Introduction to Jaina Sadhna

Author(s): Sagarmal Jain
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 91

84 : An Introduction to Jaina Sadhanā
culture for house-holders, yet the use of pesticides in the agriculture is not agreable to them, because it not only kills the insects but pollutes the atmosphere as well as our food items also. To use pesticides in agriculture is against their theory of non-violence. Thus we can conclude that Jainas were well aware of the problem of ecological disbalance and they made certain restrictions to abvoid this and to maintain ecological equilibrium for it is based on their supreme principle of non-violence. Regard for Other's Ideologies and Faiths
Jainism holds that the reality is complex. It can be looked and understood from various view points or angles. For example we can have hundreds of photographs of the same and one tree from different angles. Though all of them give a true picture of it from certain angle, yet they differ from each other. Not only this, but neither each of them nor the total of them can give us a complete picture of that tree. They individually as well as jointly will give only a partial picture of it. So is the case with human knowledge and understanding: we can have only a partial and relative picture of reality, we can know and describe the reality only from certain angle or view-point. Though every angle or view-point can claim that it gives a true picture of reality, yet it gives only a partial and relative picture of realily. In fact we can not challenge its validity or truth value, but at the same time we must be aware of the fact that it is only a partial truth or onesided view. One, who knows only partial truth or has a onesided picture of reality, has no right to discard the views of his opponents as totally false. We must accept that the views of our opponents may also be true from some other angles. Jaina theory of anekāntavāda emphasises that all the approaches to understand the reality give partial but true picture of reality and due to their truth-value from certain angle, we should have a regard for others ideologies and faiths. Thus anekāntavāda for