Jain Concept of Peace

Author(s): Sagarmal Jain
Publisher: Z_Vijyanandsuri_Swargarohan_Shatabdi_Granth_012023.pdf

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"one world religion" but it is neither possible nor practicable so far as the diversities in human thoughts are in existence. In the Niyamasara it is said that there are different persons, with their different activities or karmas and different levels or capacities, so one should not engage oneself in hot discussions neither with other sects or one's own sect.28
Haribhadra remarks that the diversity in the teaching of the sages is due to the diversity in the levels of their disciples or the diversity in standpoints adopted by the sages or the diversity in the period of time when they preached, or it is only an apparent diversity. Just as a physician prescribes medicine according to the nature of patients, its illness and the climate so is the case of diversity of religious teachings. So far as diversity in time, place, levels and understanding of disciples is inevitable, variety in religious ideologies and practices is essential. The only way to remove the religious conflicts is to establish harmony among them.
Thus Jaina theory of Anekantavada forbids us to be dogmatic and one-sided in our approach. It preaches us a broader outlook and open mindedness, which is more essential in solving the conflicts due to the differences in idealogies and faiths. Prof. T.G. Kalghatgi rightly observes "The spirit of Anekanta is very much necessary in society, specially in the present day, when conflicting idealogies are trying to assert supermacy aggressively. Anekanta brings the spirit of intellectual and social tolerance."
For present day society what is awfully needed is the virtue of tolerance. This virtue of tolerance i.e. regard for other's ideologies and faiths is maintained in Jainism from its earlier time till these days. Mahavira mentions in Sutrakrtanga 'those, who praise their own faiths and ideologies and blame that of their opponents and thus distort the truth, will remain confined to the cycle of birth and death." Jaina philosphers all the time maintain that all the view-points are true in respect of what they have themselves to say, but they are false in so far as they refute totally other's view points.
Jaina saints also tried to maintain the hormony in different religious-faiths and to avoid religious conflicts. That is why Jainism has been able to survive through the ages.
The basic problems of present society are mental tensions, poverty, violence, fundamentalism and the conflicts of ideologies and faiths.
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