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While expounding this tolerant outlook of the Jainas, Upadhyaya Yasovijaya (C. 17" A.D.) mentioned “A true nonabsolutist does not disdain to any faith and he treats all the faiths equally like a father to his sons. For, a non-absolutist does not have any prejudice and biased outlook. A true believer of Syadvāda is that who pays equal regards to all the faiths.To remain impartial to the various faiths is the essence of being religious. A little knowledge which induces a person to be impartial is more worthwhile than the unilateral vast knowledge of scriptures.”
Jainas believe in the unity of world religions, but unity, according to them, does not imply omnivorous unity in which all lose their entity and identity. They believe in the unity in which all the alien faiths will conjoin each other to form an organic whole, without losing their own independent existence. In other words, it believes in a harmonious co-existence or a liberal synthesis in which though all the organs have their individual existence, yet work for a common goal i.e. the peace of mankind. To eradicate the religious conflicts and violence from the world, some may give a slogan, “one world religion”, but it is neither possible nor practicable, so far as the diversities in human thoughts are in existence. In the Niyamasāra it is said that there are different persons, their different activities or Karmas and different levels or capacities, so one should notengage himself in hot discussions, neither with other sects nor withinone's own sect."
Acārya Haribhadra remarks that the diversity in the teaching of the sages is due to that in the levels of their disciples or in stand-points adopted by the sages or in the period of time when they preached, or it is only an apparent diversity. Just as a physician prescribes medicine according to the nature of patient, the illness and the climate, so is the case of diversity of religious teachings. 30
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Jainism and its History
