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[ The Jain Principle of Ahimsa
impracticable, nor can it be said to bad to self-killing. Every hody knows that .the promulgators of Ahimsa practised it through out their lives, and they lived for many years while they were sincerely practising it and explaining the greatest principle to the world. Many other people after them practised it according to their advice and none was obliged to commit suicide. It is, therefore, clear that Jain Ahimsa is neither impracticable nor leading to suicide. At the same time, we must remember that no good principle is easy to be practised by an ordinary man. Every principle belongs to the realm of ideal and the higher the ideal, the more useful it is for the evolutian of man. If the ideal is low, one cannot improve oneself. Therefore, for the highest progress of man, it is necessary that the ideal principle must be the highest. Hence Jaina Ahimsa is the greatest friend of those who want to achieve the greatest amount of personal and spiritual progress and who want to attain the highest bliss by liberating their souls. It is mere cowardice to think that it is impracticable and suicidal.
Some people blame Jain Ahimsa saying that it has led India into political bondage Their argument is that, for fear of sin involved in killig an animal people left eating meats, as a consequence of which they became weak in body and mind. They lost their bravery and love of fighting, and the result was that the foreigners invaded their country and conquered it. Thus Ahimsa became the main cause of the political bondage of India and of the weakness of the Indians.
It is mistaken belief of those who say so. In fact, they have not read the ancient history of India nor are they
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