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2: An Introduction to Jaina Sādhanā
worldly existence is full of suffering and the ultimate end of human life is to get rid of this worldly existence, i.e., the cycle of birth and death. Austerities, renunciation, emancipation, atheism, supremacy of human being over gods, equality of all beings, opposition of supremacy of Brahmins and of animal sacrifices and emphasis on moral values were some of the fundamental tendencies of Śramanic tradition. We also find that some of the above mentioned tendencies such as renunciation and emancipation were totally absent from the earlier form of Vedic religion. These concepts were contributed by the Sramaņas to Indian culture in general and Hinduism in particular.
Hinduism & Jainism
However, these two distinct trends Brāhmaṇic as well as Śramanic have been prevalent in Indian Culture from its earliest days, yet in our culture, being a composite one, a water-tight compartment among its different shades is not feasible at all. We cannot understand Indian Culture completely without understanding its these two different constituents, i.e., Śramanic and Vedic, developed later on in the form of Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. So one thing must be clear in our mind, that studies and researches in the field of Indology are not possible in isolation. In fact, Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism are so inter-mingled and mutually influenced that to have a proper understanding of one, the understanding of other is essential. No doubt these different trends are distinguishable but, at the same time, we must be aware of the fact that they are not separable. Though on the basis of some peculiarities in theory and practice, we can distinguish them, yet it is very difficult to make a complete separation. Because none of these trends remained uninfluenced by one another. The earlier Śramanic
trend and its later shades such as Jainism and Buddhism were influenced by the Vedic tradition, later developed in the form of
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