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Preface
Jainism is a modern word to describe the ancient spiritual path of non-violence. The term Jain comes from the word 'Jina' which means 'spiritual victor'. It designates a person who is a conqueror of the inner enemies - anger, ego, deceit, greed, fear, attachment, and hatred.
The total Jain population is about 6 million in the world. In North America, there are an estimated 25,000 Jain families practicing the ancient traditions of this religion. At present there are 70 Jain centers and about 3500 Jain youth regularly attend the Päthashäläs at their local Jain center.
Despite talks of the demise of Jainism in western countries due to the spread and acceptance of the Western culture, Jainism still is a widely practiced way of life by Jains of North America.
The reason Jainism is still followed by today's youth is not only due to their upbringing, but it is mainly a result of non-sectarian Päthashäläs education and youth conventions teaching Jain principles and values to Jain youth throughout North America.
Moving away from home to go to college can be an exciting experience to our youth. However, it can also be a challenging experience, especially if you've been raised in a Jain family. Maintaining a balance between Jain values and North American college life can be very conflicting at times. However, finding that balance is definitely possible.
This book "Being Jain in College-An Experiential Guide" the author Sonali Vakharia shares her own experiences in the book and provides valuable information to balance the Jain values with college life.
As always, if you have any comments and suggestions for improvement, please feel free to contact Sonali Vakharia and JAINA Education Committee.
We would like to thank the author Sonali Vakharia for compiling this book. A special thanks to Anita Parikh for print layout of this book.
Pravin K. Shah, Jaina Education Committee
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BEING JAIN IN COLLEGE
