Page Text
________________
Jainism in a Global Perspective
There is a basic question of reverence for life. There is a basic question of non-violence. There is a basic question of harmony. There is a basic question of making optimum use of the resources of the earth.
There is a Jaina text which says--
Khamemi savve Jīvā, Savve Jīvā khamntume. mitti me savvabhūesu, veram majjham ņa kenai
-- (Āva. Sū. 4.5) I have a friendly relatioinship with the cntire universe. The same is expressed in Vedic tradition. 'Atmavat sarva bhūtesu'. That is the sense of empathy with nature, which establishes harmony. That is why the universality of the spirit of religion must be invoked in order to organise the religions of the world foręcology and its protection. Equally, we must organise the religions of the world, within their own system, and work togther for the release of distress. The cry of the heart, the cry of the soul and the distress of human bodies call for a supreme proirity to be given to the cause of the coalition which I advocated. That is why Mahatma Gandhi used to sing one song at every prayer meeting. The song is the quintessence of the spirit of the spirit. As I said, please release the quest of the spirit. The spirit of quest is what is expressed in this beautiful Gujarati song by Narsi Mehta "Vaisnava jana to tene kahiye, je pīra parās jane re". A devotee, a man of religion must be defined as one who is able to commensurate with the other, who is able to share grief, sorrow, and sufferings of others, who is able to empathise in full measures with those who are suffering. And that is how the spirit of religion is defined in every tradition of religion. The time has come when the religions of the world must give a response which we lawyers call jointly and severally. We must meet together and we must do it in each one of their system.
In the soul of mankind the greatest story, the greatest sense of responsibility has to be with regard to this principle of compassion. I remember Swami Vivekanand's words, he said "What is the watch word of all ethical codes". And the answer is not 'I' but die. And it is in that relationship to others that you experience the most wonderful truth. In a memorial meeting Father B. Grifith, an Englishman, who made India his home, said "I came here to find the other half of my soul". He was a
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
| SR No. | 014010 |
| Book Title | Jainism in a Global Perspective - Collection of Jain papers of 1993 Parliament of World Religions, Chicago |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Sagarmal Jain, Shreeprakash Pandey |
| Publisher | Parshwanath Vidyapith |
| Publication Year | 1998 |
| Total Pages | 402 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Seminar & Articles |
| File Size | 23 MB |