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CONDUCT
CO3 - Jain Lay people: Shrävaks and Shrävikäs
Four Disciplinary Vows (Shikshä Vratas): 09 Sämäyika Vrata
48 Minutes of Meditation and equanimity/ Vow of Equanimity
and Meditation for limited duration 10 Desävakäsika Vrata
Stricter Geographical Limitations/ Vow of activity within limited
space and duration 11 Paushadha Vrata
Practicing the life of a Monk/Vow of ascetic's life for a limited
duration 12 Atithi Samvibhag Vrata
Vow of Charity
Five Anuvratas (Minor Vows)
01. Ahimsa Anuvrata (Limited Vow of Nonviolence): "Ahimsa Parmo Dharma" signifies that nonviolence is the supreme religion. Among these five vows, nonviolence (Ahimsa) is the cardinal principle of Jainism. The concept of Ahimsä is based on the fact that every living being wishes to be happy and tries to avoid pain. Therefore, in order to avoid giving pain, we should refrain from hurting others.2500 years ago, Lord Mahävir extended the concept of non-violence to all living beings. He urged everyone to be peaceful with all, even one-sensed beings. Every living being has a right to exist and it is necessary to live with all other living beings in perfect harmony and peace. As long as we live, we hurt many living beings. The air that we breathe and the water that we drink contain small organisms. Even the vegetarian food that we eat is prepared from plant lives, which are one-sensed beings. It is impossible to observe complete non-violence, because indulging in some sort of violence is inevitable for survival. Acharya Umäsväti defines violence as 'Pramattayogät Präna Vyaparopanam Himsä'. It means that the deprival of life because of non-vigilance is violence. Lord Mahävir said: "One should not injure, subjugate, enslave, torture, or kill any living being including animals, insects, plants, and vegetation." In this vow, a person must not intentionally hurt any living being, whether they are plants, animals, human etc. A person should not hurt the feelings of any living being either, whether it is by thought, word, or action, by himself or herself or through others, or by approving such an act committed by somebody else. Intention in this case applies to selfish motives, sheer pleasure, and even avoidable negligence. In Jain scriptures, the nature of violence is classified in four categories:
Intentional/Premeditated To injure or kill any living being knowingly Violence Common Violence To commit violence towards movable living beings while carrying out
domestic activities like cooking, cleaning, building a house, etc. Vocational Violence To incur violence during the execution of one's work in society
Defensive Violence To commit intentional violence in defense of one's own life Intentional/premeditated violence is totally prohibited for everyone. Although common violence may be unavoidable for survival, one should still attempt to minimize violence in all daily activities such as preparing food, cleaning, etc. This attempt to minimize violence provides the basis for the Jain householder's practice of filtering drinking water, vegetarianism, not eating meals at night, and abstinence from alcohol. One's agricultural, industrial, or occupational living activities may also involve injury to life, but the injury should be kept to a minimum, through careful measures and precautions. If possible, a householder should choose an occupation that minimizes violence to
Compendium of Jainism - 2015
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