JAINA Convention 2015 07 Atlanta GA

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

Page 73

2015 JAINA Convention
Jainism World of Non-Violence
all five senses but a less developed mind and hence to hurt or kilany animal for our survival results in the highest violent act. Similarly killing or hurting a living being with four, three, and
two senses results in a lessor violent act Since a human life can survive by consuming and using only one sense living beings (fruits, vegetables air, water, fire ele. Jainism prohibits the destruction of higher sense living beings for our survival. Hence, Jainism advocates strict vegetarianism and is against raising animals for food for ethical, spiritual, as wel as environmental reasons
Contemporary Jain Way of Compassionate and Ethical Living - Pravin K. Shah
Jain Ethics and Compassion Jainism states that earth, water, fire, air, and vegetation which constitute the five basic elements of our environment, possess afe. They possess one sense which is the sense of touch Animals and human beings possess all five senses and a mind. The five senses are touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing Human beings are also blessed with advanced developed thinking as compared to animals. Hence they are able to meditate and ultimately attain iberation Human beings also have the responsibility for achieving oneness and harmony among all living beings, including the environment, through compassionate living and disciplined conduct and behavior Lord Mahavir's entire life was full of compassion. After attaining Kevaljan, he travelled barefoot for 40 years to deliver the message of true compassion to the common people. He lived in perfect harmony with nature throughout his life and provided utmost respect for the environment Lord Mahavir made the following profound statements of all times
• "All life is bound together by mutual support and interdependence" • "One who neglects or disregards the existence of earth, air, fire, water and vegetation, disregards
one's own edistence • We harm and kill other lives because of our greed and possessiveness Since al lives are interconnected, one should realize that if we harm ONE we harm ALL Living Beings" and "Greed. Possession and Possessiveness are some of the primary causes of all violence as well as imbalance in the environmenr. These ancient statements form the basis of the modern science of ecology and are refreshingly contemporary in their promises Main Theme of Lord Mahilver's Teaching of Compassionate Ethical Living
• Ahimsa (Non-violence) is respect for the life of all living beings. • Aparigraha (Non possessiveness) stems from respect for other lives as well as the environment. • Anekantavada (Non one sidedness Open Mindedness) is respect for the views of others
because the expression of truth is relative and hence it has many sides
Universal Law of Mother Nature The following low of Mother Nature is true for mothers of humans as well as for animals under natural environment . After the birth of a baby, the mothers start to produce milk only to feed their babies. They also
produce just enough mix that is needed for their babies. They slowly stop producing milk after
their babies reach a weaning age. . There exists a special emotional connection between mother and her baby. After feeding if the
baby is still hungry, the mother automatically produces more milk within a few hours. If the baby
is fuil then she automatically reduces her milk production for the next feeding • Nature has not made any provision for mother cows to produce more milk than the need of their
babies for human consumption or for other use. Hence any drop of milk that we drink or use in dairy products is stolen from the mother cow that was meant for her baby call. Any other reason that we hear (only access milk of mother cow we use) from any source is totally incorrect
Justification of Dairy Product Consumptions in the Past All Jains believe in vegetarianism and most Jains are vegetarians. However, a majority of Jains consume dairy products because animals are not directly killed during the milking operation and ancient Jain literature indicates the consumption of milk by our religious leaders Hence most Jains believe that the dairy consumption is not in violation of the fundamental principle of Ahimsa. Somehow they ignore the basic law of Mother Nature After the investigation of history of the Indian literature and culture. I concluded the following reason for the usage of dairy products in the past
in olden times, cows and their milk were essential for human survival in India. The agricultural industry was not developed and was not producing enough crops to feed the entire human population
Survival of Life and Ethical Living It is not possible to sustain human life with absolute non violence and absolute non possession. To live a life one needs to eat organic food which is a life by itself according to Jainism. Also one needs at a minimum clothes and shelter. Hence the destruction of some form of ide and limited possession are essential for human survival The goal of Jainism is to minimise the violence and negative impact of our existence on other living beings and the environment
Jainism believes that violence is proportional to the number of senses a lving being possessed. For our survival, we hurt or even one five sense living being it is considered higher violence
compare to milions of two or one sense living being • Ahuman being possesses al five senses and a very developed mind and hence to hurt or kilany
human being for our survival results in the highest form of violent act. An animal also possesses
The usage of Cow was essential for the survival of large human population in India. The cow's milk provided additional food. The male call (bull) was used to farm the land. The cow's dried dung was used for fre, to cook the family meal and its urine used for medicine Hence the people treated the cows as a member of the family mother cow. After the delivery of a baby call they allowed the call to consume the entire mother's milk for two to three weeks After some time they used a small portion of the total milk for their food. The majority of mik was consumed by the baby calves. They took care of cows with very minimum violence. Cows were useful not only for milk but for Carming for her dung and for her urine
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