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Book Review
Lawrence A. Babb. Absent Lord: Ascetics and Kings in a Jain Ritual Culture. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996. xi+244) pp. illus.
"What does it mean to worship beings that one believes are completely indifferent to, and entirely beyond the reach of, any form of worship whatsoever? What are the implications of such a relationship with sacred beings for the religious life of a community?" (Introduction, p. 1).
Both of these questions are significant and intriguing even for a Jain like myself who, belonging to the Sthānakavāsī tradition, has never had the privilege of observing murtipujak rituals until I came abroad. My first and most profound experience of devotion to a Jaina deity was that of Lord Bahubali's mahāmastikābhiṣeka at Sravanabelgola in 1994 when million of litres of liquid were poured over the august statue to give its periodic ritual bath, a theme which appears on the cover of Babb's book, except that here the Indras are pouring liquids on the head of a Jina (meaning Victor; also called Tirthankara) who sits undisturbed and unmoved in a meditative position, completely oblivious to the act of ablution being performed (cf. p. 33).
The Tirthankaras have no concern for the material world or its inhabitants. They are completely removed from the material activity of humans, and even gods. The Siddha Loka, their abode, is entirely free of attachment. Their devotees may pray, shower perfumed liquid, fragrant flower petals or precious jewels, or apply sandal-wood paste to their images. The Jinas cannot be moved or approached for boon or bounty, but the faithful still pray to them.
This is the theme of Babb's book: the Lord is absent but the devotees see his presence in a variety of rituals-aṣṭaparkari pūjā, abhiṣeka, agra pūjā, caitya vandanam, pañca kalyāna pūjā, etc.-which they perform daily or on special occasions. "[T]he critical question in the study of Jainism", asks Babb, is "[w]hat place can there be for such a radically world-rejecting vision of the world in the lives of ordinary men and women?" (p. 9), a riddle requiring an answer which the author successfully provides.
To this end, Babb has written a beautiful book on the nature and meaning of Jaina ritual. The author is no stranger to Jaina studies,
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