________________
without the bias caused by judging them on scales of good and bad, excellent and ordinary, etc.
When talking of abstaining from all violence and killing of life forms there certainly is a gap between the ideal theory and actual practice. What critics generally ignore is that even where ideals are achievable, there is a gap of degree between the accomplished and the beginner. Because their criticism tends to be doctrinaire, they conveniently ignore the reality that the same rules are never applied to a child and an adult.
As far as evaluating the gap is concerned, it should be done from various angles and the best possible and practicable combination should be chosen. In case of ahimsa, the parameters could be mental violence, physical violence, intensity of passions, number of beings involved, kinds of beings involved, needs, circumstances, etc.
Ahimsa is not just a ritual. When it started turning into a hollow ritual, on the pretext of following the ideal definition, it gradually lost its efficacy. Although ritual is an essential part of training in almost every field of life, it has a tendency to turn into a goal if the real purpose and meaning behind it are not fully understood and strengthened continually. It is like a system that is created to facilitate efficient working, but people tend to become slaves of that system and forget about actual goal-oriented efficiency. They take it for granted that just because they are following the system they ought to be efficient.
There is no doubt that diamond is more glorious and lofty than clay. But if we criticize and disparage clay by comparing it with gold to the extant of rejecting it by branding it worthless, we are committing a grave mistake. In fact,
AHIMSA: THE SCIENCE OF PEACE 149 For Private & Personal Use Only
Jain Education International
www.jainelibrary.org
