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Lord Mahavir observed more than 2500 years ago:
“He who looks upon The creatures of the earth, big and small As his own self Comprehends this immense world Among the careless, he who restrains his self Is enlightened." “The instinct of self preservation is universal. Every animate being wants to live and avoid untimely death. Nobody likes suffering. Therefore, do not inflict suffering on anybody.
This is non-violence. This is equality.” In principled terms, vegetarianism preached and practised by the Jain community symbolizes the recognition of “the right to life for all living beings' It is not enough to talk about human life or human rights alone. It is equally important to talk about prevention of cruelty to birds and beasts, to heal their wounds and to cure their diseases . Far more important is not to wipe them out of existence, not to cut short their life span prematurely, and not to eat their dead flesh for one's sustenance. Famous playwright George Bernard Shaw, a vegetarian himself has put it in memorable words:
“I AM A HUMAN BEING AND NOT A
GRAVEYARD FOR DEAD ANIMALS” Charles Darwin observed :
"Sympathy for the lowest animals is one of the
noblest virtues with which a man is endowed' Leo Tolstoy has written:
'Thou shall not kill' does not apply to murder of one's own kind only, but to all living beings and the commandment was inscribed in the human breast long before it was proclaimed from Sinai.
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A Portrait of Jain Religion
Jain Education International
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