Excerpts From Past Issues:
(Article originally reprinted in the Jain Study Circular, July 1983, from the prestigious journal, TIRTHANKAR, April 1975)
AHIMSA means nonviolence, that is, refraining from committing all sorts of injuries to living beings. Though the literal meaning of AHIMSA is quite clear, it goes far beyond its literal meaning. Einstein has rightly said, "We all hear things. Only our ears are shaped differently." Thus a word may mean one thing to one person and something else to another person. The meaning may also depend on relative conditions. Nonviolence has a history of its own in India. It is not simply a word but centuries woven together. Nonviolence for Jains has a subtler and deeper meaning than what is construed. For Jains, nonviolence was (not is) an integral part of their daily routine. According to Jainism, violence is not simply injuring living beings but even intention to kill, destroy or hurt means violence. Even being intolerant is violence. Talking without listening to what others are saying is violence.
Nonviolence means allowing freedom to others, sanctioning liberty to all. To be full of wrath or anger is violence. In anger, one not only injures others, he/she hurts himself/herself too. Hurting the self or self-torture is also violence. Greed, temptations, possessiveness, exploitation and the like constitute violence. Nonviolence entails love for all, compassion for all, cooperation with all. Such nonviolence is finely and conscientiously chiseled, carved and engraved by sculptors in the images of the TEERTHANKARs. Some people, who do not try to understand the meaning of nonviolence reflected in the lives of a Jain monk or householder, may call Jains extremists as far as nonviolence is concerned. The Jain concept of nonviolence does not allow any loopholes or exception in its practice. Nonviolence, though only partially practiced by Jain householders, is followed with the intention of gradually attaining perfection as a monk. In spite of pressures from the rest of the society, Jains have followed the spirit of nonviolence for centuries. They have very courageously and patiently tried their best to contribute towards making the world happy and full of compassion for all. Nonviolence as propounded by the Jain scriptures, even if followed partially by the present generation, can stop the moral decay of the society and can help solve the intricate problems of the modern world. It can make life better for all people of the world.