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Jainism : The Oldest Religion
DR. VILAS SANGAVE
1. Introduction
Jainism is a significant and prominent religion of India along with other religons in India like Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. Jainism has creditably retained this important place even though it has the limited number of followers known as the Jainas. The Jainas have the smallest population and they constitute only 0.48 per cent of the total population of India as per the 1981 Census of India. It means that per 10,000 persons in India, 8,264 are Hindus, 1,135 are Muslims, 243 are Christians, 196 are Sikhs, 71 are Buddhists and only 48 are Jainas.
Further, Jainism is an independent religion of India and this fact is now acknowledged on all hands. It is established beyond doubt that Jainism is a distinct religion of India and not an offshoot of either Hinduism or Buddhism. The Jaina religion, philosophy, ethics, gods, temples, sacred places, scriptures, teachers, ascetics, vows, holy days, festivals and outlook on life and culture, with an emphasis on Ahiṁsā, are not only distinct from their Hindu counterparts but also not accepted and followed by the Hindus. Even in the observance of certain common customs and manners, the Jaina way of looking at them is quite different from that of the Hindus. In view of these differences in the tenets and practices of Jainism from other religions of India, Jainism is regarded on all hands as a distinct religion of India.
Moreover, Jainism is not only an ancient religion of India, but it has got an unbroken continuity. During all these centuries, the followers of Jainism never undertook religious expeditions on a large scale in India or in foreign countries with a view to convert their residents to Jainism. In this way, Jainism has never a proselytising religion and it has retained its characteristic as a traditional, ancient and prominent religion of India.
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