Lesya, according to the jain theory of karma, is the coloring of the soul on account of its. The faith is named for the jinas, spiritual conquerors who have achieved liberation and perfection. Bc as protests against the overdeveloped ritualism of hinduism, particularly its sacrificial cults, and the authority of the veda. Jainism is an eastern religion with origins in the indus river valley dating back to 3000 b. Find the top 100 most popular items in amazon books best sellers. Leshya is term used to denote color of feeling within soul. Jainism has a very unique and interesting colourcoded concept for the classification of soul of jiva in terms of six colours, called the lesya. Jainism emerged in 6thcentury bce india, the same time buddhism was developing. The word jain is taken from the word jina, which means getting victory over thy self and the peripheral world.
The colour of lesya varies from person to person depending on the psychic states and mental activities behind an action. Jainism religion bhagwan mahavir jain symbol belief. Buddhism and jainism evince a shared belief in the existence of geographical regions beyond the parameters of bharatavarsha, access to which could not be gained by ordinary human beings. Books on jainism and jain philosophy hindu website. He was the chief disciple of kundkund acharya and blessed this land in the last days of the. Jainism, ajivika, and buddhism arose in the 6th cent. The sri gur granth sahib is the holy book for sikhs, as guru gobind singh teached us.
Holy book and place of worship of sikhism,jainism, buddhism. In principle jain holy places are sacred for all the jains. The first leshya is the worst and the sixth leshya is the best. They are not formatted as html documents so they may look a little odd. As per jainism karma particle karma pdarth is the any living or non living thing which is. Like the buddha, he renounced a privileged lifestyle to become an ascetic.
The rigveda is the foundational holy book of ancient hinduism, which essentially served as a source for everything that came after it. Fundamental beliefs of jainism the soul is bounded by karma from the beginning of time the principles governing the successions of life cycles birth, life, and death is karma. However, the puranas are supposed to be complied by muni vyasa. The present book is one of the best and stimulating books ever written by scholars on jainism.
Jain path of purification by padmanabh jaini university of california press, 1979 motilal banarsidass publishers, 1990 recommended 5 times guidelines of jainism by muni bhadrabahu vijay 1986 life force. Apr 24, 2007 within sikhism, the holy book is called the sri guru granth sahib. Mahavira, the great hero, a contemporary of the buddha was born in c. According to jainism, lesya the color of soul as per jainism is determined by the state of mind and the emotions of the jiva or soul, resulting from both good and bad actions. Jain leshya special,jain center of connecticut jainajainlink. Once there were six friends who were going on a trip, but along the way got lost in a forest. What does jainism say about the karma particles and the term quora. Rather, there are many religious texts the most wellknown of which are the agams that include transcriptions of the oral history provided to us by tirthankars and jain teachers, as well as scholarly commentary on the interpretation of the religion. Lesya, according to the jain theory of karma, is the coloring of the soul on account of its association with the karmic matter. Instead they have a body of holy writings or scriptures. Asian humanities pressthe wonderful book that originally turned me on to jainism jainism in western garb as. The coloring of the soul is explained through the analogy of crystal, that acquires the color of the matter associated with it.
The jinas are considered more respectable than the gods. This is a complete ebook of on the indian sect of the jainas, by johann georg buhler. Mencius also spelled mengzi or mengtzu, a book of his conversations with kings of the time, is one of the four books which form the core of orthodox confucian thinking. Hinduism holy book important books and writings of hinduism. This is a complete e book of on the indian sect of the jainas, by johann georg buhler. We have certain scriptures which are considered as. Ultimate goal of life is eternal release from karma. The tirthas of jainism are spread all over india and have been divided into two classes.
Jainworld is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation of jain tradition of wisdom, compassion, equality, brotherhood, universal wellbeing and spirituality. There is hardly a book on jain art that does not contain a painting of this scene, which has become emblematic of jainism. One of the oldest known religious texts is the kesh temple hymn of ancient sumer, a set of inscribed clay tablets which scholars typically date around 2600 bce. The jain dharma gives the name leshya to the various transformations that the. Michael tobias has described nonviolanceahimsa in great details. Jun 17, 2009 the a to z of jainism covers the history of jainism that spans a period of more than 2,500 years. These texts are the holy scriptures of the jain religion. The sixth friends state of mind represents shukla white leshya. They are kind, benevolent, religious, and lead a harmonious life. The reason is very simple, this book consists of a biography of lord mahavira in detail, and the lives of the other prophets tirthankaras. Apr 03, 20 the puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india.
The holy book of jainism is a collection of texts known as agam literature or the agam sutras. We can see the color of body as fair, whitish,brown or black. Within sikhism, the holy book is called the sri guru granth sahib. In practice, some places are definitely of more importance to svetambaras than to digambaras and vice versa, and these are managed by institutions affiliated to one sect or the other. Who was the head sadhvi of the religious order of mahavira. Karakandu, a pratyekabuddha in both jainism and buddhism, is a. The six friends minds represent six types of leshyas.
Guru ji, said the holy book will be the guru after him, no other human form guru will come. Jainism, indian religion teaching a path to spiritual purity and enlightenment through disciplined nonviolence ahimsa, literally noninjury to all living creatures. The author does a very thorough job introducing the reader to jainism, its history, its sacred days, its customs and its sects. Jainism resource center literature center quick index. Guru is a sanskrit word for teacher, and within sikhism it is the title given to the 10 spiritual leaders of sikhism dating from 1469 ad to 1708 ad as well as the sri guru granth. Aug 29, 2008 what is kalpa sutra and why do jains read it. Jul 19, 2009 jainism evolved from the spiritual ferment that took place in india during the sixth century bce. It is read in the eight day long festival called paryushan posted by chris, emily, and kelly at. According to jainism, lesya the color of soul as per jainism is determined by the state of mind and the emotions of the jiva or. Mar 17, 2015 jainism is an indian religion that emphasizes complete nonviolence and asceticism. Our intention behind our actions of body, mind, and speech bind us with karma.
Jainism evolved from the spiritual ferment that took place in india during the sixth century bce. Introduction to jainism, theory of karma, the six dravyas and more. Jain gujarati book the jainsite worlds largest jain website. Hinduism does not possess a single holy book like bible in christianity and quran in islamic dharma. The a to z of jainism covers the history of jainism that spans a period of more than 2,500 years. The book presents jainism in a way that is authentic and engaging to specialists and nonspecialists alike. The upanishads are also called as vedantas or the end of the vedas.
Holy days, festivals and rituals fasting is the very imporatant part of the jains tradition. Mencius interpretation of confucianism has generally been considered the orthodox version by subsequent chinese philosophers, especially the neoconfucians of the song dynasty. Jainism is an indian religion that emphasizes complete nonviolence and asceticism. They are kind, benevolent, and religious and lead a harmonious life. The epic of gilgamesh from sumer, although only considered by some scholars as a religious text, has origins as early as 2150 bce, and stands as one of the earliest literary works that includes various mythological figures and themes. The following illustration shows how our activities vary with the state of our mind. The holy book of the sikh religion is the guru granth sahib. Leshyas in jainism, there is a great deal of importance given to leshya. Popular jainism books meet your next favorite book. According to jain texts, a person with black leshya will go to hell. Jaina also has an excellent collection of 30 jain stories at to help enhance your religious knowledge. The holy teachers are called the jina, and they are the epitome of teaching for all jains, especially the jina mahavira. Soul is colorless still jainism gives a imaginary concept of leshaya so that one shall be careful for his action. So he could be called a reformer of the jain religion or rejunevator of the faith which was already and had a long tradition.
In india, they share this feature with the buddhists. Hindus are in a similar position, even though they have the vedas, which can be considered the ultimate source of teaching. Those places where the tirthankaras and other holy persons have attained nirvana are called siddhakshetra. Jainism dont have any specific holy book like the bhagavad geeta,the quran or the bible. They are humans who achieve enlightenment via asceticism. List of books and articles about jainism online research. Jainism is one of the most ancient religions that originated in eastern india and it was founded around the 6th century. The person in this conditin would be religious, death, a benevolent and thinks. A person having this will be straightforward, religious, intemperate, unagile. Along with hinduism and buddhism, jainism is one of the three most ancient indian religious traditions still in existence and an.
The oldest jain literature is in shauraseni and ardhamagadhi prakrit agamas, agamatulya, siddhanta texts, etc. Jainism is transtheistic, and jains trace their spiritual ideas and history through a succession of. The five bhavas acharya uma swami the jain community is not acquainted with the life story, as with the tattvarthasutra of uma swami, who attained great fame even with a very small volume of written work. The agam sutras show great reverence for all forms of life and strict codes of vegetarianism, asceticism, nonviolence, and opposition to war.
It has been over 2500 years since buddhism emerged as a religion, and the unique holistic spiritual healing it gives has seen it getting popular in many other parts of the world. Instead they have a collection of holy writings and scriptures. A leshya refers to the state of mind, mental attitude. These texts are glorious tales of the hindu trinity brahma, vishnu and maheshwar shiva. Lord mahavir, popularly regarded as the founder of jainism, was the last of the tirthankars who flourished from 599 to 527 b. A glance at its contents will reveal the fact that glasenapp has covered almost all the salient features of jainism. Quizlet flashcards, activities and games help you improve your grades. The puranas are holy books of hinduism that date back to gupta empire in ancient india. Leshyas of the people in the jainism, there is a great deal of importance given to the leshya. Jainism is transtheistic, and jains trace their spiritual ideas and history through a succession of twentyfour leaders or tirthankaras. Buddhism is a religion known for its rich spiritual teachings, beliefs, practices and traditions. 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. The 11th sikh guru granth sahib is the everlasting guru. The holy teachers are called the jina, and they are the epitome of teaching for all.
Unlike monotheistic traditions, the jains do not have a unique holy book that characterises their faith. Followers of jainism are called jains, and there are about 4 million worldwide. Indian language vocabulary is also wellexplained mostly sanskrit. In the jainism, there is a great deal of importance given to the leshya. Originally, the religion relied on the teaching of living gurus. Agams are the jain texts which are based on the discourse. Jainism differs from many religions in that there is no one scripture or holy book that is central to our faith. Jains see these texts, which are the transcriptions of lord mahavirs sermons, as sacred documents.
Many classical texts are in sanskrit tatvartha sutra, puranas, koshas, shravakacharas, mathematics, nighantus etc. The world of jainism this is the best book on jainism. 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. Followers of jainism are called jains, a word derived from the sanskrit word jina, meaning victor.
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