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Unless we live with non-violence and reverence for all living beings in our hearts, all our humaneness and acts of goodness, all our vows, virtues, and knowledge, all our practices to give up greed and acquisitiveness are meaningless and useless.
Jains come from all faiths and all ethnic groups. What they have in common is the guiding of their lives by Reverence for All Life, a principle which includes pacifism and vegetarianism. Jains have been unique in the history of mankind in never having condoned war, the caste system, animal sacrifice, and the killing of animals for food, clothing, or any reason. As conscientious objectors, Jains believe that anyone who would not harm an animal would be equally unwilling to shoot his fellow man. The Indian government respects this, and the four million Jains living in India today and thousands more living abroad are exempted from the draft.
Attesting to this rare heritage, American scientist Carl Sagan said in a Time Magazine, Oct. 20, 1980 interview:
There is no right to life in any society on earth today, nor has there been at any former time with a few rare exceptions, such as among the Jains of India. We raise farm animals for slaughter, destroy forests, pollute rivers and lakes until no fish can live there, hunt deer and elk for sport ... Mahatma Gandhi acknowledged the powerful impact the Jain philosophy of Ahimsa had upon his personal and political decisions. His example inspired pacifists around the world, including the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
For generations, Jain teachings have been transmitted from master to disciple. Present day philosopher,
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