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JAINA CONVENTION YOUTH SOUVENIR SECTION A shocking outlook:
Keeping Jainism Alive in North America
Living in the West, whether or not it is your birthplace, have you ever felt, in any way, inferior to the lighter-skinned Christian majority we find here? If not, it is very probable that you have tried to hide all traces of your Eastern culture
when face-to-face with our light-skinned
peers. And why? Why do we feel that we must show those who are in majority of number we are "just like them"? It is
because we Jains, especially those born
and raised here, have had neither anything to be proud of nor a true sense of uniqueness; for this, the adult leaders and parents deserve a large share of the blame.
Jain Education International 2010_03
by Amar Salgia, Quincy, IL.
66
the religious experiences of the youth do not extend far beyond ritualism and dropping rice and bananas into metal plates!"
hardly anyone knows that we have so much to be proud of. We are Jains, not Hindus. True Jains are the gentlest,
dropping rice and bananas into metal plates! With such factors prevalent, the Jain youth remain ignorant.
The adults in the Jain community should be positive role models, but they impart nothing but bad influence. If parents display a lack of concern for Jainism, then how, in this respect, could there possibly exist positive influences?
We have organizations all over the continent which exist, supposedly, to keep Jainism a thriving religion in the New World. However, our leadership is horrible, not caring for the welfare of the community to which it owes its blood and sweat and the assurance of a brighter future for the next generation. Most of our executive board members, presidents and vice-presidents are, sorry to say, just lazy people who only care for themselves and their reputation at home and with their friends and relatives in India. Parents attend community gettogethers simply for the sake of getting together, to socialize. Most importantly, the religious experiences of the youth do not extend far beyond ritualism and
The point of all this discussion is that the adults are not giving their heirs something which human beings (as social creatures) need to be able to accept: a feeling of uniqueness and of equality with those around them. These feelings come from an open, yet humble pride one has in what he is. We are Jains by birth, but we do not know the first thing about what a Jain is, and we do not understand the Jain system of thought (unfortunately, neither do most of the adults). It is really a shame, because
“Young, Jain, and proud”
most compassionate people on earth;
we are the members of one of the oldest
surviving religion; we belong to a system of thought that teaches its followers to
reason objectively and scientifically, not blindly follow the words of a prophet; we have never fought a war or cruelly forced others to accept our religion as others have! Parents have the duty to create, if not reinforce, this vital feeling of pride in their children which they need to feel that they are a whole person, not someone who should mimic the doings of others for social acceptance.
For Private & Personal Use Only
now.
Within the community we need a hundred times more unity than we have Look at the Jews; they are so united that they would do almost anything to secure their faith and to help other Jews do the same. Their unity is a good example for us, who are still struggling to unite a people who have descended from a land where true unity is not easy to come by. Unless we experience a drastic attitude adjustment, our great-grand children will curse this generation for its indifference, the offspring of ignorance. Teach the children their roots and their religion (minus the rituals) for their own benefit, and the rewards of such efforts will surprise you.
6TH BIENNIAL JAINA CONVENTION JULY 1991 - 50
•MT Proctors
www.jainelibrary.org
