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१०४ :
श्रमण/अक्टूबर-दिसम्बर / १९९६
pain when injured or destroyed and one commits violence when indulging in such acts as cutting of trees, excavating the earth recklessly, over-exploiting the rivers etc. Incidentally, all ecologists, environmentalists and preservationists are coming to the same conclusion as a result of the latest advances in science. There is a movement for preservation of animals, realising that every creature, tiniest or widest, has its place in the scheme of nature. Tree cuttings, pollution of rivers and oceans and needless unplanned excavation of earth is raising protests. The world is coming to the same path as preached by Jainism thousands of years ago.
Living in Harmony with Nature
All the living beings have to live in co-existence with each other. Acārya Umāswāti writes that "all souls render service to one another. They cannot live independently. They have to share their pleasure and pain with others."5 Unfortunately the modern man thinks that he is the master and controller of nature and all agencies should serve him, hence he over exploits natural resources. All the agencies of nature, rivers, mountains etc. have their own role to play and Man, if he wants peace must co-exist with them.
According to the theory of Karma, violence leads to bondage and defilement of the soul thus. The injurer soul suffers from the passions accompanying the act of causing injury and the injured person forms a sense of enmity and hatred towards the injurer. This perpetuates the cycle of birth and death by defilement of both of the souls.
In more simple and direct terms, one cannot visualise a world full of violence or without non-violence. Indeed, inspite of age-long emphasis on non-violence, love and kindness by all spiritual leaders, the world is still not a fully peaceful place to live in. Can you imagine the prospects of a world where only violence prevails? That is the rule of the jungle. There are some who hold the view that life survives by destroying life "jivo jīvasya bhojanam" but what is forgotten is that life survives more with the help of life. It is the For Private & Personal Use Only
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