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JAIN DIGEST
Mankind cannot survive without nature."
Dr Karan Singh, Hindu philosopher, conservationist and politician gave a clear warning: "The Strange doctrine that our race is in some way specially entitled to destroy other species so as to establish its sovereignity over the Earth has distorted human consciousness down through the corridors of time....... We must come to a complementary society in place of competition, convergence in place of conflict, holism in place of hedonism."
The leaders came not only to confer, but to take part in an unprecedented multifaithful service for 1,000 people at the Basilica of St Francis. For the first time, an Islamic muezzin called from the tower of the Basilica and Rabbi Hertzberg, vice-president of the World Jewish Congress. ceremonially blew a ram's horn at the entrance. During the service, which included readings form five faiths, the Basilica resounded to the deep drone of Buddhist chanting and the quick patter of the tabla which accompanied India's famous temple dancer, Yamini Krishna Murti.
And then the final gesture. The presentation of Declarations on Nature to Prince Philip from the Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish and Muslim leaders on behalf of their faiths. They were formally constituting the new Network on Conservation and Religion.
That was the beginning.
Kerry Brown WWF Network Consultant
After the meeting with H.R.H. Prince Philip, a public meeting was held at Dshwal Bhawan, London, on October 24, 1990. Seated 3rd from the left is Dr. Atmanand Soniji.
Not only the whales
will die out
housands of species are wiped out every year by
are
Jain Education Intemational
2000, between 500,000 and one million species will become extinct because of pollution and human interference in Nature, according to respected scientists.
Some of the most gorgeous expressions of life ever to grace the earth are listed as endangered or vulneralbe by the Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). These include the great whales, the Asian elephant, the magnificent snow leopard, the polar bear, the jaguar, the cheetah, the California pronghorn antelope, the giant ibis,
the California condor, the black-necked swan, the whooping crane, the Mississippi sandhill crane, the golden eagle, the southern bald eagle, the paradise parrot, the ivory-billed woodpecker, the mauritian dodo, etc. The list could go on and on merely among the vertebrates, but then we would need to begin the list of those splendid insects upon which so much of life depends, and then the plant world, especially the flowering plants that are endangered and the woodlands
and so on.
The main reason these species face extinction ia indiscriminate human activity which has upset the ecological balanace. The phrase "ecological balance" refers to the balanced relationships between living organisms and their environment ie. between organisms and the other organisms, the climate, conditions of the land, air and water, and so on that surround them. In its broadest perspective, ecological balance refers to a balanced universe, the Brahmanda. My attempt here is to see how some of the fundamental principles of Jainism, outlined in the Jain Declaration on Nature, could and would - if properly practised - help maintain the ecological balance and, thereby, preserve Na
ture.
Jainism believes that Ahimsa Parmo Dharma- nonviolence is the supreme religion. This is based on the understanding that all forms of life have atma (soul). Furthermore all souls are equal. From the highest life form with five senses to the lowest life form with only one sense- all have the desire to live. To injure, abuse oppress, enslave, insult, torment or kill any living organism is hisma (violence). Jains therefore believe in jiva daya (reverence for life- a synonym of ahimsa ), which means compassion and sympathy for all livings organisms.
But the profound universal truth for all time to come is proclaimed in the Jain maxim Parasparopagraho jivanam. All living things organisms, however big or small, whatever the development of their senses, are bound together by mutual support and interdependence. There is unity in the total cosmological order. There is an unbreakable bond or relatedness. Nothing is complete in itself without everything else.
The evolution of conciousness and the cultural development of the human order is bound by this communion of the universe. It is only on the basis of co-existence that we can respect this extradorinary principle of mutual interdependence of all species.
Because of the inevitable bond of interdependence, it is necessary that we develop an intimate relationship with the earth and all its inhabitants. We must not only become acquainted with them, but also develop an intimate rapport, a sense of gratitude and of courtesy because, just as all the other species are dependent on us, we are equally dependent on them. Any abuse or violence by us toward the ecology is bound, sooner or later, to react against us. The principle of interdependence is, therefore, not only a command but also a warning to humanity. This principle teaches us not only to "live and let live" but also to "let live so that we can live". Having outlined some of the principles of Jainism, ie. non-violence, reverence for life and the interdependence of all life, let us consider their practical utility in the mainte
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