Lessons of Ahimsa and Anekanta for Contemporary Life

Author(s): Tara Sethia
Publisher: California State Polytechnic University Pomona

Page 159

Lessons of Ahimsă and Anekānta for Contemporary Life
liberation. Also, the significance that knowledge occupies within this tradition is underscored in the dictum, "padam nāņam tao dayā” (first knowledge, then compassion). III. Flawed Comparisons
Comparative analysis is a good way of learning and teaching. Comparisons allow us to understand similarities and distinctiveness about things we compare. A precondition to an effective comparative analysis, however, is that we first understand on their own terms and within their own contexts the people, principles, concepts or whatever we wish to compare. When comparisons occur as a way of simply "mapping religions” without clarifying the individual categories of discussion, there is risk of distortion and misunderstanding.
One of the tendencies in the books under review is to often "map" Jainism through comparisons with Buddhism, with Vedic and Upanishdic thought, or with Western thought, without first discussing within each tradition the categories and concepts being compared. Often such comparisons confuse categories and concepts being compared. Take for instance the following statements. Ātman versus Jīva
Like atman, all jīva are eternal, but in contrast to Upanishadic idealism, there is no Jain equivalent to the infinite cosmic ātman, only a finite number (millions of billions) of various degrees of jīva, some much more powerful than others.”
[Wolpert, p. 53] Here the focus on contrasting the “infinite number” with the “finite number” of the souls is flawed, as the comparison is made on the basis of incorrect information. The number of jīva conceived within the Jain world view are ananta, i.e. infinite (and not finite as the above passage suggests). The contrast between the very nature of atman and jīva can, however, help illuminate a different worldview within each tradition. In the Upanishads all ātman are part of the cosmic ātman, while under Jainism, each
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