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Tulsa Jain Sangh Pratishtha Mahotsav 2004
becomes all-knowing, permanently happy, and immortal. In short, it becomes a 'God'. Thus Jainism does not deny the existence of God, but it does deny that in Godhead there is the quality of creating and ruling other things and beings by punishment and reward.
Now let us see whether the qualities of creating and ruling can be attributed to Deity without impairing His other qualities, or whether attributing those qualities to the Deity involves contradictions and defects, without contributing to the virtuous conduct of man and to his salvation.
Those who believe 'God' to be a creator (creationists) can be divided chiefly into two classes: (1) those who regard three things as eternal, viz., God, soul and matter, saying that out of the latter two God makes the universe; and (2) those who hold that only God is eternal and nothing else. This latter class may be again divided into (a) those who believe that God created the world out of nothing, and (b) those who believe that God created the universe out of himself.
With regard to the first class, viz., those who believe that God, matter and souls are eternal and that God makes the world our of matter and souls, it is obvious that, given matter and souls with their attributes and conditions, they are quite sufficient, by their mutual interaction, to make a world. Hence, there is no need of any interference by a Deity.
Further, perfection and all-happiness must be attributed to Deity; and being thus perfect and happy, he could not wish to create a world, for a desire to create a world would indicate a want in a Deity, and a want is not consistent with the idea of perfection. Thus by attributing creation to Deity the qualities of perfection and happiness are destroyed.
Moreover, it is admitted that ordinary living beings suffer pain and misery, and that salvation from these pains and miseries can be obtained by obeying the precepts of 'God' as given to the world (that is, through his rulership). But creating souls and bringing them into the pains and miseries of the world, and then afterwards giving them precepts by acting upon which they can release themselves from these pains and miseries, is not an act of wisdom. For an omniscient and almighty being, who should put a thing into an unsatisfactory condition and then give it rules for its betterment, could not be called wise and benevolent.
Again, an omniscient being has no need of testing anybody or anything to see what it will do; and if it be said that 'God' put souls into this world to see which of them would obtain salvation and which would not, then the omniscient quality of the Deity is destroyed.
Again, to attribute creation to Deity is not consistent with goodness, because with a perfectly good creator there would be no evil or impurity in his creation. No worldly ruler desires bad acts to be committed in his country; but worldly rulers are not omniscient and omnipotent, and they cannot therefore prevent such acts from being committed in their kingdoms. However, Deity is to be considered as perfectly powerful and benevolent as well as omniscient, and therefore no evil deeds could be committed if Deity were the creator of the world, for he would not give his creatures the power of committing such deeds.
The same is the case in relation to sorrow, pain, disease and poverty. If it be said that pain and disease are the result of the evil deeds of those who suffer these things, then, if Deity is regarded as the creator who gave people the power of doing evil deeds and afterwards punishes them for exerting that power, such a Deity would lack the quality of goodness. For what would one think of even an earthly father who, seeing his son about to commit some evil deed and being able to prevent him, took no action in the matter, but punished the son afterwards for his sin?
Herbert Warren, "Jainism Not an Atheism" Jain Education Intemational
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