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MODERN THOUGHT
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Now coming to the social question of equality of status, Jainism has singular message to convey to a society in which distinctions are based on caste and creeds which in their turn depend upon birth. Inspite of the univeral benefits of modern civilization, prejudices due to race, colour or nationality persist and the people are divided amongst themselves. Racial arrogance or superiority of birth has been losing weight. The Eighth and Ninth sermons as contained in the “Uttarādhyayana Sūtra” clearly point out that superiority or inferiority is not based on birth but on the kind of deeds, of virtue or wickedness. All humanity is one and differences are created by men and women from their own good and evil deeds. During Mahāvira's life time, he divided the human beings into four groups : the Munis, the Arjikās,. the Śrāvakas, and Srāvakis. To all of them, he preached the same Dharma and recognised that even women could acquire scriptural knowledge and attain perfection. There is however one point to be noted. The Digambara tradition says that women will not be able to realize salvation on account of their physiological infirmities while the Svetāmbara tradition is that they too can attain salvation.
Instances of this equality of status can be mentioned from Mahāvira's own life. One day Mahāvīra entered a town for food. People of all ranks and grades stood at their doors eager to offer him food. He accepted food from a slave girl who had been kept separate and was not permitted to touch metal utensils. A slave girl by name Candanā offered some rice and Mahāvīra took a portion of it and left the place. The girl was a pious devotee. This aroused the conscience of the people and the master of the slave girl set her free after falling at her feet.
That this is so has been recognised by scholars of repute. Even though Mrs Sinclair Stevenson stigmatised Jainism as having an "empty heart”, she admits that one of the unique glories of Jainism is that it, unlike most Indian born religions, believes in the possibility of aliens reaching its goal. Even Europeans and Americans, although they may have never heard of Jainism, if
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