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GLOBAL NEWS
JAIN SPIRIT INTOXICATES THE WORLD
willing to challenge orthodox beliefs. At the same time, the language used and the articles are very varied and well-researched. Young people were particularly struck by the art and the modern outlook of the whole journal.
At last there was a magazine which accepted modern life as it is rather than trying to move back into orthodoxy. Although the magazine draws from the deep well of Jain tradition and culture, it translates these ideas to the present context, helping to keep the tradition vibrant and alive.
An editorial office has been set up in the small English coastal town of Colchester in Essex, about 60 miles from London. The Executive Editor, Dr. Atul Keshavji Shah has given up a permanent full-time University Lectureship to devote his energies to this project. The entire team of Directors are fully committed to making this project work, and devoting signifi
cant personal resources to its success. With a small full-time staff of two, we hope to take the Jain message all over the world, to schools, libraries, community centres, homes and youth groups. There is a website for information about subscriptions and advertising: www.jainspirit.org and there are plans to make this into an active site which Jains from all over the world would visit on a regular basis.
Digambar Acharya Vidyasagarji admires Jain Spirit
The first major international quarterly English language magaIzine promoting Jain values set off to a great start at the JAINA Convention in Philadelphia this July. The Chairman of Jain Spirit, Mr. Satish Kumar, a highly accomplished writer and speaker on spirituality, emphasised the urgent need for such a magazine to connect and inform Jains all over the world. Despite being one of the oldest religions of the world, with a philosophy so relevant to the modern age of over-consumption and pollution, too few people know about Jainism. Those who are interested experience great difficulty in accessing such information. Jain Spirit is for all Jains from all Jains and is non-sectarian in content and outlook. Its aim is to help bring together the entire global diaspora of Jainism, and help us to see what is common and build on these strengths.
the magazine has already been launched in Australia (Sydney and Perth); East Africa (Kenya and Uganda: Nairobi and Mombasa; Kampala): North America (Philadelphia, Houston, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles and Boston); United Kingdom (Leeds; Manchester; London) and India Indore, Ahmedabad). There are plans to do a major UK launch in early November where Dr. L. M. Singhvi, the former Indian High Commissioner to the UK will be the Chief Guest. What is needed to keep the whole momentum of this project going is the financial support of the entire global Jain community, through subscriptions, donations and patronage. Please contact our editor Atul K. Shah at jain.spirit@virgin.net or telephone 44-1206-794565 if you would like to contribute to this visionary and high-quality global project.
Messages of congratulations are pouring in from all over the world, including places as far away as Australia, Uganda, and North America. The first issue, with 74 full colour pages, was so different from all the community newspapers that had hitherto been published that readers were struck by the professionalism. Very high standards were set for this issue, as Jainism is a tradition with the highest ideals. These standards will be raised in future issues, and regular, quality and informative news and information will be sent to subscribers all over the world. To maintain the quality, consistency and professionalism, Jain Spirit cannot be a free magazine. It has to be a subscription magazine, and the subscriptions will also discipline the publishers to continue to maintain the highest standards. So if you haven't subscribed already, why are you hesitating? The information will help you save money, and raise the quality of your life for a very reasonable fee. Please complete the attached subscription form today.
The magazine seems to have struck a particular chord with young people, who find it to be very open and non-dogmatic,
Jain Spirit team at the convention
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Jain Spirit
October - December 1999
Jain Education International 2010_03
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