Jainism and World Problems

Author(s): Champat Rai Jain
Publisher: ZZZ Unknown

Page 15

AHIMSA AS THE KEY TO WORLD PEACE
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Where love would unite, hatred would separate and antagonize. If you wish to live peacefully with the world you should follow the line of love. It may be that at times gain seems to lie in the grasp of the nation that is ready to help itself at the cost of others ; but the taint of selfishness is sure to contaminate the national conscience, and bear fruit, in due.course of time, however tardily it inay be.
To the nations of the world Jainism proclaims with the voice of thunder to-day: Come brethren forget your enmities and your hatreds ; embrace one another like brothers ; you don't need to shed each other's blood. Away with the armies and with your armaments ! Men are already groaning under the burdens of taxation, and will perish before you know where you stand. Learn to live by ahimsa, and love one another. You shall not need to arm yourself to the teeth any more. Do you think armies and warlike equipments can afford anything like real protection to you? Look at the fate of the great white Czar of all the Russias! He was slain by his own helpless peasants who only a few days before dared not stand in his august presence without trembling! Gone is the Kaiser too, who was the lord of mighty armies !
The surest means of safety is love, and nothing but love! But it must be an emotion of the heart-a real live sentiment that stirs us constantly to action-not a mere wordy avowal. Where love reigns, there is no room for fear. The science of modern politics is at war with the Science of Peace, and has led us into trouble and the difficulties which the statesmen are unable to solve satisfactorily because of their. selfish inotives. Let the Doctrine of Love, as implied in the Message of AHIMSA Paramo Dharmah---non-violence is the highest Religion, as taught by the Great Tirthamkaras--now replace the mad rush for power and personal self-aggrandize. ment, and self-glorification. Your reward will be sweet yet. .