ISJS Transactions 2018 07 To 09 Vol 02 No 03

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

Page 13

Story telling is a time-honored tradition in Jainism; ācārya and gurus have used the same didactic tales to teach Jain principles for millennia. My interview subjects remember being told Jain tales by grandmothers and reading Jain comic books as children. A 1975 imprint of AKC, relates the life of Mahāvīra, another recounts the tale of "Sahastramalla", a trickster and thief who steals from everyone, even the king, but is eventually brought to repentance through the teachings of a monk. The virtues extolled in this tale include: honesty, repentance, and forgiveness. Another, titled "The Magic Grove" tells about a young gopī, who protects a snake from snake charmers. The snake is a devī in disguise, who grants Vidyutaprabha a boon, which changes her life forever. The morals of this tale include protecting animals from himsā and avoiding jealousy.24 In recent years, cartoon videos for Jain children have appeared on the Internet, though this fact was not mentioned by any of the Jain householders I interviewed. Further research would need to be done to determine how often Jain children are exposed to this programming.
Extended Family Members as Preceptors
While I have been using the term "mothers" for most householders, some of the householders I interviewed are not mothers, though they do live in extended families where children are present. These householders are often involved in the teaching of children. Additionally, they report that on occasion extended family members and not their mothers were their main spiritual teachers during childhood.
My grandmother and aunts,...would visit every year. Whenever they would come they talk[ed] about Jain religion. Once a year we would visit Jain monks and nuns. I didn't have very strong Jain training as a child. I was mostly surrounded by Hindu communities, though my family members were Jains....I grew up in Calcutta - nuns would come for căturmāsa - for four months - rainy seasons - July through November. [1] went with grandmother or mother to visit these nuns. As children we hardly (ever did] any practices.
Oftentimes husbands, too, will share in the spiritual guidance of children, and several interview subjects reported that they were taught Jainism by their fathers and grandfathers.-- In one home, a homeless Hindu boy came to live with a Jain family in his youth. He was cared for and educated by the Jain family. He still lives with this family, cooking for and taking care of their needs. He is married, and his wife has also joined the extended family
The Practice and Instruction of Jain principles... 7
along with their two children. Though neither the man nor his wife have become Jains, they live Jain principles in this home and they attend a Jain temple and listen to the monks there with the rest of the family. The children are lovingly regarded by all members of the family, who demonstrate to them how to live Jain practices.
Community supports
Female householders did mention attending pathaśālā schools during summer vacation as children. There they learned about Jain principles. Jain householders participate in the running of some of these schools. Shivani Bothra is currently completing her dissertation on the participation of Jain female householders in religious schools and camps for children - a valuable study, which will shed more light on the pedagogical roles of female householders.