Jain Journal 1981 07

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

Page 40

JULY, 1981
33
of celestial regions, heavens and hells, and also a large place where liberated souls live after leaving their earthly bodies.
The religious life of the Jaina society is subjected to a discipline which is stricter than in other Indian religions. It is fixed by eleven rules to be applied progressively throughout life and which, in principle, lead to the abandonment of the believer's home and family and to his total dedication to ascetic existence. During the week which terminates the Jaina year, the Jaina laymen may spend some time in the convent partaking the monks life and asking forgiveness from others for any offence they may have given. Throughout the year, they make in the evening a time for examination of their conduct during the day, to note their strengths and weaknesses. The temples serve as places for meditation, reading of sacred books, listening to sermons and veneration of twenty four legendary patriarchs of Jainism, called Tirthankaras, whose statues decorate the temples. Mahavira, the last of the Tirthankaras and the great reformer of the religion, lived 2500 years ago. The twenty three others preceded him by hundreds and, supposedly, by thousands of years.
In the observance of religious prescriptions, the laity remains under the guidance of monastic orders. There exist two mendicant orders which during the course of history became separated, not because of basic doctrinal differences but because of differing attitudes regarding the vestment used by the monks, the admission of women, and the validity of some writings. The more numerous Svetambaras (meaning: white clad) concentrate mainly in the northern part of the country, and the scarce Digambaras (air clad) live mainly in the south ; the latter practice nudity and carry out the principle of poverty to the extreme (they do not possess even bowls for food, taking from charitable givers in bare hands). Digambaras do not admit women to the order, believing that their path to salvation is interrupted up to their becoming reborn as men. An offshoot of the Svetambaras, known as Sthanakavasis, in the western part of India, differ from the main group because of their opposition to image worship.
And now, here are some details about the 'Guru' I had come to hear, Gurudeva Shree Chitrabhanu (whose name means 'daring to look at the sun') joined the Svetambara order after the death of a friend, in 1942, being then a 20 year old student. He was told by his Guru : "Books and other people's explanations will not be enough for illuminating you ; you will have to dive into yourself and into your own experience." The young monk remained in nearly complete silence for five years, except for talking with his teacher. He commented much later : "Silence curbs one's desire to voice premature opinions." His personal belongings