Scientific Foundations Of Jainism

Author(s): K V Mardia
Publisher: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt Ltd

Page 9

FOREWORD
IT WAS VERY flattering to be asked by Professor Mardia to write a Foreword to his book The Scientific Foundations of Jainism and I am delighted to do so. I am pleased for a number of reasons. I have known Professor Mardia for a good number of years and we have had many interesting discussions on questions relating to Jainism. We did, in fact, discuss his intention to write an explanation of Jain philosophy and religion in terms of modern science: I am pleased that I saw the first draft of this book and I am delighted to be one of the first to read it in its final form. I believe that he has made a valuable contribution to the literature on Jainism. And, one other reason must be mentioned: perhaps some of the reflected glory will fall on me and the learned and wise, reading Professor Mardia's book, will happen to glance at this modest note of mine!
Jainism is a religious system of great antiquity. Jain tradition traces its origins back through almost limitless time. Certainly the most sceptical cannot deny its nearly 3000 years of history. In that time, of course, it has not stood still. Generation after generation after generation of scholars have added and commented and explained, so that the total mass of written Jain scholarship is vast indeed, and growing vaster with every year that passes. I have always maintained, since I first began my own amateur study of Jainism, that its principles accord well with modern science. Jain thought, Jain philosophy is timeless. However, the ancient texts are written in the language of their particular time and their ideas are expressed in terms of the scientific vocabulary of their day. They are written in languages, Sanskrit and the Prakrits, which are well-adapted to give precision and clarity to abstruse and difficult ideas, though not infrequently they can be difficult of interpretation owing to extremes of terseness or of repetitiveness. The terminology can be difficult, and a modern book on any aspect of Jain thought will be littered with, and often rendered almost incomprehensible by, untranslated technical terms for which no concise modern equivalent has been sought or found.
Professor Mardia is a very distinguished scholar in a very exacting science. He is a mathematician, or more properly a statistician, and his university degrees include three doctorates. He is also a devoted and practising Jain. Thus he is particularly well-qualified to