JAINA Convention 2007 07 Edison NJ

Author(s): Federation of JAINA
Publisher: USA Federation of JAINA

Page 73

Dialogue should not be for dialogue's sake. It should be taken as seriously as the
ones between a patient and doctor or like a
student and teacher. Such dialogues only. lead to logical conclusion of peace.
5. Limitations of Dialogue
Dialogues fail when strong biases persist. For e.g., there were two ants, one living in a sugarcane field and the second in a salt field. Both had dispute about the taste of sugar and decided to have a dialogue. The first ant invited the second ant to the sugarcane field to taste the sugar. The second ant had taken a piece of salt in its mouth before leaving for the sugarcane field. Thus when the second ant tasted sugar it did not find any difference between salt and sugar and defeated the purpose of dialogue. Dialogue should not be for dialogue's sake. It should be taken as seriously as the ones between a patient and doctor or like a student and teacher. Such dialogues only lead to logical conclusion of peace. For e.g., when Indradeva raised certain questions to Gautam about what Mahaveer said, Gautam felt the necessity to have a dialogue with Mahaveer and at the end of this dialogue process became his disciple.
In sum, through use of this omnipotent tool of dialogue, many of our mundane as well as eternal questions of existence and apparent contradictions can be solved. When the seeker of truth, understands fully the dialogue of Arihant, it paves the way for peace, achievement of moksha and ultimate-happiness (Acharya Kundakund, Pravachansar, verse 274-5). In "Samosaran", the conference of Universe, "Arihant" resolves all issues of the Universe for all beings of all times through dialogue. <>
14th Biennial JAINA Convention 2007
Photograph by Thomas Dix
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PEACE THROUGH DIALOGUE