Jain Remains of Ancient Bengal
by Shubha Majumder | 2017 | 147,217 words
This page relates 鈥榃hat is Jainism?鈥� of the study on the Jain Remains of Ancient Bengal based on the fields of Geography, Archaeology, Art and Iconography. Jainism represents a way of life incorporating non-violence and approaches religion from humanitarian viewpoint. Ancient Bengal comprises modern West Bengal and the Republic of Bangladesh, Eastern India. Here, Jainism was allowed to flourish from the pre-Christian times up until the 10th century CE, along with Buddhism.
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What is Jainism?
The word Jaina[1] has come from Jina which again is formed from the root ji 鈥渢o conquer鈥� with the suffix na(k) meaning thereby 鈥渙ne who conquers鈥�, and then by extension of its meaning 鈥渙ne who conquers the five senses and thereby destroys all the karmas, and ultimately attains 蝉补谤惫补箩帽补 hood (omniscience) by performing tapas (penances)鈥�. People who worship the Jina and follow his paths and doctrines are Jainas. Jainism is, therefore, the tenets or doctrines of the Jinas and does not believe in worshipping an individual. It worships the real qualities of a soul that has attained the state of 鈥淛in鈥� i.e., who has destroyed the veils of karmas on knowledge, intuition and power of soul.
Jainism is a religion universal鈥攊ts object being to help, as it does, all beings to salvation and to open its arms to all, high or low, by revealing to them the real truth. The highest Good is found in 惭辞办峁 or 狈颈谤惫腻苍补鈥攖he absolute release of the soul from the fetters of births and deaths (Nahar and Ghosh 1988: 12).
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
鈥淭he epithets 鈥淓nlightened one鈥� (Buddha) and 鈥淰ictor鈥� (Jina) were applied to Gotama as well as to 惭补丑腻惫墨谤补 (and other founders of religions). However, whilst 鈥淏uddha鈥� came to be the name of Gotama, 鈥淛ina鈥� came to be the usual name of 惭补丑腻惫墨谤补, and his adherents called themselves 鈥淛ainas鈥�, i.e., disciples of the Jina. It has grown customary to use the expressions 鈥淛ainism鈥� and 鈥淛ainistic鈥�. However, as we never say 鈥淏auddhism鈥� and 鈥淏auddhistic鈥�, we ought by rights to say 鈥淛inism鈥� and 鈥淛inistic鈥� just as we say 鈥�Buddhism鈥� and 鈥淏uddhistic鈥�. Scholars like A. Weber and Th. Benfey still considered the Jainas as a Buddhist sect. It has been proved by Jacobi (SBE 22, Introduction, and in the introduction of his edition of the 碍补濒辫补-蝉奴迟谤补) that this view is erroneous,鈥� (Winternitz 1933: 424 fn.)