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with the world, and he doubts whether there is a God in heaven or anywhere and if He exists, whether He is as Omnipotent as they make Him out to be.
Jain philosophy, with its theory of karma, can explain to him that suffering-of an individual or a nation or a race--is the result of misdeeds of the past, that there is a causal relationship between the woes of this life and the evil done during an earlier incarnation. Therefore, he cannot maintain that there is no justice in the world. As for religious persecutions that fill him with revulsion, the tolerance and broad mindedness that Jain philosophy emphasises might persuade him to modify his outlook on religion. Amity and Appreciation would not be incomprehensible to him, for youth is not wicked. He may have become a sceptic, a cynic, even an atheist, but he is not wicked. If approached with sympathy and understanding, he will respond to the treatment we give him. Think of the stress and strain of modern life. The speed, the noise, the hectic bustle of today has robbed the young man of the opportunity to move in life with measured strides. The machine has taken the place of hands. The bubbling, creative energy of youth was formerly channelled into constructive crafts, be it spinning, weaving, pottery, metal-work, wood-work or carving. Today, that energy is turned into destructive channels.
In what way can religion help to divert this flow of energy once again into constructive channels ? The simplifying of religion may do it. Stripped of
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