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Beyond Anekāntavāda: A Jain Approach
to Religious Tolerance
PAUL DUNDAS University of Edinburgh
A popular modern symbol of Jainism includes a representation of the loka--the universe as envisaged in Jain teaching--and the motto “parasparopagraho jīvānām” (there should be mutual support between all living creatures). An alternative image representative of the ethical ideals of Jainism might equally well be the samavasaraņa, the assembly place magically created by the gods where, according to Jain tradition, every jina, after attaining enlightenment expounds the eternal teachings of nonviolence and compassion for the first time. The universal applicability of Jain doctrine is demonstrated by the fact that this sermon is listened to by a gathering of humans, animals and gods gathered in concord within an extensive circular network of corridors encompassed by jewelled balustrades which surrounds the dais from where the jina preaches.
Who is eligible to enter this religious amphitheatre and attend the great event? This question was raised in the Senapraśna, a collection of responses made by Vijayasena Sūri, chief ascetic of Svetāmbara subsect, the Tapā Gaccha, in the first quarter of the seventeenth century, to a variety of inquiries posed by lay and monastic members of his sect. Subsequently, these questions and answers were compiled by monk Subhavijaya Ganin. More
In this, for example, Vijayasena Sūri is represented to point out that while listening to the jina's sermon, female humans and divine beings stand and the male human and
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