Jains Today in World

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

Page 43

14 : JAINS TODAY IN THE WORLD of a Jain ashram 'Siddhachalam' at Blairstown (New Jersey). At the same time, Jains living in America undertook the construction of temples in Canada and the USA, modelled on those in India, and JAINA held its second Convention in New York.
In 1990, Dr. L.M. Singhvi, a devout Jain, was named High Commissioner of India in the U.K. The 23" of October of the same year, at Buckingham Palace in London, a delegation led by Dr. Singhvi introduced the “Jain declaration on nature" to Prince Philip, International President of the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature).
Between 1983 and 1993, under the presidencies of Dr. Manoj Dharamsi, Dr. Tansukh Salgia and Dr. Sulekh C. Jain, 45 new Jain centres were established in North America.
In 1993, I was invited to attend the 7th “JAINA Convention“ in Pittsburgh (USA) and to speak about the future of Jainism in the XXI century. Also taking part in that Convention were great Indian ascetics, like Acharya Sushil Kumar, Gurudev Chitrabhanu, Muni Roop Chand, Muni Jinchandra, Swami Shri Devendrakirti, Bhattaraka of Humcha (who blessed my wife and me), Swami Shri Luxmisenji, Bhattaraka of Kolhapur. Most of them came from India to show their support to Western adepts. Such American Jain Conventions continue to be organized every two years, each time with an increasing success.
In 1995, Pope Jean-Paul II, welcomed at the Vatican, a Jain delegation within the framework of interfaith dialogue.
At the same time, various institutions were created all over the world to make Jainism better known through the publication of periodicals like: “The Jain" "Jinamañjari”, “Jain Journal”, “Jain Digest”, “Young Jains”, “Jain Spirit", etc.
In 2001, in India and in the countries where Jains are living the 2600th anniversary of Mahāvīra's birth was celebrated with .brightness.