Jains Through Time

SR No.: 006591
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Shilapi Sadhvi
Publisher: Veerayatan
Total Pages: 282
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 16 MB

Page 25

The Jains through Time
and krishi (the art of agriculture).
Rishabhdev: An Epoch-Maker From a chronological point of view, the epoch hallowed by the birth of Tirthankar Rishabhdev was the one in which the culture of Kalpa-Vriksha (wish-granting tree) was coming to an end and people no longer found it easy to gather even the basic means of existence.
It pains me to say that if these questions of survival, culture and education had been faced by some present-day Jains, they would have condemned the solution out of hand. Agriculture, sculpture, industry, writing and other art-forms, they would say, involve violence and are therefore conducive to prolonging the cycle of birth and death. They believe that the sole preoccupation of this precious human life, which has been obtained as a result of many good deeds, should be the attainment of salvation and of salvation alone.
Rishabhdev taught civilisation and culture
Culture and education as we know it now had not even begun. People lacked guidance and were unsure about how to obtain the necessities of life. At this stage, Rishabhdev took a leading role in solving these problems by teaching them about asi (the art of the sword), masi (the art of writing)
But Rishabhdev was not the sort of religious teacher preoccupied only with the next world; he could relate to ordinary everyday practicalities and follow the needs of the age. He was a visionary, a great thinker, and a truly compassionate being. He did not say, "Why should I involve myself in such mundane matters? My connection with society ends with the collection of alms. The only goal, after renunciation, should be that of liberation."
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