________________
•
IX. JAINA ETHICS AND THE PRESENT-DAY PROBLEMS
273
their victims. We find references in the Jaina scriptures which go to prove that merit and not mere birth should be regarded as the real judge of castes. The caste has nothing to do with the realisation of spirit. The Uttarādhyayana says that Harikeśa who was born in a family of untouchables attained saintly character owing to the performance of austerities. Good conduct and not caste is the object of reverence. Casteism is grounded in falsity and is purely imaginary. Acārya Amitagati expresses that mere caste is incapable of leading us to any meritorious attainment. Merit accrues from the pursuance of the virtues of truth, purity, austerity, Sīla, meditation and spiritual study. Differences in conduct have resulted in the distinctions of caste. There is only one caste, namely, manhood. Merit is the basis of caste and the pride of caste destroys right living. If the modern democratic set up is to be made successful, casteism must go. Casteism and democracy are a contradiction in terms.
CHAPTER X
A Resume
The commencement of Jaina philosophy, and consequently of Jaina ethical speculation, in the present state of our knowledge can be historically traced to the divine personality of Pārsvanātha, although the Jaina tradition corroborated by the Vedic tradition of the Yajurveda and the Bhāgavata ascribes its origin to Rşabha, the first among the twenty-four Tirthakaras. Mahāvīra who succeeded Pārsvanātha reinterpreted the religion of his precursor and acted more as a reformer of religion already in existence than the founder of a new faith. Though Mahāvīra had a magnetic personality, yet he had to encounter schism in his own life time. Some schisms originated after his Nirvāņa. But most of the schisms ultimately agreed with their original source. Only Digambara-Svetāmbara schism resulted in a sharp division of the church, each sect claiming greater authenticity than the other. The Yāpanīyas may be regarded as the reconcilers of these two major sects. The origin of Jaina monachism, and therefore of Jaina ethics, should not be attributed to the Brahmanical idea of samnyāsa. It grew up among the imperfectly Aryanised communities of the east. It is Magadhan in origin.
18
Jain Education International
For Personal & Private Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
