by Jains to convert, coerce, proselytize, or ensure safety in numbers. Even in positions of great power Jains never sought to institute a religious empire or grab land from people. Throughout history and in today's world, Jain societies have not, and need not employ military action or political pressure in order to flourish, grow, prosper and invigorate an ethical revolution in the greater community. Jainism and its notion of spiritual freedom have always appealed to individuals from every socioeconomic level. Thousands of years before the French and American revolutions, the U.S. Constitution, the abolition of slavery and the civil rights movement, Jains espoused and practiced the doctrine that all human beings are, and should be treated, as spiritual equals.

Rejecting the historically concurrent and widespread infliction of slavery, caste hierarchy, subjugation of women, and religious sacrifice of humans and animals, Jains long ago set an egalitarian example that still serves as a beacon for advocates of democratic values. In the midst of a class-torn society Jains pioneered the institution of secular public education for all, to such an extent that in a certain Indian language (Tamil) the very word for "school" ("palli") actually means "Jain temple". Up through the 21st century, entire communities from the poor, downtrodden and rejected classes have continued to find dignity and solace in the Jain religion. The Jain vision of social service can be contrasted with the currently in-vogue concept of "social justice", a modern term for state-imposed redistribution of wealth and resources. Jainism puts responsibility on the individual to be charitable voluntarily, not only by contributing to worthy causes but also by creating a uniquely personal enterprise of assisting those in need.

Independence From Priestly Domination : Jainism has always been predominantly a religion and faith of the laity. Every living soul is free to pursue spiritual goals on its own, without any need for outside help. Ultimately, God is not an external person, place or thing, but a certain state of one's own existence. There's no need for an intermediary, be it human or heavenly, to bridge the gap between oneself and one's innate constitution. Hence, Jains never invented a pyramid bureaucracy or priestly class having authority over people. As a result all Jains enjoy free participation and unconstrained access in community and religious activities.

Female Emancipation : The soul has no gender, and by their fundamental nature no soul or souls can ever be superior or inferior to one another. All are spiritually identical. In social arenas this principle has guided Jain society in profound ways, not least among them the area of gender issues. Jains recognize the spiritual equality of genders in the same light as that of races and of species. Whereas most of the ancient world was at best patronizing towards females, Jain society (the Chaturvidhi Sangha) as ordained by the great Crossing-Makers has been founded equally upon four types of people: male ascetics (monks), female ascetics (nuns), laymen (shravakas) and laywomen (shravikas). This society is not a hierarchy or any kind of social device. Without the participation of and equal regard for each of these four spiritual resources a society is deemed incomplete. Thus, female education has typically been as high a priority as for males. In the land of Jainism's origin, its followers include the largest proportion of educated women of any religious community; and across the globe a large majority of young Jain women are college educated. As an outcome of both academics and ideology women have enjoyed a progressive state of opportunity in Jain society. Moreover, Jain children are raised to regard male monks with the same veneration and respect as female nuns. (In fact female nuns outnumber male monks by a ratio above 2 to 1, and evidence shows this has been the case for thousands of years.) Since ancient times women have been important leaders in Jain society and contributed to religious and philosophical literature, the arts, education and spiritual inspiration for all.

Understanding Nature : In contrast to a popular tendency to ascribe divine mystery to the natural world, Jainism emphasizes the individual's own potential ability to know all of reality in its major and minute conditions. Jains follow a long tradition of seeking rational and testable answers to the big and challenging questions about the universe. Traditional Jain physics, cosmology and biology have presented an organized and detailed system of classification, measurement and analysis.

Without the benefit of modern methodology and instrumentation, over two millennia ago Jain literature expressed a unique appreciation for both the microcosm and the macrocosm. All descriptions were remarkably lucid and detailed, and the terminology used was definitive and unambiguous. It was understood explicitly that matter can be converted into energy and vice versa, and that neither can be created or destroyed. Matter was seen as a conglomeration of atomic masses (anu) that are made of still finer particles, right down to the particle units which are physically impossible to split any further, called paramanu ("primal particle"). Subatomic particles were characterized by discrete quanta of either of two opposite charges (called snigdha and ruksha). Also given are conditions under which particles may fuse together or split apart. The entire physical cosmos has been seen as permeated by two non-material mediums - one that facilitates motion (called dharma) and another that allows things to remain stationary (adharma) - which uniformly interpenetrate each other, all of space, and everything in the universe. (Modern theoretical physics is now converging on the very similar concept of quintessence, the so-called "energy" of space itself.) The phenomenon of sound was described as the action of molecules (skandhas) of matter striking one another.

Among other things, striving to live nonviolently towards all living things requires an understanding of microorganisms (nigodas) which thrive in the air, soil and water and inhabit the bodies of humans and other organisms. Such microscopic beings are said to possess a rudimentary sense of touch. Their reproductive behaviors are known to be highly prolific and regulated by conditions of moisture, heat, light and nourishment. Jain texts describe some microbes as pathogens that cause bodily disorders and others as decomposers that break down organic matter. This understanding (which incidentally predates the invention of the microscope by centuries) has encouraged a great concern for cleanliness and hygiene. It also helps foster a distinct awareness that all Jains share of the biological world.

It's a fact that a considerable amount of basic misinformation has been written and circulated about Jainism. Due to various reasons many writings that claim to discuss this philosophy have been inaccurate and misleading. Many libraries tend to contain such works.

Sources for more reliable information can be found at various sites:

Teachings and tradition

* www.jainworld.com
* www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/jainhlinks.html
* http://users.netmost.com/jainway
* www.jainsansaronline.com

Scriptures and other writings

* www.aditi.net/jain
* www.AtmaDharma.com
* www.atmasiddhi.com
* www.sacred-texts.com/jai

Discussion groups

* in English: groups.yahoo.com/group/jain-friends
* en español: groups.yahoo.com/group/FeCorrecta

Acknowledgement The following were of assistance in producing this article : Jainism by Herbert Warren (c.1913); Samayasara of Sri Kundakunda translated by A. Chakravarti (1971); Capitalists Without Capitalism by Balwant Nevaskar (1971); Cosmology : Old and New by G. R. Jain (1975); Life Force: The World of Jainism by Michael Tobias (1991); That Which Is by Nathmal Tatia (1994), "The Jain Vision" in Asian Philosophies by John and Patricia Koller (1998); Aspects of Jaina Religion by Vilas A. Sanghave (1998); The Notion of Growth by Hermann Kuhn (1999); and the writings of Dr. Michael Giannelli of Los Angeles.

The author can be contacted at asalgia@yahoo.com

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