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Can Jainism Survive in the 21st Century
MEERA SHAH
The 21st Century
The earth struggling to support a population which is taking more from her than it is giving back. The environment is being choked to death by the earth's myopic inhabitants, who care more for their own short-lived comfort than that of the future generations.
Acquisition of material wealth is the aim of each human being. Cutthroat competition in this harsh economic climate brings an standard of life. Dire social consequences, such as an increased crime rate, result.
Conflict is sparked off around the world by greed for power and wealth. There is much pain and suffering. In search of a higher standard of living, man inadvertently achieves a lower standard of life.
Could Jainism survive in such a world. If the picture that I have painted is indeed what the 21st century beholds, I should rephrase my statement to question 'Can Jainism survive in the 21st century?'
The Tattvārtha Sūtra in its first chapter states that right belief, right knowledge and right conduct is the trifold path to liberation i.e. Mokṣa or liberation from the cycles of birth and death, pain and pleasure.
The elements of this trifold path form the basis of my paper on whether Jainism, as a religion, can survive in the 21st century:
Knowledge Conduct Perception or Belief
Jñāna Caritra
Darsana
However, I shall be using the three elements in a different way from the Tattvärtha Sutra. Whereas in TS belief is the cause, and knowledge and conduct are the effects, in my paper I shall take knowledge and conduct as
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