1.19 Environment and Non-violence

Non-violence, Compassion and Instrumentality A Jaina Perspective Seminar organized by the Department of Jainology of the University of Madras, 13 and 14 February 2009 Chennai, India

 13.02.2009

1.19 Environment and Non-violence

Once, five men lost their way in a forest. They tried to find their way out but failed. Hunger made them realize that finding food was their immediate need. They came upon a tree whose branches were heavy with fruits. One of the men, whom we’ll just call number five, said: “Let us cut down the tree and collect all the fruits. We may be stuck in the forest for a long time if we fail to find our way. So we’ll need food.” Number four broke in: “No, we’ll just cut down all the branches which bear fruits.” Number three said: “No, no. We’ll just break off twigs with fruits.” Number two said: “No let us just only the ripe fruits.” And then number one spoke up: “Let us collect the fruits, which have fallen from the tree and are strewn all around it. They are enough to satisfy our hunger for now.”

The simple story above illustrates that indiscriminate exploitation of natural and human resources will inevitably result in crisis. Most of the people follow the example of number five. And the consequence is for all of us to see - an environmental crisis as monstrous that we are facing today. The need of the hour is protection and preservation of the environment from further degradation.

Today we are ruthlessly cutting down trees for our own selfish purposes, which range from financial gain to clearing land for building more homes and infrastructure for the expanding population. We are torturing animals in our research labs to test whether cosmetics or medicine, or things like helmets, etc. are safe for human use. We destroy hills and mountains to acquire granite and other rocks to decorate our homes. We pollute the rivers and seas for the low cost business and high profit rate. Is there no end to avarice of man?

The root cause of all crises happening around man, and by man, is due to his violent and lustful self. Violence, corruption, exploitation of nature and human are flourishing round the globe. Hiṁsā is the order of the day in the world. The scene is the same in all countries. But it is ironical to witness this in India too, a land that has produced advocates of peace and non-violence like Mahāvīra, Buddha and Gandhi. We hear incidents of religious fanatics turned terrorists shooting down innocent people every day. They should realize the universe truth that every religion in the world teaches non-violence, not violence. They may differ in other aspects, but none of them support hiṁsā.

It is time we seriously reflect on the above lines to resolve on the relationship between environment and man, and the environmental crisis. Jainism is one such religion that establishes scientifically a deep interrelationship between environment and man, and spiritually provides a framework to realize and live according to.

An immediate and sustaining solution to the environmental crisis can be sought under this religion, which has ahiṁsā and consequently universal wellbeing as its core values. Though all the worlds’ religions preach non-violence, this has a special significance in Jainism because it is the very heart of the religion. The ahiṁsā concept of Mahāvīra means the complete unity of mankind and also unity with nature - “I have friendship with all the living beings, I cherish neither revenge nor enmity with anybody.”

The environmental crisis is not just pollution of water, air and light. It is not just the turmoil in the system; it is rather the crisis at an individual level. The crisis in the individual is leading to all kinds of pollution, which includes corruption, red-tapism, poverty, overexploitation of natural and human resources, population explosion, atrocities on women, terrorism, power struggles, economic domination, social superiority, intellectual atrocities, religious conflicts, etc. So, we do not need religious sermons, preaching, laws, regulations or even punishments. Environmental management policies and laws, too, cannot provide a sustainable solution to the crisis. What we need is awakening, introspection and reformation of the “self.” Jainism also commits man for his environment and makes him the cause for any event taking place around him, within him, for him or by him. So if he leads a righteous life, it is reflected in his environment; if he leads a polluted life, then that too is reflected in his environment.

External impurity in air, water, soil, flora, fauna and society reflects the impurity in the self. “By knowledge one understands the nature of substances, by faith one believes in them, by conduct one puts to an end to the flow of karmas. The spiritual mission of Jainism thus can be summed up as managing the self so that it does not contribute to crisis and crisis at large will be resolved naturally. So, today we see degradation of the ecology because man is living a life of depravity. If man wants to reverse the process and reduce the damage caused to the environment and consequently to himself he must adopt the non-violent way of life. Equitable and sustainable development is possible with self-sustainable development.

Jaina environmental awareness involves balancing human needs and protecting the natural and cultural heritage for future generations which is to be brought about through the process of self restraint. The motto should not be: “I lived” but rather: “We live and we shall all live.” The principle of living on others or living by killing is self-contradictory. “The principle of equality propounds that everyone has the right to live.” The directive principle of living is not “living on others” or “living by killing”, but “living with others” or “live for others” - parasparopagrahojīvanam. Jainism, thus, provides a sustainable solution to ecological crisis, because it is not just a religion with abstract concepts; it is a practical, positive and rational way of life. It teaches how a man can live in coexistence with his surroundings.

According to Jainism, rocks, mountain, drops of water, lakes, and trees all have a life-force or jīva. These jīvas are able to assume diverse dimensions, just as a piece of cloth can be rolled into a small ball or unfolded to occupy an extended space. Each jīva is in a state of flux; each is suffused with consciousness (caitanya) bliss (sukha), and energy (vīrya). However, this latter aspect is obscured as each jīva is defiled by psychic atoms which together constitute karma that causes the jīva to be reborn repeatedly and suffer. The root cause of karma is ignorance. So non-violence offers a solution to oneself and thus to the society. The simple prayer of the Jainas reveals the compassion for his environment. “All beings desire to live, and like pleasure, hate pain, and shun destruction, and wish to live long. To all, life is dear.”

Two thousand six hundreds years ago lord Mahāvīra preached that one who disregards the existence of the earth, water, fire, air and vegetation, disregards one’s own existence, which is entwined with them. “He who knows one comprehends everything, and he who comprehends all, knows the one”. Today this interdependence has been proved scientifically: every organism depends on the others, directly or indirectly, for its survival. We are all parts of a giant jigsaw puzzle called nature and the picture is incomplete even if one single piece is missing. In spite of this knowledge, man continues to inflict hiṁsā on nature; he is destroying forests, polluting rivers, and emptying the bowels of the earth by reckless quarrying and mining, contaminating vegetation and soil with acid rains, poisoning the atmosphere with harmful chemicals.

Jainism says that even plucking flowers without any purpose or pelting stones at a still lake idly amounts to the karma for the actor. Imagine the amount of karma man is accumulating by exploiting the earth’s natural resources.

Jainism regards ahiṁsā and ecological harmony as two sides of the same coin. Ahiṁsā means sanctity of life and universal love for all beings. But this principle is lacking in the modern world, where people are striving to achieve false goals of riches, fame, power, etc. They don’t care if they destroy invaluable natural resources or kill animals on the road for material success. But we are drawing closer and closer to our own destruction by destroying the environment. We have to remember that the environment can be without man, but no man can be without environment.

Man, the most superior and advanced living being on the earth is proved to be an inferior living being if it comes to understanding his relationship with nature. Animals do not take more resources from nature then they require; they take only enough to satisfy their need. It is man who takes more than his share of nature’s resources; he exploits nature and hoards more and more resources to assuage his insatiable greed. Animals have more concern for plant life than man is exhibiting today.

Jainism makes man aware of every step he takes. He is led consciously through small vows to a life long commitment to conserve nature and her resources. The aṇuvratas [small vows] not only direct man to protect and preserve nature, they also prevent him from committing hiṁsā and thus save him from accumulating karmas and hence misery. Thus, Jaina ecological consciousness is grounded in a judicious blend of divine holism and a vision of non-exploitative science and technology. Instead of ignoring or sidetracking one another, religion and science must go hand in hand and chart a single path to guide human spirituality in the direction of preservation of our planet and conservation of its resources. The scientific approach, reasoning and practices prescribed by Jainism are, thus highly relevant today when environmental concerns are on the top of human agenda.

“All animals wish to live, and not to be slain; therefore one should relinquish the killing of animals.”

As said already, Jainism says that even a microbe contributes to ecology. Its concept of ahiṁsā does not include just the endangered species of animals, but all beings beginning with the simplest single-celled prokaryote. Its message is simple: every being has a right to exist, as does man. “To every being life is dear as it is to man. All living beings love life, they wish to relish pleasure; loath misery, shun annihilation; enjoy life and love to live long. In short, life is dear to all beings.” “Na ya vittasae param” - hence one should not inflict pain on any creature. “Nor have any feelings of enmity or antipathy.” Similarly he knows that no dharma is equal to ahiṁsā in this world”. Therefore, man should not harm other beings for his selfish purposes or due to carelessness.

Another way is which Jainas follow the vow of ahiṁsā is through vegetarianism. Vegetarianism is a must for the practice of the purification of oneself and human values in Jainism. Gandhi was inspired by the Jaina principle of vegetarianism. People have of late realized the benefits of vegetarianism. There are two benefits accruing from this practice: firstly it stops the killing of animals to a great extent; secondly scientific research has proved that vegetarianism makes for a healthier and ecological sound way of life. However vegetarianism should not be narrowed down to mean just refraining from eating meat. Vegetarianism stands for minimizing one’s wants and consequently minimizing violence. One’s attitude towards life begins with food. When man kills an animals for food, when he has a choice not to, he is committing deliberate hiṁsā. And once he has killed and eaten it, he continues to do so, due to habituation. This makes him aggressive and violent in other areas too. Therefore vegetarianism is stressed under Jainism, because it has greater and subtler implications for non-violence in other areas of life, besides food habits.

The only inherent religion of mankind is compassion, love and coexistence, and any preaching or practice in the name of religion that does not include the above aspects is not a religion at all. Religion misunderstood in practice and misinterpreted in the pretext of scientific temper is what exists today. “Science without religion is lame and religion without science is blind!”