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1 Jainism: An Introduction 1.1 Background to Jainism
The word 'Jainism' derives from Jina', and the philosophy propagated by the Jinas is therefore called Jainism. Jina means conqueror, that is, one who has conquered all of the worldly passions such as desire, hatred, anger, greed, and pride by one's own efforts and has liberated himself from the bonds of worldly existence, and hence the cycle of birth and death. Jina, therefore, is human and not a supernatural being or an incarnation of a God. Hence the term Jina is applied to a person who is a spiritual victor par excellence.
Jainism has been in existence from time immemorial and it is one of the oldest religions in the world. Jains believe that an immortal soul resides in every living being. The soul is subjected to the passions such as greed, anger, ego and hatred, and is polluted by them. This phenomenon is referred to as the bondage of karma. This bondage is the cause of births and rebirths. This cycle of birth, death and rebirth is termed as samsára. It is a term widely used in Jain writings. The ultimate goal of a Jain is to free one's own soul from samsára and achieve a state of liberation known as nirväna. Jains have stressed the great importance of the practice of asceticism and meditation to achieve this goal.
Around three thousand years ago, two distinct lines of thought prevailed in India. One was based on the philosophy of the Vedas (revered books of Hinduism) also known as the Vedic culture. The Vedic belief was connected with the caste system and animal sacrifice. The other belief opposed these two systems. People who were called the Shramans rejected the caste system and sacrifices. The first line of thought has developed into a religion, which we now call Hinduism. The second line of thought gave us two religions, Jainism and Buddhism. Although this is a very brief and simple explanation of the roots of both Jainism and Buddhism, by and large it is right to say that Jains and Buddhists have always opposed the caste system and both religions are based on the philosophy of ahimsä (non-violence). Jainism, however, has taken this philosophy of ahimsä further than Buddhism in that the theory of non-violence extends to the animal world and that Jains should be vegetarian. Buddhists do not believe this and, hence, this issue has become the major difference between the two religions, although the philosophies are otherwise very much the same.
1.2
Jainism and the Tirthankaras
Jains believe in the Tirthankaras or enlightened souls. There are twenty-four Tirthankaras in the present cycle of time. According to Jain philosophy the Tirthankaras are considered to be the 'conquerors' as they have obtained infinite knowledge and wisdom, and have obtained the final emancipation (nirväna). They have consequently laid down the path for the spiritual upliftment of humanity, and therefore they are worshipped by Jains.
According to Jainism, the first Tirthankara who was born thousands of years ago was Rishabhadeva. He is also known as Adinatha, which simply meaning 'the first Lord'. His teachings provided people with knowledge regarding farming, house building, and cooking and basic education in the arts, science and commerce. Each Jain Tirthankara has a symbol and Rishabhadeva's is the bull. Some coins of pre-Äryan
