Jain Journal 1984 07

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

Page 11

JAIN JOURNAL
Jaina ethics are only for practising non-violence. Without non-violence Jaina ethics is zero. The welfare of humanity is destined to be in nonviolence. Therefore, in Jaina ethics original, detailed and minute description of non-violence is available.
In fact Jaina ethics contain the qualitative development of man as well as the upliftment of the whole human race. Jaina ethics has in it the feelings of securing the life of each living being. There are certain universal values in Jaina ethics which are competent and capable of assuring life security to each living being as well as human welfare.
Jaina ethics is observed by practising right faith, right knowledge and right conduct. The result of which comes out to be non-violence, non-absolutism and non-possession; in these three basic features, the right faith develops right out-look, one knows the real form of matter, one knows the relationship of body and soul, therefore, the man, who has attained right faith becomes detached. From detachment he becomes competent in observing the vow of non-possession. After this he does not have attachment with the objects and in their collections. His soul becomes fearless, immortal and worthy of all qualities. Having attained right faith man becomes non-assertive. Non-absolutism flourishes in him. He becomes liberal in thoughts and gives equal importance to different aspects and possibilities while thinking on any issue. A detached and non-assertive man develops a feeling of equality for all living beings. And this is the achievement of right conduct. It becomes impossible that a man who has developed a feeling of oneness with all living beings, to do violence. He happens to be a man of pure thoughts, outwardly as well as inwardly, therefore, all his actions and conduct are nonviolent. In this way Jaina ethics basically promotes detachment and nonpossession as the attitude of life, non-assertion and non-absolutism in thoughts, feeling of one-ness among all living beings and non-violence in conduct. In other words Jaina ethics believes in purity of mind, speech and body. Jaina ethics attempts to remove the baseness of mind by detachment (feeling of sacrifice), the baseness of speech as intolerance by non-assertive attitude or non-absolutism and the baseness of physical conduct like-violence, exploitation, anger etc., by non-violence. The spirit of human welfare and the protection of living beings is hidden in it. One who observes this kind of Jaina ethics, is a real Jaina and a real man.
2 Bhargava, Dayanand, Jaina Ethics, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1958, p. 105-115.