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Jainism: The Cosmic Vision therefore, a greater need to promote them in those countries which are found wanting in practising them.
The world has been a witness to unprecedented suffering and exploitation, inequality and brutality, violence and injustice. The use of chemical weapons and aerial bombardments are widespread. Racism and apartheid in its subtlest forms, along with slavery, continue to raise their ugly heads every time and again. Look at the 'skinheads' in the USA and Germany. Rights of minorities are blatantly ignored, cultural identity is sought to be obliterated and women are denied equal status in the society. The ideal of self-realization is in jeopardy. At such times, respect for human dignity and human individuality need to be re-asserted.
Jainism lays emphasis on human dignity, human values, equality and self-realisation. The Jain philosophy views life as a whole, not in fragments. The Jain scriptures show four stages of one's existence: human being, tiryak, devata and naarki. Out of these four, godhood (devata) is considered superior to all and yet moksha (salvation) is possible only when one is born a human being. Jain 'Agam' says: Human life is indeed a rare gift. A human being is gifted with the power of knowing the past, especially the previous births. He can atone for his sins, renounce worldly pleasures and practise penance for spiritual development. Such an enlightened soul can hope to acquire kevalgyaan, the ultimate knowledge, and through it moksha or salvation. Jainism thus emphasises the importance of birth of a human being and in consequence the importance of human rights. Jain religion does not only talk of reverence for human life, but for all living organisms on earth. It believes in the dictum : ‘परस्परोपग्रहो जीवानाम् । Each organism depends on
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