l. SMALL MINORITY
Among the Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Sikh and other religious
minority communities of India, the Jaina community occupies an important
place from different points of view. The Jainas have smallest population
among the six major religious communities listed by the Government of
India in their Census Report of 1981. In the total population of India,
viz. 66,50,87,849, the Jaina population is only 32,06,038. Thus the
percentage of the Jaina population to the total population of India is
only 0.48. It means that per 10,000 persons in India 8,264 are Hindus,
1,135 are Muslims, 243 are Christians, 196 are Sikhs, 7l are Buddhists and
only 48 are Jainas.
2. ANTIQUITY AND CONTINUITY
Further, the Jaina community is one of the very ancient
communities of India. The existence of Jaina religion can be traced not
only to the Vedic period but even to the Indus Valley period of Indian
history. The names of the Jaina Tirthankaras are mentioned in the Vedas
and there are evidences which show that the Indus Valley people must be
worshipping Rishabhadeva, the first Tirthankara of the Jainas along with
other deities. Thus hoary antiquity is a special feature of the Jaina
community and it is pertinent to note that this feature is not present in
the other religious minority communities in India.
Apart from antiquity, the Jaina community has got the
characteristic of unbroken continuity. Few communities in the world can
claim such a long and continued existence. Even in the past, it appears, I
the Jainas were never very numerous and did not form an over whelming
majority of population in India. It is really a matter of wonder to find
haw the Jainas could maintain their perpetuity when the followers of many
other religions and sects, which were prevalent in the past, are not found
at present in India. Thus the survival of the Jainas, as a separate entity
from the hoary antiquity to the present day, can be considered as their
distinctive feature.
3. INDIAN CHARACTER
Moreover, unlike other religious minority communities in India,
the Jaina community is Indian in every sense of the term. The Jainas are
the indigenous inhabitants of this country and their mythological and
historical personages are also from this country: The languages used by
the Jainas for writing and speaking purposes have necessarily been Indian.
The sacred temples and places of pilgrimage of the Jainas are located in
India only. It seems that the Jainas never undertook religious expeditions
on a large scale in foreign countries with a view to convert their
residents to Jainism. The Jainas, therefore, have no religious connections
or affiliations with people outside India. Hence the total absence of
extra-territorial affinities has been a special and prominent feature of
the Jaina community. The Jainas never look to any foreign country, small
or large, for help or guidance in their religious and other matters.
4. SEPARATE ENTITY
The Jainas, though small in number, constitute a separate entity
and have succeeded in maintaining their distinctive features. Jainism
being an independent religion its followers have got their own and vast
sacred literature, distinct philosophy and outlook on life, and special
ethical rules of conduct based on the fundamental principle of Ahimsa. The
entire activities of the Jainas are moulded by the considerations of
Ahimsa. Thus, Ahimsa forms the very basis of their life and even to the
present day strenuous efforts are made by the Jainas to avoid Himsa, as
far as possible, in every walk of life and in every activity. This utmost
importance given to the observance of Ahimsa in the life of every
individual is not found in other communities of India even though they may
attach some value to the principle of Ahimsa. In fact, it can be stated
that, the Jaina community is the only community in the world which
meticulously observes the principle of Ahimsa to the maximum extent
possible.
The independence of Jaina religion is now acknowledged on all
hands. It is established beyond doubt that Jainism is a distinct religion
of India and not an offshoot of either Buddhism or Brahmanism. The Jaina
religion, philosophy, ethics, gods, temples, sacred places, objects,
manners and places of worship, sacred books, cosmology, mythology,
ideology, teachers, ascetics, vows, holy days, rites, fasts, festivals,
outlook on life and culture with its emphasis on Ahimsa are not only
distinct from their Hindu counterparts but also not accepted and followed
by the Hindus. Even in the observance of certain common customs and
manners the Jaina way of looking at them is quite different from that of
the Hindus. For example, the Hindus regard the marriage as a religious
sacrament, while the Jainas consider it as a civil contract. Among the
Hindus adoption is a religious ceremony, this is not so among the Jainas.
According to Jaina Law a widow inherits the property of her deceased
husband, but this position is not accepted by the Hindus. In the death
ceremonies the Jainas do not observe the days in memory of the dead. In
view of these differences in the tenets and practices of Jainism from
Hinduism and other religions of India, the followers of Jainism form a
distinct religious community. Thus this separateness of Jaina community
from the Hindu community is regarded as the characteristic feature of the
Jaina community.
5. SHRAMANA REPRESENTATION
Further we find that from ancient times two different types of
culture, viz., the Brahmana culture and the Shramana culture, have been
existing side by side in India. Of these two cultures, the Hindus
represent the Brahmana culture and the Buddhists and the Jainas represent
the Shramana culture. But Buddhism practically disappeared for a long time
from India, the land of its origin, though it triumphantly flourished in
other parts of the world, especially in the East. On the other hand,
Jainism did not cross the borders of India, yet it persisted, in
comparatively small measures, through all these centuries in different
parts of India. Thus the Jaina community has served and is still serving
as a representative of the Shramana culture in India and it is considered
as a unique feature of the Jaina community in India.
6. REGIONAL IDENTIFICATION
Though Jaina community is a small one it is spread all over
India. From ancient times to the present day the Jainas are scattered
throughout the length and breadth of India. The most outstanding
peculiarity of the Jainas found in different regions of India is that the
Jainas got themselves completely assimilated with the people of the region
concerned, whether in the North or in the South. The Jainas adopted the
customs and manners, dress and ornaments, games and amusements,
occupations and professions, tools and weapons, housing and furniture etc.
of the people of the region concerned. Apart from the mere acceptance of
these traits of culture, the Jainas assiduously tried and greatly
succeeded in enriching the various aspects of the culture of the region.
In this way the Jainas, though small in number, have contributed a great
deal to the development of art and architecture, logic and philosophy,
languages and literature, education and learning, charitable and public
institutions, and political, material and spiritual welfare of the people
of different regions of India. These varied and lasting contributions of
the Jainas to the Indian culture have been vary substantial especially in
relation to their meagre number in India. This shows the complete
identification of the Jainas with the various regions and sections of
people in India irrespective of their caste, creed and religion. It can be
said to the credit of the Jainas that they always maintained very cordial
relations with the people of the region. In the long history of the
Jainas we do not come across any instance when they, even though in power,
persecuted the followers of other religions. This outstanding work in the
field of culture is regarded as a prominent feature of the Jaina
community.
7. PRESTIGIOUS MINORITY
Throughout its long and eventful history the Jaina community has
produced a large number of eminent personalities in different fields. For
example, in the political field in the past the Jainas have contributed
the empire-builders like Chandragupta Maurya; extraordinary rulers like
Kharvel in Kalinga, Vanaraja and Kumarapala in Gujarat and Amoghavarsha in
the Deccan; male military generals like Chamundaraya and Gangaraja; female
military generals like Jakkiyavve, Saviyavve and Bhairavadevi; devoted and
capable ministers like Bhamashah in Rajasthan and Vastupal and Tejapal in
Gujarat; and the renowned Jaina Acharyas like Simhanandi and Sudatta who
were virtually responsible for the founding of the Ganga Kingdom
in the
2nd
Century A.D. and of the Hoyasala
Kingdom in the 11th Century A.D. in Karnatak. In other fields of
literature, sculpture, architecture, medicine, social work, etc. the
Jainas have produced eminent authorities. The gam,. tendency can be noted
even at present. In recent times the Jainas have contributed captains of
industry, commercial magnates, political leaders, constructive
workers, able administrators, social reformers, gifted artists and devoted
educationists. In the struggle for freedom the Jainas� contribution in the
form of men, money and materials was very outstanding. In the
post-Independence period the Jainas have been rendering valuable services
in different fields and on their personal merits and achievements they are
securing goodwill of others both for themselves and for their community.
As a result we find that the Jaina community has secured a place of honour
and respect among the different communities of India.
