________________
Bhagawan Mahavir ]
[ 481
of his Father's faith. Mahavira and Buddha were soldiers and so was Tolstoy. Only they saw deeper and truer into their profession and found the secret of a true, happy, honourable and godly life. Let us be joint shares holders with these teachers and this land of ours will once more be the abode of the Gods."
From these two extracts it is quite clear that Ahimsa is not the faith of the cowards. It is a virtue of the brave. All men from kings downwards to the lowest beggars can practise it without any hesitation or obstacle. Its principles are so wide that they do not stand in the way of any. Its price is 'Self-sacrifice' and nothing more. As soon as you pay it you get it. The greatest characteristic of this faith is that it enables to realise your real worth; and as soon as you realise your real worth, you become omniscient and attain eternal bliss of Moksha in the end.
If we go deep down into the matter we would find that the real cause of the degradation of human society is that it has not fully under stood the secret of the principle of Ahimsa and if it has nnderstood it has quite forgotten it at present. The root cause of all the causes of its degradation is the want of the faith of Ahimsa If this greatest faith is accpted in its completeness, it is quite certain that the world reach the highest pitch of its progress in a very short time. But this is not a thing to be talked about only; we must practise it in our lives,
The Jain scriptures have treated this subject of Ahim. sa at length and have given it the first place in all actions. Ahimsa is the criterion of all religious performances. Even truth nonstealing, Brahmacharya and not aceepting anya
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
