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Lord Mahâvira
1. Religion should not be practised for material prosperity of
this life. 2. It should not be practised for the material prosperity of a
future life. 3. It should not be practised for name or fame. 4. Religion should be only practised for the purification of
the heart and for the enlightenment of the self.
In those days certain religious heads went about preaching. "You will be emancipated only if you come into my fold.” The Lord repudiated this and declared it to be bigotry. He said, “Those who are awakened will be emancipated, even though they are not bound to any-ism, creed, sect or community. Emancipation knows no barriers of meaningless appellations. It comes from purity of heart. Purity is beyond distinction.”
In this respect the thoughts of Mahâvîra were clear and bereft of absolutism. Those who regard their religion as the best, turn obstinate through its obsession and in the long run, the idea of obliterating every other religion takes hold of them. Thus they deviate from the right path and go a miss,
We must learn to look upon all the different religions not as incompatibles but as complementaries. The Lord declared : “Truth can never be depicted in totality, though it can be realised totally. All the seers have realised it but intepreted it in different ways. All are ture. They are indispensable to each other for the relisation of the common end." This is what Jainism teaches.
Mahâvîra further exhorted : “Wherever you dwell, to whatever-ism you belong, let your quest for truth be unobstructed. Proceed, do not stop. Truth will dawn upon you. Don't be obstinate. Obstinancy leads to destruction. Enlightenrnent comes to the open-minded.
In those days, it was said, “Sadhana can only be done in solitary places which are free from the din and clamour of civilisation. Sadhana can only be accomplished in jungles.” The Lord explained : “Sadhana is free from territorial limitations. One who is eager in his quest, one who is always wide-awake, one who is free from intellectual ratiocinations, one who is dedicated truly and solely to his aim can do sadhana at home, anywhere, even amidst a huge congregation.” But one who is devoid of
