Jain Digest 1990 01 Vol 17 No 01

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

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an evil.
The third and fourth principles, "Thou shalt not steal" and "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife" are taken care of by the law of the land and violations of them are severely punished. Hence these two moral principles have no special religious importance.
The fifth vow, relating to Aparigraha or limited possession, is really the most important from our point of view. Its observance is emphasized only by Jainism. In other religious systems, whether Indian or non-Indian not so much impor tance is attached to this. No doubt, Jesus recognized its importance. When a rich young man asked him how he could have eternal life, Jesus told him: "Go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor Some Indian religious systems also emphasized the principle of renunciation. It was because of this principle that members of royal families like Mahaveera and Gautama Buddha renounced their princely state and took to asceticism.
But we are not here referring to this ideal of complete renunciation. We are thinking of the principle of Parigraha or possession as applied to householders in general. Here it is not called aparigraha. It is Parimita Parigraha, voluntarily limiting one's own possessions. Each individual, irrespective of his position in society and his occupation, is expected to limit voluntarily his property and wealth. Whatever produce he gets from his land beyond the limit he has fixed, must be placed at the disposal of the whole of society. Whatever income he gets from his business, over and above the limitation imposed by himself, must be utilized for the welfare of the whole of society.
This principle of Parimita Parigraha, which is the fifth item of the ethics of the householder, is very important at present. The conflict of ideologies in the modern world, between Capitalism and Communism, which divides the world into two hostile groups, one championed by the U. S. A. and the other by Soviet Russia, is the inevitable consequence of the economic basis of modern culture.
Ending this conflict and paving the way for the world's harmonious progress on the peaceful path, guided by the
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