Jain Journal 1979 01

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 29

JANUARY, 1979
A member of Jaina Sanghas stays at a place for pajjuşaṇa cãturmāsa tapas (austerity of four months) over the rainy season. The Jaina monks observe fast and austerity and meditation and use up their stores of body fat, awakening in the autumn in an emaciated condition and probably as hungry of course, with spiritual inspiration.
Any mutation that increases the climatic tolerance of a Jaina Sangha or a group of monks may enable it to inhabit a new part of the country. Adaptations of some Sanghas to other Sanghas or Ganas to Ganas or of Gacchas to Gacchas are so exact that neither form can exist in a region without the other, e.g. Sthanakavasin and Terapanthin monastic orders have evolved to a point of complete interdependence75.
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The monks of Sangha or Gana or Gaccha go to some other Sangha or Gana or Gaccha to collect requisites and take them to other Gaccha. Then they put their ideas through this socio-religious contact and behaviour of the Sangha or Ganas or Gacchas and lay the seeds of their own religious thoughts and ideas having an exchange of their doctrinal views. They then carefully put some seeds of their doctrines on the monastic organ of the second Sangha or Gana or Gaccha as Gautama Indrabhuti did on the Parsvapatya order of Kesisvami76. In this way the second Sangha or Gana or Gaccha is sure to be fertilized with the thoughts and ideas left behind by the first one and to produce new seeds of religious views.
The Young monks feed on these seeds of new religious doctrine. Thus the second Sangha produces a large number of seeds of new religious dogma and is not injured by the loss of a few seeds of new thought eaten up (i.e. accepted) by the young monks and their subsequent separation from the Sangha.
Conclusion
The study of the history of evolution of Jaina Sangha in different ages of Indian society, like other social activities, is governed by the dominant tendencies of the time and the place. The Jaina world in different ages had been living under the dominion of two institions. Jaina religious system and Jaina monastic order, i.e. Dharma and Sangha.
75 At present the inter-relation and inter-dependence among the different Jaina Sanghas-Svetambaras and Digamabaras and other branches even are good. They are helpful to one another in all respects of ascetic life.
"Uttaradhyayana Sutra 23.