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THE ESSENCE OF JAINA SCRIPTURES
defence. On the other hand, a householder, who is still entangled in the world is enjoined to abstain from the deliberate or intentional violence (e.g. such as hunting, offering animal sacrifices, killing for food, amusement or decoration, etc.), which can be avoided by every thinking person without any difficulty and harm to himself. However, he cannot avoid some sort of violence or injury to living beings, that are inevitable in the performance of necessary household activities, such as preparation of food, construction of house, etc. and protection of himself, family members and property against robbers, assailants, etc.
Gandhi, a great votary and proponent of non-violence, was fully committed to the principle that violence should be avoided no matter what, since he was quite confident “about the capacity of human nature for degradation or exaltation” (Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi) (CWMG) (87: 180). In his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, US President Barack Hussein Obama declared to the world that although he has not seen anything weak, passive and naive in the creed and live (life) of Gandhi, he expressed the view that a non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies and that sometimes, the use of force might be necessary and morally justified. In this regard, the following observation is quite relevant.
Although Gandhi insisted that German Jews could have followed a non-violent resistance with a high price to invoke the consciousness of ordinary Germans', he thinks even a violent struggle is justifiable in this special case. He states:
The German persecution of the Jews seems to have no parallel in history. The tyrants of old never went so mad as Hitler seems to have gone. And he is doing it with religious zeal. For he is propounding a new religion of exclusive and militant nationalism in the name of which any inhumanity becomes an act of humanity to be rewarded here and hereafter. The crime of an obviously mad but intrepid youth is being visited upon his whole race with unbelievable ferocity. If there ever could be a justifiable war in the name of and for humanity, a war against Germany, to prevent the wanton persecution of a whole race, would be completely justified. But I do not believe in any war. A discussion of the pros and cons of such a war is therefore outside my horizon or province. But if there can be no war against Germany, even for such a crime as is being committed against the Jews, surely there can be no alliance with Germany. How can there be alliance between a nation which claims to stand for justice and democracy
