Svetambara sect of jainism holy book

Despite the fact that both the digambara and svetambara sects believe that the other sect deviates from mahavira, and therefore is not authentic, the two sects have many similar fundamentals. This is a complete ebook of on the indian sect of the jainas, by johann georg buhler. Introduction to jainism, theory of karma, the six dravyas and more. There are two main sects in jainism svetambara and digambara. Jainism you should read enough of the materials presented in this section concerning the tradition of jainism in order to understand how this tradition displays the characteristics or elements that make a tradition one that would be termed a religion. While there are differences in practices, the core philosophy and main principles of each sect is same. The conflict between the svetambara and digambara sects. Despite, both have different views when it comes to scriptures, liberation, dress, the birth of mahavira etc. While performing holy deeds, svetambara jains wear cloths. Digambara sect of jainism holds that most of these texts were lost and hence they have rewritten these texts. The holy book of jainism is a collection of texts known as agam literature or the agam sutras. Literally, the monks of the digambaras are naked while those of the svetambaras wear white clothes. Shah jain study center of north carolina raleigh 401 farmstead drive, cary nc 275115631 9194690956 and fax email. Jaina canon, the sacred texts of jainism, a religion of india, whose authenticity is disputed between sects.

Jain beliefs fundamental beliefs of jainism the soul is bounded by karma from the beginning of time. Broadly, jainism is divided into two major schools of thought, digambara and svetambara. In accordance with their practice of nonviolence, the monks also use a peacockfeather duster to clear their path of insects to. We have certain scriptures which are considered as very sacred. Introduction to world religions dantesdsst 20 terms. Therefore, they have renounced all material possessions.

About the book jainism, the most fascinating and complex among the indian religious, offers an interesting field of enquiry for the scholar of comparative religions. The original teachings went through a rapid period of decline, state the digambaras, and svetambara claims of preserving the sacred knowledge and ancient angas is false. Svetambara means whiteclad, and refers to its ascetics practice of wearing white clothes, which sets it apart from the digambara sky. Each of these sects is also divided into subgroups. Pdf in my earlier article, we discussed the history of schisms in jainism and how the jainism founded by mahavira split into digambara and svetambara. Dsst introduction to world religions flashcards quizlet. They are humans who achieve enlightenment via asceticism. The best available information indicates that the chief jain monk, acharya bhadrabahu, foresaw famine and led about 12,000 digambar followers to. Popular jainism books meet your next favorite book.

The tradition presented in the materials below is one of the. Full text of notes on modern jainism, with special. It is worthwhile to see what the exact differences between the digambara and svetambara sects of jainism are. The jain religion does not have one sacred book like the bible or koran, but it has many. Jainism is an indian religion which is traditionally believed to be propagated by twentyfour spiritual teachers known as tirthankara. This text contains the essence of samanam religion, defined and catalogued systematically.

Agams are the jain texts which are based on the discourse. They believe that the words of mahavira neither survive nor could be recorded. Also, there is a crosssectarian text called the tattharva sutra that both sects agree on. Originating as heterodox sect in the sixth century bc it has added considerably to the development of indian thought and culture while maintaining to this day its distinct identity and philosophy as a religion par excellence of. The indian religion of jainism, whose central tenet involves nonviolence to all creatures, is one of the worlds oldest and leastunderstood faiths. In jainism it has special significance, as on this day in 527 bce according to svetambara tradition that mahavira gave his last teachings and attained ultimate liberation. The application of the notion of scripture is complex in jainism.

The jains have 5 great vows by which they try to live their lives. The svetambaras believe that the collection of 32 or 45, the number is disputed agamas holy scriptures are the first and foremost of all holy texts. It is generally believed that the jain sangha divided into two major sects, digambar and svetambar, about 200 years after mahaviras nirvana. The kalpasutra shows the early stage of the development of jainism, the succession of pontiffs and the rules for jaina monks during the four months. As the custom of building large temple complexes became more widespread, so did the production of images and other objects associated with ritual and worship.

Full text of notes on modern jainism, with special reference to the svetambara, digambara and sthanakavasi sects see other formats. Patriotic star wars full back tattoo huge herd of elk cross the road in montana. The significant svetambara text of the kalpasutra provides the principal record of mendicant lineages. Jain literature is primarily divided between digambara literature and svetambara literature. Among the similarities they agree on is the soul, karma, nonviolence, and the cosmos. Formerly, it was thought that jainism was a branch either of buddhism or of hinduism. Murtipujaka, sthanakvasi, and terapanthi murtipujaka the original stock of the svetambaras is known as murtipujaka svetambaras since they are the thorough worshippers of idols. The kalpasutra is held in great honour especially by the svetambara sect of jainism. They believe that if you have anything to your name, you cannot realise the highest. Jainism and other religions jainism and other religions as jainism, in all respects, is a religion of india, it has very close relations with other main religions of india like hinduism and buddhism. The agam sutras show great reverence for all forms of life and strict codes of vegetarianism, asceticism, nonviolence, and opposition to war. Parasparopagraho jivanam the function of souls is to help one another is the motto of jainism.

Emergence of religious movements jainism, buddhism and. Followers of jainism are called jains and must observe five major vows. One of the puranas describes rishabha as an incarnation of narayana. Jainism is an eastern religion with origins in the indus river valley dating back to 3000 b. But the basic message and teachings remains the same. Jains see these texts, which are the transcriptions of lord mahavirs sermons, as sacred documents.

Jain literature exists mainly in magadhi prakrit, sanskrit, marathi, tamil, rajasthani, dhundari, marwari, hindi, gujarati, kannada, malayalam, tulu and more recently in english. All sects agree that teaching was first transmitted orally, however, the two main sects of jainism, svetambara and digambara disagree on which scriptures are authoritative, or most important. Differences between the digambara and svetambara sects of jainism. The digambara sect of jainism rejects the texts and canonical literature of the svetambara sect. Mahavira 6th century bc is said to be the historical founder. The jains also have many important festivals and ceremonies that take place. Jain literature comprises jain agamas and subsequent commentaries on them by various jain ascetics.

Jain manuscript painting essay the metropolitan museum. Difference between svetambara and digambara in jainism. Digambara means one who is naked or one who has the sky as his clothes. Tattvarthasutra post canonical is one text that is accepted by all the sects of jainism. The world of jainism this is the best book on jainism. The holy teachers are called the jina, and they are the epitome of teaching for all jains, especially the jina mahavira. The svetambara canon consists principally of 45 works divided as follows. Michael tobias has described nonviolanceahimsa in great details. The second section of the kalpasutra is the sthaviravali, which supposedly documents the situation at the time of the 24th jina, mahavira mahavira had 11 disciples ga. These are further divided into different subsects and traditions. Emergence of religious movements jainism, buddhism and other sects. Whiterobed, or whiteclad one of the two principal sects of jainism, a religion of india. Some historians believe there was no clear division until the 5th century. This is in contrast to the practice followed by the parallel sect, the digambara skyclad, which does.

One of the most important festivals for jains is the paryushana parva. Differences between the digambara and svetambara sects of. Dundas looks at jainism in its social and doctrinal context, explaining its history, sects, scriptures and ritual, and describing how the jains have, over 2500 years, defined themselves as a unique religious community. According to jain tradition their religion is quite old, even anterior to aryan brahmanism. Svetambara jains celebrate this festival for eightdays while digambara jains celebrate it for ten days. The monks and nuns of the shvetambara sect wear simple white garments. The texts containing the teachings of mahavira are called the agamas, and are the canonical literature the scriptures of svetambara jainism mahaviras disciples compiled his. The existing agam sutras are accepted as the authentic preaching of lord mahavir by the swetambar sects, but the digambar sect does not accept. What is the difference between svetambara and digambara in jainism. The kalpa sutra is the holy book of the of jainism religion.

A work in prakrit, its composition is originally attributed to the celebrated author bhadrabahu bc 433 to 357. The yajurveda mentions rishabha, ajinatha and aristanemi. This ancient manuscript is the holy book of the svetambara sect. The sutra is believed to have been composed by gandhara sudharmaswami. The most often cited book of the jains is the tattvartha sutra book of reality thought to date from the second millennium bce, but only recorded in written form in the 5th century ce by umasvati, and it is at that point that jainism splintered into the two main sects. Lonka shahfounder of sthanakvasi jain sect of svetambara. The book presents jainism in a way that is authentic and engaging to specialists and nonspecialists alike. The svetambara sect, on the other hand, is far simpler.

The book explores issues which have been central to our understanding of many of the questions currently being asked about the development not just of jainism but of south asian religions in general, such as the manner in which authority is established in relation to texts, the relationship between scripture, commentary and tradition and. The svetambara sub sects the svetambara sub sects like the digambara sect, the svetambara sect has also been split into three main sub sects. Jainism dont have any specific holy book like the bhagavad geeta,the quran or the bible. Many jains do not return jainism as their religion on census forms for various reasons such as certain jain castes considering themselves both. Selfdiscipline and asceticism are thus major focuses of jainism. It is also common for them to wear a mask over their mouth and nose, as to not breathe in any organisms in the air. On divali parents will often give sweets to their children, and lamps are lit all over india. The growing prosperity of the jain community in western india, engaged principally as merchants and bankers, allowed the commissioning of significant quantities of highquality metal icons. In fact there are no fundamental doctrinal differences between the two sects. History, scripture and controversy in a medieval jain sect.