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JAINISM AND MODERN SCIENCE-A COMAPARATIVE STUDY Dr. Duli Chandra Jain, York College, New york, U. S. A.
Introduction
Religion is the science of living, and science and technology are essential for sustaining life on earth Thus religion and science are two sides of the same coin. The Sanskrit word for religion is DHARMA which literally means attributes. Thus religion deals with the attributes of human life--of soul and matter. Religion teaches us the way to lead a healthy, meaningful and fulfilling life. It tells us how to deal with our fellow man and with other living beings. Religion is supposed to bring out the best in human beings.
Science is the systematic and accurate knowledge of things and events which occur in nature. It is the study of matter and energy, plant and animal life, the utilization of natural resources without upsetting the delicate balance in nature, making human life better on earth without hurting the environment—the vegetable and animal kingdoms. Science and Technology advance continually and thus life on earth keeps on changing; mostly for the better. Religion, being the science of living, is also supposed to change with time. In the present article, a few features of Jainism are compared with modern science in light of the above ideas.
The three jewels of Jainism and the Scientific process
The scientific process consists of the following steps : 1. Making observations with an open mind without any bias. 2. Seeking a rational explanation of the observations and building a con
sistent theory. 3. Performing further experiments to test and extrapolate the theory.
For centuries, science has advanced by way of the scientific process and the state of scientific knowledge is still progressing. A theory is upheld as long as it provides a rational explanation of experimental observation and fits the current structure of scientific knowledge. If any theory proves to be inadequate due to some changes in the state of scientific knowledge or in view of further experimentation, it is discarded and replaced by another theory. There is no room for dogma or preconceived notions in science.
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