Jains Today in World

Author(s): Pirre Paul AMIEL
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 12

Jains who wished, liked me, to maintain their religion and to continue to observe their traditional ethical and philosophical principles. For that reason, we created and established various organizations of followers of Jainism (nearly 100 now) that organize the practice of worship, the building of temples (nearly 50 now), the exercise of mutual aid, community service, pilgrimages to sacred places in India and so on. These organizations are now grouped in a larger general Federation in North America that is known as “JAINA” (Federation of Jain Associations in North America) of which I have been the Secretary for four years and the President for the next four years.
In 1993, in the course of the biennial convention of JAINA in Pittsburgh, Mr. Pierre Amiel was introduced to me. For many years he was already in communication with Dr. S.A.B. Kumar, the editor of Jain magazine “Jinamañjari" in Canada. Dr. Kumar invited Mr. Amiel to take part in that convention. Pierre Amiel who had before numerous contacts with Mr. Satish Kumar Jain, Secretary general of “Ahiṁsā International” in New Delhi, was highly impressed by the JAINA convention. In America, he also attended the "pratiştha" of the temple at Bartlett (Illinois) and met the Bhattaraka Davendra Keerti Ji from Humcha.
Passionate about India and its spirituality, Pierre Amiel has shown a profound interest in the religions of that country and especially in Jainism. On his own he studied several Indian languages, established contacts with many prominent Jains throughout the world, met several in the U.K., U.S.A. Canada, visited their homes, stayed with them, watched with keenness their rituals and life styles, attended Jain functions and conventions, collected a good library of Jain literature and also did research in several prominent libraries in Europe.
He also researched Jainism extensively through several travels and by perusing the English literature on the matter. Year after year, his collection of books and publications on Jainism increased that gave him