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Shrimad Rajchandra & Mahatma Gandhi
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Another important tenet of Jainism is Aparigraha, nonpossessiveness. Bhagwan Mahavir preached that one should not even keep a toothpick ifit was not required. Gandhiji was profoundly influenced by this principle and practised it comprehensively. “Whatever is surplus to your needs is for others. You have to look after not only your own needs but, more importantly, the needs of other people. Learn to distribute, to share” he said.
The same is true of vegetarianism, an essential component of the Jain principle of Ahimsa. Virchand Raghavji Gandhi was the first to explain the Jain philosophy in the western world. Twenty-nine-year-old Virchand Raghavji gave a talk on September 11, 1893, on Jainism, in the Columbus Hall of Arts Institute, Chicago. A barrister by profession, he was the first shravak, a Jain householder, to visit the USA. He was well versed in Jain, Buddhist, and Hindu scriptures. Gandhiji was in close contact with him. Virchand Gandhi set up the Jain Literary Society in England and went on to promote vegetarianism. This is when he came into contact with Mahatma Gandhi, and they experimented with the concepts of a healthy diet.
Jain tradition places great importance on the status of women in society and this is reflected in the breaking of the shackles of Bhagwan Mahavir’s disciple, Chandanbala and her subsequent leadership of all female disciples of Bhagwan Mahavir. Similarly, Gandhiji fought for women's liberation wanting to break the shackles of women's bondage. He practised Bhagwan Mahavir's preaching on a social scale in India.
Gandhiji also practised other elements of a Jain lifestyle. He had given up taking meals after sunset for the last thirty-six years of his life (Nemchand M. Gala, Shrimad Rajchandra and Gandhiji). He drank boiled water and ate only five items in a meal,
