"This book is intended for those who are struggling to understand and confront the epidemic of violence in our world but are not familiar with the nonviolent alternatives. Among those alternatives is the tradition of ahimsa, which has been advocated and practiced by the Jains for the last twenty-five centuries. Inspired by the Jains, this collection of essays speaks with many “voices” – personal reflections, scholarly studies, religious insights n to provide examples, guidance, and encouragement to those trying to cope with the violence that has become so prevalent. The essays should speak to a broad audience, but most especially to young people (late teens to early twenties), who are surrounded by violence practically from their birth and in virtually all aspects of their life: home, school, community, work, and media. The book will help them see:
1. What is involved in a nonviolent approach to the world, and how to apply it in various aspects of their daily lives. ?
2. That there are many of us out there n of different genders, race, professions, social classes, and religious affiliations, on every continent n who take nonviolence very seriously and try to live in accordance with its principles and values. ?
3. That there are many groups, institutions, and organizations that practice nonviolence and who can offer guidance, counsel, and help. ? The central aims of this book are to let those dealing ? with or surrounded by violence know that there is another way, and to encourage them to try to live in accordance with that way n the way of nonviolence.
The discourse of the twentieth century was dictated by its ""big"" events-two world wars, the Holocaust, the killing of millions of people during the times of political turmoil in India, China, Cambodia, the Soviet Union, and numerous other countries, and the nuclear arms race during the Cold War. The haunting images of broken bodies and destroyed countries, and the thoughts of how easily all life on this planet could be destroyed, brought to our eyes and minds the realization of the unprecedented levels of physical destruction of which we are now capable.
In the frenzy of war, those who are violent are hailed as heroes and saviors. Those who refuse to choose sides, those who do not shoot and murder, those who resort to nonviolence, are regarded as traitors and cowards. Yet when the weapons stop firing, when the surviving ""heroes"" are relegated to hospitals and psychiatric wards, it is the healers who take the central role. What is so dearly needed for all of those who are hurting are hospitality and healing acceptance and care. The brokenness of our world has reached such an alarming level that it appears to undermine the distinction between victimizers and victims: those who victimize others do so because they themselves have been victimized, because they themselves have been hurting. And the forms and levels of hurting have become so numerous that playing the blame game and insisting on justice is often beside the point. What is sorely needed is not another instance of hurting but its opposite: healing. This is why, on the pages that follow, you will find so many stories of hospitality: toward strangers, toward refugees, toward orphaned or imprisoned children, toward the elderly"
The Nyayavatara is one of the first serious Jaina treatises on epistemology. It has been for long erroneously ascribed by tradition to Siddhasens Divakara, but now it seems certain that its author is a certain Siddhasens Mahamati, who lived circa 710/720-700/780. He enters into polemics with other-mostly Buddhist- epistemological schools and endeavours to establish a Jaina epistemological tradition of its own. Despite its importance, the work is rather secondary in the sense that it relies, for the most part, on the Buddhist logical legacy. The first extant commentary is the Nyayavatara vivrti of Siddharsiganin. Although its significance has often been under-estimated, Siddhsiganin was responsible for the subsequent development of Jaina epistemological thought to a much larger degree than it has so far been recognized. He refers to major philosophical schools of his times, e.g. to Sautrantika, Yogacara, Sunyavada, Saugata, Samkhya, Mimamsa, Naiyayika Vaisesika, Carvaka, Advaita-vedanta, the materialists, etc. The gloss (Nyayavatara-tippana) of Dvebhadrasure, which is amply quoted in the present edition, is a useful source of quotations.
"This work in three parts with twelve prakasas and several appendices, has been critically edited on the basis of the manuscripts from the libraries of Khambhat, Jaisalmer, Patan, etc. The work holds great importance among Jain Canonical literature.
For the advancement in life and moving ahead on the true path, one requires several virtues. In Yogasastram, all these virtues, for examples, controlled life, devotion towards parents, meditation for knowledge, philosophy and conduct, truth and non-violence, reflection about the nature of the Yoga itself. Therefore, it can be really acknowledged that Sri Hemacandrasuriji Maharaja has composed a great work for the development of meritorious deeds and meditation among human beings."
"This book shows that it can be very fruitful for science to study other thought-systems than those in which we were born and raised. In our days we can make use of the entire heritage of the mind-created global mosaic of cultures. Much more of such type of research should be done by able philosophers and scientists. Ancient thinkers have come up with insights that lack us today - causing unnecessary ignorance and suffering. Probably no philosopher in the world would disagree with the statement that there is no knowledge higher than Truth-but that there are many ways for the mind to approach her.
Jainism is definitely more spiritual in its understanding than Western science and philosophy. It also covers subtle aspects of nature as yet unknown to or ill-understood by mainstream science.
The book contains so much information on the modern science, including, for example, the latest theories and speculations of physics, chemistry, cosmology and genetics, and other disciplines, that for this reason alone it could be used as a general textbook for science students. But the great extra value of it is the extensive exposure of Jain ideas laid down in scriptures throughout the last two millennia by scholars and Jain acharyas (ascetics, monks). Then both traditions-modern science and Jain science-are thoroughly compared."
"Jainism is a tradition which dates back thousands of years, which is unbelievably rich and profound, and which has certain unmistakable signs of identity. Contrary to what some might think, it is not in any sense a poor relation of Buddhism, nor is a strange, atheistic and ascetic sect within Hinduism. Jainism is, above all, the religion of non-violence (ahimsa), an ideal which all other religions of India were subsequently to make theirs and which was made universal by Gandhi in the 20th century. Like Buddhism, Jainism is a religion without God which paradoxically opens to the truly sacred in the deepest reaches of all living beings in the cosmos. And it is also the religion of non-absolutism (anekantavada), a particular form of philosophical pluralism, which seems astonishingly modern.
The author traces the dynamics and development of Jainism-deftly steering between the extremes of the overly academic and the superficial. He looks at Jainism's main features: its cosmology, mythology, its origins and great figures, its main subdivisions and religious groups, its scriptures, practices and soteriological approaches, as well as its rituals, the social, cultural and political interactions, and so forth.
Jainism is both a didactic introduction and an invitation to study the religious traditions of Indian: a study of its philosophy, its art, its ways of life, its ways of being integrated into the world, and releasing from it."
In the struggle to sustain the earth's environment as viable for future generation, environment studies have, thus far, left religion unprobed, in contrast to the emphasis given to science and technology. Yet, no understanding of the environment is adequate without a grasp of the religious life that constitutes human societies. As all encompassing, religious ideas not just content with other ideas as equals; they frame the mind set within which all sorts of ideas commingle in a cosmology. Built on the premise that religions of the world maybe instrumental in addressing moral dilemmas created by environmental crisis, this book discusses Jain Cosmology, its Ethics and worldview. The voices included reflect a wide spectrum of approaches. This book in the S.L. Jain Research Series, intends to expand this discussion, inviting further collaboration on a topic of common concern-the fate of the Earth as a religious responsibility.
Essays in this volume offer fesh insights into Jain principles of Ahimsa and Anekanta by examining their meaning and historical significance, and demonstrate their relevance and role in addressing contemporary issues of intolerance, conflict, violence and war. Contributers to this book bring perspectives from the disciplines of philosophy, religious studies, history and art history.
"The present collection of Essays in Jain Philosophy and Religion contains contributions of world-acclaimed scholars in jain studies. As a through and critical research work in the field of Jaina exploration of the history and background of the exchange of ideas between the Jainas and other systems of thought in India, the book will prove to be a rare document. Each of the four main sections of the present volume pertains to an important aspect within Jaina studies. "
In an integrated and comprehensive framework, Jainism: The World of Conquerors-II deals in depth with different dimensions of one of the most ancient surviving religions of the world. The book opens up a world of inner and outer space not to be overwhelmed by greed, malice, domination, violence and struggle but waiting to be conquered by peaceful revolution through principled living and respect for ideals of compassion, non-violence and equanimity.
"The book presents the history and the doctrines of the Ajivikas who formed a third heretical sect besides the sect of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism and that of Mahavira Vardhamana, the twenty-fourth Tirthankara of the Jainas. The three heterodox sects react against the ritualistic creed of the Vedists.
The cult of Ajivikas was founded by Makkhali Gosal, the contemporary of Mahavira Vardhamana, on the basis of strict determinism with a belief in the all-embracing rule of Niyati (principle of order). According to Gosal, it was Niyati which ultimately governed our action, controlled phenomena and left no room for human volition.
It will throw new light on an interesting and significant aspect of India’s past, and will encourage further research.
This book is divided into fifteen chapters discussing elaborately different aspects of the subject matter. The comprehensive Bibliography and Index are the added features for the researchers for comparative as well as further study of yet unexplored areas."
The philosophical significance of Jainism extends far beyond its statistical presence in India and the world, for it lies in the unique quality of its thought. This book is an attempt to take its insights into account for the light they shed on issues customarily debated in the Philosophy of Religion as it has evolved in the West.
The Doctrine of the Jainas is an English translaton of the world famous German book "Die Lehre der Jainas" of W. Schubring by Wolfgang Beurlen. The author has also revised the English translation thoroughly. He has tried that the Jaina friends might come to obtain an idea of what has been accomplished by Western scholars during a period of about one hundred and fifty years, burning the midnight oil, with a view to make the world acquaint with one of the finest achievements of the Indian mind. The author has tried to put the essence of Jaina religion and philosophy in a very clear way so that any student of religion or philosophy can easily trace out Jainism with a view of history, cosmology and cosmography. This enlarged edition contains three indices.
"A translation of the Kalpa Sutra into English needs justification, since during the past few years several such translations have appeared int he market. The pioneering work by Hermann Jacobi remains a classic to this day, while in recent translations the writers have exercised a freedom which is hardly justified. The present translation not only claims complete authenticity, but, like the translation of a few other Jaina texts by the same writer, it also strictly follows the prakrit text in prose as well as verse so that the reader through the English medium may enjoy a taste of the original.
Bhadrabåhuís Kalpa Sµutra is the earliest account of the life of the T?rtha?karas, the 24th, 23rd, 22nd and 1stósince the arrangement of the book moves back in time. The present work should, in the fitness of things, occupy a unique position. Scholars have divided this work into three Parts, viz., Tirthankaras, Church Leaders and Parjusana. For the present translation, however, it has been divided into seven Parts as follows: Bhagavan Mahavira, Arhat Parsva, Arhat Aristanemi, Twenty other Tirthankaras, Arhat Rsabha, Church Leaders and Parjusana.
Among the Agamic texts, Kalpa Sutra belongs to a group called Cheda Sµutra. Going by the contents of these texts, it would appear that they contain rules about personal behaviour and organisational discipline to be observed by the monks. Among the Cheda Sµutras, three names usually go together which are Dasa-kappa-vavahara and they are compiled into one text called Sruta Skandha. Kalpa Sutra is the eighth chapter of the Dasa text. With certain sects of the Jainas, the reading of the Kalpa Sutra during the Parjusana is a must which has contributed to the great spiritual significance of this work."
"The Yoga Vasistha is a unique work of Indian philosophy and is highly respected for its practical mysticism. These teachings of Sage Vasistha imparted to Lord Rama, contain the true understanding about the creation of the world.
The supreme Yoga with Romanised text is a translation into English of this complete work and is accompanied by brief expositions by Swami Venkatesananda.
This book brings this storehouse of wisdom to our world and makes the philosophy comprehensible to scholars and common people alike.
It is this philosophy of a comprehensive spirituality, rational and practical, that man in the modern age needs to rescue himself from his stagnation of worldliness and put him on the high road of creative living and fulfilment.
Soak into the message of each verse and discover the numerous ways in which this truth is revealed to help open your mind.
We have a firm hope that this well-known, towering teaching will provide to everyone the requisite inspiration and solace."
"It is historically certain that the Jaina contribution to education was as great, significant and important as that of the Buddhists. The book offers an account by studying the problem in connection with its five important agent, viz. the family, the church, the school, the state and the industry. The title `Jaina System of Education` that the book bears might be more appropriately replaced by `Educational Systems found in Jaina Literature` inasmuch as the Brahmanical the secular and the vocational education have also been dealt with. It is a historical fact that there were no watertight compartments in India separating Jainism Buddhism and other cognare schemes of life and caltgion. They all contributed harmoniously towards the development of culture as whole. Necessarily the contributions of these several systems in the field of education were inseparably mixed up.
""This book is a very exhaustive and informative volume on the system of education which was prevalent in ancient India and the author has presented the whole picture of the educational life of jains through its several sources."" --VEDANTA KESARI ""...it is"
Jainism is aside from Buddhism, the only surviving example of India`s ancient non-Vedic religious traditions celebrated for its systematic practice of non-violence and for the rigor of the asceticism it promotes. It sheds light on a little known religious tradition and demonstrates that divine absence.
"Harmless Souls considers doctrinal change and its implication for religious practice in early Jainism. It focuses on evolving views about the conditions necessary for Karmic bondage and the liberation of embodied souls, as described inparts of the early Svetambara canon, Umasvati`s Tattvartha Sutra, and the major works of Kundakunda. It is concluded that, although significant doctrinal changes do take place, these are not permitted to affect Jaina practice which constitutes and preserves the distinctive religious and social identity of the Jaina community. "
In The Scientific Foundations of Jainism Professor Mardia attempts to elucidate the point that Jainism is a science with religion. After a very brief introduction to the Jainism, the author introduces the four Axioms and discusses their theoretical and applied aspects and their plausibility in a modern context. It gives Jaina logic together with present trends in scientific thinking and indicates how Jainism and modern science are related. "Written by a modern thinker and a scientist with an international reputation in research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge. The Scientific Foundation of Jainism is a valuable guide in understanding Jainism. Mardia refers to the Jain claim that one can see the whole truth of Jain science when one attains kevalajnana or infinite knowledge! His efforts to reveal to us the truth of Jain science in an understandable way provide a testimony to the vast amount of knowledge he must have acquired through the dilligent study of the literature on Jainism.
The book includes a bibliography, glossary and an index. Wherever possible, a sharper scientific pictorial representation has been given, and very few original terms are used in the text so that the flow of the arguments is not hampered. Paul Marett in the Foreword says "Prof. Mardia's book divides naturally into three parts. First he explains the basic ideas of the soul, karma, living beings and non-living matter, and brings these together in the Jain explanation of life and death and the universe. Next he moves from the general to the particular, to the practice of self-conquest and the path of the individual soul towards purification. Thirdly, in two chapters which demand, and reward, close reading, he places Jain logic in its rightful position as a valid and acceptable system, and draws together the most fundamental and up-to-date aspects of modern physics with the scientific theories of the Jain writers."
Review: It will, I am sure, be of value to Jains living in the modern world who often find it difficult to discern the relevance of the writings of long-dead authors to the world today. It will also be of value to non-Jains, particularly those who approach the study of a little-known religion in a spirit of rational inquiry. - Paul Marett, Jain Journal, Vol.25, July 1990.
This is a very important book. The author wears his formidable scholarship both in theoretical physics and in Jain Philosophy lightly: the book is readable and understandable. He has given a vocabulary and a set of concepts which make possible the presentation of much that was shrouded in abstruse terminology and pre-modern science, in the language of today. - The Jain, March 1991
Written by a modern thinker and a scientist with an international reputation in research and the dissemination of scientific knowledge, The Scientific Foundations of Jainism is a valuable guide in understanding Jainism. Mardia refers to the Jain claim that one can see the whole truth of Jain science when one attains kevalajnana or infinite knowledge! - Jain Samaj, April 1992.
Instead of explaining Jainism in terms of Brahmanical philosophies and method, here we find a new modern approach to Jainism which is welcome. ...The whole theme is divied into ten chapters-Bibliography, glossary and index are added. The book deserves recommendation to the students of philosophy and science. - E.R. Sreekrishna Sarma, The Adyar Library Bulletin, Vol.54, 1990.
SPECIFICATION:
- Publisher : Motilal Banarsidass Publishers
- By : Y.J. Padmarajiah
- Cover : Hardcover
- Language : English
- Edition : 1986
- Pages : 434
- Weight : 500 gm
- ISBN-10 : 8120800362
- ISBN-13 : 978-8120800366
DESCRIPTION:
An attempt to determine the meaning and contents of the notion of dravya and distinguish between the two concepts of guna and paryaya. Cursorily also discusses notions of realtivity, continuity, divisibilty and negation. It presents an analytical account and a critical estimation of the methods of knowledge with an investigation into the nature and the logical evolution of the theory of manifoldness (anekantavada). The work has aimed throughout at a comparative treatment of the problems. Effort has been made to avoid strained and far-fetched comparisons and contrasts and to treat criticisms and controversies in a constructive spirit.
The book is meticulously edited by Dahiya whorendered the original Anglo-Nordic script in modern english without disturbing the original diction and structure and has relied upon the works of Charles Jonston`s the system of Vedanra and on Lawrence Dawson in The Nuttall Encyclopaedia for transliteration and standerdization of spelling of proper names. This book is a must for all Research Centers, Institutes, Universities and Libraries and gives a contemporary account of the Muslim period in India.
The two volumes together may be described as search for the original ideational foundations of Indian Culture. In one way this work recalls the tradition of Coomaraswamy but seeks to join it to the mainstream of critical history. It argues that the living continuity of Indian Culture is rooted in a unique spiritual vision and social experience. Indian Culture is neither the result of merely accidental happenings through the centuries, nor a mere palimpsest of migrations and invasions. It is, in its essence, a development of foundational ideas constituting a creative matrix. Behind its changing historical forms lies a deep and persistent source of creativity which is spiritual in character. The Present volume I deals with the spiritual vision and symbolic forms. Here is has been upheld that the spiritual vision of India had two original aspects, the integral or synoptic vision of the Vedas, and the Sramanic vision of Transcendence. Purnata and Sunyata constituted the two poles round which Indian spirituality revolved. The author not only elucidates this bipolar matrix of Indian spirituality revolved. The author not only elucidates this bipolar matrix of Indian spiritual praxis or sadhana, but also traces its intricate ancient history. He goes on to trace the great symbolic forms-language, myth, science, literature and art-in which this basic vision expressed itself. In all these areas he brings out the basic general principles expressive of inner consciousness rather than present a mere selection of well-known details.
The Csoma de Koros-Symposium on Tibetan central Asian and Buddhist studies held at Velm near Vienna in 1981 demonstrated the quickly expanding development of the more and more differentiated field of Tibetan Studies. Alongside of the traditionally established fields of tibetological research history, cultural history, linguistics, and literature the new presence of research in the original theoretical contribution of the Tibetans within their religious and philosophical culture was a distinguishing feature of this conference. That the originality of the Tibetan masters goes well beyond their fascinating achievements in buddhist exegesis is clearly recognized.
"The multi-volume History of Civilizations of Central Asia is the first attempt to present a comprehensive picture of this subject. The publication of this work falls well within UNESCO's terms of reference since the underlying research was conducted by a distinguished international team of specialists which for many years laboured in harmony at the task of presenting to a wider public the civilization of this vast area located at the heart of the Eurasian continent. The volumes will reveal the cultures that flourished and vanished in this area, from the dawn of civilization to the present time. Only a few names, such as those of Samarkand, Bukhara or Khiva, are familiar to a wider public; eminent specialists, many of them native to the region, now lift the curtain to reveal a richer, more varied civilization. To a great extent, the history of the ancient and medieval world was shaped by the movements of peoples in this heartland of Eurasia, stretching from the Caspian Sea in the west to the borders of China proper in the east.
Review:
""No Doubt,it is a noble venture of the Unesco to collect and edit these four volumes on the History of Civilization of Central Asia in such details as are not available elsewhere.Especially,the first three volumes are important and useful which no doubt."
"This work relates to the (erstwhile) Central and Western Rajput States of India. It embodies the results of scholarly investigation into the ethnology of Rajputs, their religious and social practices, their festivals and rites, their legal and political institutions and the merits and demerits of their characters. Herein we get a real portrait of the different aspects of Rajput life: their loyalty, devotion, gallantry, chivalry as also the instability of their character, their outbreaks of passion, fears, occasional faithlessness of their chiefs and allies and, above all, their addiction to drugs.
The work is divided into three volumes: each volume being sub-divided into books and chapters. Vol I deals mostly with the Geography of Rajasthan, the History of the Rajput tribes and the feudal system of their states. Vol II contains the Annals of Marwar, Bikaner, Jaisalmer and other cities of Rajasthan. Vol III comprises the annals of Amber, Haravati, Bundi and describes Shaikhawat Federation, and contains personal narrative from Udaipur to Kheroda. It has an appendix divided into seven sections and exhaustive general index.
Interspersed with several illustrations, this book is remarkable for its enlightening introduction and exegetical notes."