ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 01

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

Page 155

happiness, etc. What hinders it from doing so is its increasing bondage with karmic matter. In Jainism Karmas function automatically; one is responsible for one's thoughts, words and acts. No one, not even the God, can intervene in this routine. In order to stop the influx of karmas one is required to have right faith, right knowledge and right conduct - the three gems of the commandment of Jaina asceticism. It is not sufficient to stop the influence of bad karmas and destroy the accumulated ones, it is also necessary to earn good karmas. Therefore, a Jaina must always be on his guard, apprehensive of sin. According to R. Williams, the author of Jaina Yoga, a Jaina "works hard, conforms to conventions, obeys constituted authority, leads a frugal and unostentatious life and carefully calculates the consequences of every step he takes".
This strong religious and ethical foundation offers a well-rounded commercial ethic. Limitation of desire and self-discipline are important qualities for a successful businessman in the long run. One of the five basic vows for a layman, the self- prescribed limitation of possession (parigraha-parimāņa-vrata) is perhaps directly responsible for cultivating these qualities. S. Stevenson in her book “The Heart of Jainism" writes "the Jaina has shrewdly realized that the true way of increasing our wealth is by curbing our desires, when we remember that the Jaina creed has forced its holders to become a commercial people, we can see the special value this vow of limitation might have, if it were really lived up to."
More direct attempt at savings of time as well as money by the Jainas can be seen in the absence of expensive rituals among them that, by way of comparison, are absolutely essential for traditional Hindus. The death ceremony is a case in point. Among the Jainas the mortal remains of the dead are not necessarily taken to the confluence of the sacred rivers or to the places of pilgrimage; instead they are consigned to a local river, lake, and pond or even in the bushes. According to sociologist V. A. Sangave, "Jains neither perform Śrāddha ceremony nor give dāna or gifts to Brahmins (1980: 345). The pindadāna or the custom of offering rice balls to the dead has no sanction in Jainism, and the custom of giving death feasts is also on the decline".
Perhaps the Jainas were also the first among those who adopted short marriage ceremonies (instead of the traditional ones lasting for several days) and group marriages for the poorer sections of their community. At the individual level the prescribed simple way of life, particularly abstinence from intoxicants, meat, honey, etc. further helped in having
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