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Cintas: Reflections
685
These considerations are not new; they have been already developed in several chapters where they came up in regard to the doctrine or daily life being studied. Here they are expressed in a few succinct phrases which bring together doctrine and praxis. Moreover the reflections that follow are neither judgmental nor critical in the pejorative sense of the word. It is a question, rather, of an awareness, a formulation in words of what several sădhvis think and say and what quite a number of others confusedly feel. It is to this last-named fairly large group that these reflections are addressed. It must be added that, with varying slight differences, they could also be applied to communities of women ascetics belonging to other traditions, for the community of sādhvis presents characteristics common to all communities of ascetics.
a) Praśnas: Some questions
Before stating these questions we must recall to mind two important and interconnected factors. Firstly, the Jainas are a tiny scattered minority. To preserve their own identity they must evidence a certain rigidity. Secondly, it is their belonging to the caturvidhasamgha that constitutes their identity; the four components together form a community of ascetics. Even if the śrāvakas and śrāvikās remain in the world, they are none the less constrained, if they are faithful to the dharma, to practise a certain aseticism and are closely bound up with the munis and sådhvis. The munis and above all, out of their number, the acāryas - are fairly independent; the sādhvis, except for a few avant-garde groups, have scarcely any autonomy; they are subject to the authority of the acārya and to the strict and vigilant surveillance of the śrávakas and śrāvikās. A these two last-named groups, certain ones are cpposed to any change in the life-style of the ascetics for this life-style is for them the living expression of the dharma. They fear that the slightest modification therein may result in the disintegration of this dharma; hence their severity in regard to the ascetics, especially the sādhvis. We may note in passing that we have here a universal sociological phenomenon. Those "outside" are often more conservative than those "inside".
- Do the sadhvis fully appreciate the treasure their dharma comprises?
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