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SEEING HOLY LIFE IN PRACTICE
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marble - shine being the characteristic of Indian marble – of the finest granular structure. All radiate simplicity, without adornments. Jains recognize no creative God, but only perfected people of pure soul who once were like they, and who can serve each of the beholders as an example – as an example of the ultimate goal of complete realization and perfection of what we really want to realize in the depths of our hearts - which in reality we already are. You don't have to be a Jain to feel admiration for these Jinas, these conquerors of all illusionary ideas, weaknesses and obstacles within themselves. Who would not want to have the power and compassion of someone with an unlimited intellect and spiritual insight, unhampered by physical and psychological suffering? In fact this desire is our only real hunger.
The atmosphere in Jains temples is usually very quiet and pure. You will not find any people who come to beg the gods to solve their problems. The visitor is only strengthened in his or her feeling about the right external as well as inner attitude in life and stimulated towards self-discipline, No ministers or priests pose themselves between our present condition of life and the aim of reaching perfection. All one does, thinks or feels is the cause of one's own future – and every suffering is the result of selfish choices in the past, however subtle and seemingly insignificant they may be.
The next weekend I decided to visit a temple in Sanganer, another ancient suburb of Jaipur. There things were a little different. An old man was sitting at the platform above the stairs to the temple's entrance, and I had to give him all i had. I was not allowed to take my camera. One wants to show the beauty of all this to your friends back home. My thought was, 'What sense does all this make when you're not allowed to take pictures and the beauty is only for yourself as long as your memory can keep it. Religious fanatics prefer to keep these places pure but for themselves alone, rather than sharing their good things with others!” But now, after a year among the Jains, I understand these things differently. For the Jairs these sacred places are not merely places of beauty and
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