________________
184
Ahimsa of Mahavira and their limiting it to just food (strict vegetarian and fasting etc) habits and protection of animals only. As a result, perhaps, Jain community started to contribute significantly more for causes like education (more than 3000 schools set and run by them), setting up hospitals and dispensaries, organizing health camps, establishing homes for destitute (women, old people and orphans) and so.
185
We have discussed so far Gandhi's engagements with Rajchandra, Jain monks, business men and philanthropists and their impact where Jainism seems to make an impact on him or support his mission when needed most. We also tried to locate incidences where Gandhi interacted with common Jains to make an impact on them. He did this either singly or by addressing them in Jain monasteries or Jain conferences showing his deep understanding of Jain doctrine and way of life. We glanced through his literature and found several incidences backing these statements." In such incidences, generally he was critical of Jains and their practices by explaining Jain doctrine and value systems and advised them to enhance their understanding of Jainism. We give below one such incidence to demonstrate Gandhi's study of Jainism (Excerpts from CWMG 21:427-435):
186
"... I tell Jains and others too, that compassion does not merely mean not killing bugs, ants and other insects, though certainly they should not be killed. It also means that no soul born as a human being must be cheated. And yet what else do the businessmen do? If any Jain would show his account books to me, I would immediately prove that he was no Jain. How is the cloth, in which we trade, produced? Dealers ought to consider whether the manufacture of cloth is not tainted, whether it is not true that animal fat is used in sizing cloth. It must be, besides, repugnant to businessmen to charge exorbitant rates of interest. This is not worthily done by a Jain. Dealers may reasonably add
Gandhi & Jainism | Pg.201
