Jainism and Karnataka Culture

Author(s): S R Sharma
Publisher: Karnataka Historical Research Society Dharwar

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vii J AINISM AND KARNATAKA CULTURE
The author's study into the modifications of the original Jain principles owing to the reactions of the environments in which they had to grow in the Karnataka is of special interest to the followers of the Jain faith. It shows why Jainism disintegrated after a vigorous life of over ten centuries in this part of the country. To put it in a nutshell, the author's view is that the conditions prevailing in the Karnataka in the later days affected the purity of the Jain principles in fundamental ways. The caste system which subdivides the Jains into small, isolated blocks and weakens their faith as an instrument of growth, is an accretion gathered by Jainism during its stay in Karnataka. This largely led to the decay of Jainism in this Province. Incidentally, the author's views on the causes of the decay and downfall of Jainism here show unmistakably the vital defects in the body of ideas and customs which have in recent times kept Karnataka at a very low rung in the ladder of progress.
The utility of this volume leads one to hope that similar studies in the various forces which operated in Karnataka after the sun of Jainism had set would follow this, the first volume of the series. The author has set a fine example in dispassionate and yet appreciative study of his subject which I hope those who come after him will do well to follow.
BELGAUM L 16th January 1940)
A. B. Latthe
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