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Millennia before Darwin
An aimless soul, under the impulse of karma
Wandered from birth to birth In the human kingdom and the animal,
In heaven and in hell Until it reached the end of its wanderings
- Mahāpurāna, parva 174
Thousands of years ago even, the Jains taught about the changes of form in nature, and that life goes from one form into another. They also had a good explanation for these facts. But evolution is much more than change of form. Though Jainism has no explicit doctrine or theory of evolution, its ideas come much closer to the real meaning of evolution than those prevailing in the Western world.
The origin of species
The occidental world is proud of the great scientific and philosophical accomplishments of Darwin (to be honest we should add that Darwin elaborated on and published ideas which were already brooding in the mind of his 18th century grandfather – and who knows how many who remained unknown), who put an end to the rigid belief that God had created all life-forms exactly as they were today, and that therefore no changes in form could have taken place. Fossil
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