Jainism and World Problems

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

Page 61

NEED FOR THE JAINA DOCTRINE
appears to be very dazzling ; but there is sure to be a reaction, and that is seldom favourable. By means of your industries you can denude other countries of their wealth, and cnjoy great prosperity and ease for a time ; but there is sure to arise a competition among those who take to this course ; and those who have been your customers will not always be willing to permit their wealth to be taken away. Accordingly, you find a very keen competition going on between the western and the American nations and a tariff war has also been waging for some time between certain countries. At the same time countries like India are no longer willing to purchase goods abroad, as they have nothing left to live on at home.
In support of iny view may be stated the fact that the nations of the west brought ship loads of wealth from other lands, India and the like; but they found themselves engaged in a life-and-death struggle with each other a few years ago, and are now suffering from its effects in various ways. They are not only faced with the problem of the unemployed, but are unable to pay their debts, and have declared their bankruptcy. And the rivalries still continue. You seek to get over depression by raising the prices; but surely this is in the interest of the capitalist class. I do not hold the brief for socialism ; but it seems to me that the real remedy is a general lowering of the prices all round. No doubt, it the prices of one or two commodities are abnormally reduced there is a deadlock somewhere and the danger of a crash. But the aim must be to seck the universal good, and not the good of a few individuals alone. I shall illustrate my point with the happenings in India a couple of years ago. But first let me tell you that in India the rents of the tenants were enormously enhanced shortly after the war when the prices of commodities rose very high, and those who depended on the soil for their income were unable to live confortably if the rents remained stationary.