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Significance of Jainism :: 145
Against these glaring practices based on the acceptance of social inequality and on the wide observance of social discrimination, Tīrthankara Mahāvīra and later on Jaina Achāryas forged their opposition. Tīrthankara Mahāvīra recognised the division of society into four classes but based them on the nature of activities carried out by the people and not on the basis of their birth. He gave full freedom to one and all, including women and the Sūdras, to observe common religious practices prescribed for all and admitted them into his religious order. In this way Tīrthankara Mahāvira threw open the doors of Jainism to all and gave an equal opportunity to everbody, irrespective of his class or birth, to practise religion according to his capacity. Those who followed religion as householders (male and female) were known as śrāvakas and srāvikās and those who observed the religion fully by leaving their houses and becoming ascetics (male and female) were called as sādhus and sādhvis.
In this way the society as envisaged by Tirthankara Mahāvīra and other Jaina Achāryas, was a society where classes were not hereditary like water-tight compartments and where complete freedom was granted to the people to change to the class of their own aptitude. All classes were considered as different ways of life and utmost importance was attached to individual character and mode of behaviour. There was no room for anybody to feel that he was neglected or degraded as he was free enough to follow any profession he liked and he could observe all rites and practices with others.
Thus Tīrthankara Mahāvīra's conception of Varna system produced social impact of great significance. The principle of social equality among the classes was finally established and the social mobility among the classes was considerably increased as the criterion of birth for the membership of a class was straightway removed. This had a very wholesome effect on the conditions of the Sūdras which were very deplorable in the sense that the Sūdras were deprived of education, denied all rights, subjected to inhuman treatment,
