Pristine Jainism

Author(s): S M Jain
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 77

(74) : Pristine Jainism reports of World Health Organisation it is mentioned that in areas where guiny worm disease is prevalent it does not affect the Jains because they take water after proper filtering. Even such a scientifically authenticated practice is vanishing fast particularly in younger generation. There is important rule in scriptures about filtering. The cloth used for filter should be dipped back in the water source so that the tiny organisms are back in their congenial environment. Such an ecological concern now well-recognised in modern environmental science is unique in Jainism. Another example is that the Jaina monks while moving from shade to sunlight and vice-versa clean their body by softest broom of peacock feathers so that micro-organisatisms of shade or sun light sticking to their bodies are not harmed. The credit goes to enlightened ones who prescribed such scientific doctrines thousands of years ago back, dwarfing the modern science.
The relaxation for Jaina laity (householders), condoning violence towards one-sense life forms appears to be a discrepancy in view of the basic concepts. For saints violence even to one-sense life forms is not permitted but they do take meals prepared by house holders and also vegetables and fruits and are thus part of violence by house holders because in Jainism responsibility vests either one does an activity himself (Krta) or gets it done by others (Kārita) and even acquiesces (Anumodita). In Jainism all life forms have been put on the same pedestal without any inferiority or superiority as regards innate capabilities of every soul. It has also been mentioned clearly even in the available canonical scriptures that life forms with one or more less number of senses compensate the missing sense by higher and higher more pronounced capability of endowed sense organs. It is mentioned that ants have many more times stronger sense of smell than humans. In humans also blind persons have very strong sense of touch. Plants have been put in category of onesense life form with only one sense of touch, but it is now well established that plants are sensitive to sense of hearing by reacting to songs, sense of