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Jainism in a Global Perspective
compassion, so Lord Christ lays stress upon peace. But it was left to the Jainas to formulate the ideological foundation of non-violence in all its aspect - word, deed and thought. According to the Jaina Scripture. "All our miseries arise from violence.' Therefore the best way to look upon all living beings is as our own. and in accordance with this vision arises the idea of "universal friendliness" -- mitti bhūehikappaye1. This universalism in behaviour is the result of a faith that all life is bound together 'parsparopagraho Jīvānām'and when it speaks of life, it speaks not only the human, animal but also the vegetable kingdom, and even the material kingdom. The great glory of the Jainas lay in the fact that unlike some major religions like Buddhism, Islam and Christianity, it never had any interest in missionarizing into practice or conceive the idea of proselytising. To the Jainas, religion is realisation, it is the inner nature that has reached in each man a certain stage of development and unfolding that can raise him to the status of a perfect soul having four fold infinites (anantacatuştaya) Therefore evangelical spirit and missionary ambitions have been unknown to the Jainas.
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Much has been said of the common good of religious unity but so long we maintain even a lingering hope that this unity will be achieved by the triumph of any one of the religions and the condemnation and destruction of others, to them, I gently but firmly say; "My dear brother and sister, this is worse than day-dreaming." Do I wish that the whole of the world should become Hindu God for bid. Like the seed of the earth gets sustenance from water, light and assimilats from all, so also to develop into a healthy plant.
Holiness, purity and charity are not the exclusive possessions of any church in the word, and that every system has produced men and women of most exalted character. If anybody dreams of exclusive survival of his only religion and the destruction of others, we should simply pity him from the bottom of our heart. Absolutistic thinking is everywhere bad but it is acceptable in the field of religion and spirituality. No body can claim to have the monopoly of truth hence to impose our own ideology and faith upon others is anti-religious and anti-spiritual. It is also negation of love and non-violence. It is why the Jainas, true to their non-absolutistic heritage have never come in conflict with other religious communities, For Private & Personal Use Only
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