Jainism Potpourri

A Brief Introduction to Jainism

First Online: April 01, 2001
Last Updated :  November 16, 2024

Along with Buddhism, Jainism is the most important reform movement to separate from the main body of Hinduism and establish an independent unit. The word is derived from  Jina ("Victor," or "Conqueror") implying final victory over bondage to life's misery. Jainism has the universal message of nonviolence. The absence of a creator god in Jainism can be understood as a reaction against the nature worship of early Vedic religion, the priestly order of Brahmanism, and the  theology of the Upanishads. Jain arts and  architecture has enriched the artistic heritage of India.

Jainism was founded by Rishabha, and attained a major status in India at the time of Mahavira , who was born in about 599 B.C. in Northern India, in the town of Vyshali, in the present day Bihar, in a royal family. When he was about 30 years old, after he had been a householder, Mahavira decided to abandon his aristocratic surroundings in favor of an ascetic life. He cast aside his fine raiment, gave away his treasures, and embarked upon a severe regimen. For twelve years he underwent castigation, enduring bodily and spiritual injury, and emerged a teacher of many monks, a renowned preacher, and a profounder of a new religion.

Chief among the tenets of Jainism is the deification of Mahavira. The  Agamas ("Precepts") and Siddhantas ("Treatises"), declare him to be incarnate and preeminent, a venerable savior of men, the last of twenty-four tirthankaras (perfect souls). Jainism also preaches that karma is knowable and ineffable and that it is a cosmic power which directs retribution in the hereafter; this represents a marked break with the speculative Brahma of Hinduism.

© K. L. Kamat
Jain Teerthankar and a Seven Hooded Cobra
Statue of a Teerthankar

In line with the founder's austerity, the Jain is admonished to follow an ethical program of exacting discipline. The distinctive principle of Jainism is ahimsa, or nonviolence toward all living creatures, in both thought and action.

The two principal sects, Svetambara (white-clad) and Digambara (skyclad, or unclothed), diverged by about A.D. 82. The schism shook the main structure of Jainism. The split concerned the question of nudism. Living in the warmer zone of south India, the Digambara thought that to become a saint, a man should abstain from food and possessions, including clothing. They also denied that women are eligible for salvation. Living in a cooler region to the north, the Shvetambara sect wear white clothes and follow a less rigorous order.

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Pictures
A Jain Statue near Bilagi, KarnatakaPortrait of Gomateshwara StatueChaturmukha Basadi, GerusoppaGomateswara Statue of KarkalChaturmukha Basadi, KarkalNemisagar VarnijiIntricately Carved Jain Sculpture
Lord Indra riding Iravat brings Parshwanatha home, much to the joy of the peopleStatues of Jinas from a Jain Basadi in HadolliA Jain Sage in WorshipRural People Fleeing at the approrach of an Invading ArmyA Seven Hooded Cobra Shelters a Jina in MeditationA Jain monk, Parshwa in a Shravanabelagola painting A Jain Basadi at Hale-Belagola
The Brahma Jinalaya Basadi of LakkundiMahavira in MeditationSequence from Jain PuranaEvolution of Gomata - Illustration by Ratnaverma HeggadeThe Meditating JinaCarving at the footstep of GomateshwaraA Jain Ascetic in Meditation
The Shwetambar (White Clad) PriestsAn Example of a Jain Temple Architecture in RajasthanThe Carved Interior of a Jain Temple<br>Ranakpur, RajasthanExample of Jain Fine ArtSculpted Marble Idol of a Jain SageStatue of GomateswaraBrahma Jinalaya (shrine) of Lakkundi
An icon of ParshwanathaSculptures of Jain SaintsA Jain TeacherAn Image of Pancha ParameshtiEducation of YoginisPunishment of a ThiefEntrance to Chandragiri hill, Shravanabelagola
Statue of Gulekai AjjiDigambara MonkScholars Nemichandra and ChavundarayaChavundarayana BasadiPainting from a Jain Muth, ShravanabelagolaThe Sick KingMan Riding a Lion
Carved Stone MountainDetail of Gullekayajji SculptureStamp on SravanabelagolaIllustration of Yakshi Celestial

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