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Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s7.t8: Jainism

Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s7.t8

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Jainism

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As one of the three major unorthodox schools of thought in ancient India, Jainism can trace its theoretical roots back into time immemorial. However, Jainism as an independent and full-fledged religion did not emerge until around 6^th century CE. Being popular throughout the entire Indian history, Jainism remains an influential religion in the country to this day. It spread to China along with Buddhism, where it attracted a huge amount of attention in the philosophical sphere of ancient China.

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History and Representative Literature

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Certain Jain theories can be traced back to Upanishadic era or even earlier. Most Jainists tend to hold that Jainism has multiple founding masters or siddhas, who laid down the most basic seminal theories of the religion. According to relevant records, there were 24 “Tīrthaṅkaras” in Jainism, including Rṣabhadeva (1^st Jain Tīrthaṅkara), Ajitanātha (2^nd Jain Tīrthaṅkara), Pārśvanāth (23^rd Jain Tīrthaṅkara) and Nirgrantha-jñātaputra (24^th Jain Tīrthaṅkara). In fact, most “Tīrthaṅkaras” are just fictional characters, with only the 23^rd and 24^th ones being actual historical figures.

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*Tīrthankara Mahavira*

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The actual founder of Jainism is Vardhamāna (around 6^th century BCE) ie 24^th Jain Tīrthaṅkara, Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Vardhamāna is the birth name of Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. According to some scholars, the sect led by Pārśvanāth (23^rd Jain Tīrthaṅkara) was also known as “Nirgrantha sect”. Vardhamāna enforced a series of active reforms in Jainism, nurturing it into one of the most influential religious sects in ancient India. In recognition of his significant contributions to the establishment and development of Jainism, he was widely hailed by his followers as Mahāvīra (“Great Hero”). Opinions differ regarding the exact date of Vardhamāna’s birth and death. Some believed him to be a contemporary of Shakyamuni. Born into a Kshatriya family, he became a monk at the age of 30 and for the next 12 years he practiced intense meditation and severe penance and after achieving Kevala Jnana or enlightenment, travelled around to preach Jainism and died at the age of 72.

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Around 6^th century BCE, a massive anti-Brahmin movement emerged in ancient India spawning a large number of thinkers who proposed all kinds of brave new ideas. According to relevant records, there were over hundreds of significant thinkers active at the time, with the most influential ones being the renowned “Six Masters”, including Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Thanks to his painstaking efforts and other early members of Jainism, the sect gradually grew into an influential religion in ancient India with a huge following cementing its position on the Indian philosophical and religious scene as one of the three major non-orthodox schools of thought in the country (other two being Buddhism and the Lakayata school).

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Jainism was divided into two sects of Digambar and Śvētāmbara in about 1^st century CE. The monks of Digambaras practiced naked or “sky-clad”, while those of Svetambara were always white-clad. Some Buddhist literature referred to Digambar as “a school of naked practitioners”. It put an inordinate emphasis on ascetic practices and required its practitioners to strictly abide by its “no private wealth” rule, going so far as to count one’s clothes as “wealth” and demand their removal too. The earliest representative figure of the Digambar sect is Bhadrabahu.

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*Jain Temple, Gwalior Fort, Madhya Pradesh, India*

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Indian ascetics

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Śvētāmbara sect also endorsed ascetic practices, though more moderately than the Digambar sect, at least, in terms of clothing - they insisted their practitioners wear white clothes. The earliest representative figure of the sect is Sambhutavijaya.

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The Digambar and Śvētāmbara sects mainly differ in their interpretations on rules and disciplines and don’t otherwise contradict each other too severely. The two sects further broke down into quite many sub-sects in the ensuing centuries.

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Before 13ᵗʰ century CE, Jainism was spread throughout of India, even counting quite a few kings among its followers and supporters. Though by no means a dominant religion in ancient India, it developed a massive following among Indian civilians.

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Popular throughout the Indian history, Jainism was once a huge influence not just among the ruling elite, but also among the downtrodden and exploited lower-class people. Thwarted just like other indigenous religions in ancient India by the Islamic penetration of the South Asian subcontinent, Jainism’s influence gradually dwindled in the years that followed. However, as an independent religious sect, it managed to survive throughout the ages in India. Its doctrines continued to exert influence well into contemporary times in the country. Many prominent politicians and thinkers in contemporary India, including Mahatma Gandhi, had been profoundly exposed to the influence of Jain doctrines. Jainists also hold considerable economic and political sway in modern India.

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A lot of historic records concerning Jainism survive, both in India and China. Among the earliest Jain texts are 14 Purvas and 12 Anga. Purva means before, referring to the foundational texts that emerged earlier; while Anga means a limb ie a part of the canon. However, 14 Purvas and one Anga have been lost, so the current Jain canon only consists of 11 Anga. The Śvētāmbara sect considered 11 Anga canonical, about which Digambar disagreed.

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In addition to 11 Anga, Jainism also has large bodies of literature, with the most important ones including *Pancastikaya-sara* and *Pravachan-asia* by Kundakunda (around 1ˢᵗ century CE); *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* by Umasvati (around 5ᵗʰ- 6ᵗʰ century CE) which was regarded by both Śvētāmbara and Digambar as canonical; and *Nyqyqvatqra* by Siddhasana Divakara (around 8ᵗʰ century CE). Additionally, such Jain monks as Haribhadra Suri (around 8ᵗʰ century CE) and Hemacandra (around 11ᵗʰ - 12ᵗʰ century CE) also wrote many Jain texts. Chinese Buddhist scriptures including *Dirghagama-sutra*, *Madhyama-agama*, *Samyuktagama-sutra*, *Ekottaragama-sutra*, *Abhidharmamahavibhasa-sa Sutra*, *Mahaprajnaparamita-shaskra*, *Yogacara-blumi Shastra* and *Prakaranaryavaka*, also contain information on Jain activities and theories.

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**Main Theories** - Śvētāmbara and Digambar sects both left large collections of Jain literature but there are also many Jain texts that are not jointly recognised by the two sects. According to the book “Tattvarthadhigamasutra”, where the major Jain theories were intensively presented and elaborated, the Jain theoretical system mainly concerns the following few issues: seven tattvas; Jiva and Ajiva; five kinds of Jnana (Mati, Sruta, Avadhi, Manah paryaya and Kevala); *Seven naya* (*Sapta Bhanga*, or *seven-fold judgment*); reincarnation and release; and social ethics.

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Seven Tattvas

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Jain metaphysics is based on seven truths or fundamental principles, also known as tattva or navatattva, which are an attempt to explain the nature and solution to the human predicament. The knowledge of these truths is essential for the liberation of the soul. Accordingly, *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* first proposed the Seven Tattvas which includes *Jiva*, *Ajiva*, *Asrava*, *Bandha*, *Samvara*, *Nirjara* and *Moksa*.

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Dirghagama Sutra (Chang Ahan Jing)

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Jain lady holding a fly-whisk; Indian miniature painting

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*Jiva* mainly refers to the main actors to be reincarnated and released in life phenomena. Jainism divides *Jiva* into two categories: non-liberated *jiva*; and liberated *jiva*. The former only exists in regular objects, while the latter dwells in human bodies or bodies of other living things, who can achieve liberation and release through practices and making efforts to learn truths.

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*Ajiva* are the five non-living substances that make up the universe along with the *jiva*, reflecting Jainism's basic views on worldly phenomena.

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*Asrava* refers to the influx of karmic particles into *Jiva*. Jainism held that karmic particles stem from one's actions;

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*Bandha* refers to the binding of karmic particles to *Jiva*.

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Jain treatise on astronomy in Devanagari

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*Samvara* refers to the stoppage of *Asrava*.

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*Nirjara* refers to preventing karmic particles from seeping into *Jiva* through ascetic practices.

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*Moksa* means liberation, salvation or emancipation of soul, completely free from the karmic bondage, the attainment of true and pristine nature of infinite bliss, infinite knowledge and infinite perception.

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The various philosophical theories of Jainism are mainly derived from, or build upon, the interpretations on "Seven Tattvas".

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Jiva* and *Ajiva

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Jain views on worldly things or phenomena are mainly contained in the notions of *Jiva* and *Ajiva*, two of the Jain "Seven Tattvas". Their contents actually constitute the basic theories of Jainism on the natural philosophy front.

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The so-called *Jiva* in Jainism is roughly equivalent to something that exists eternally in living bodies, and is also different from the "self" (soul) in other religious sects. According to such Jain texts as *Tattvarthadhigamasutra*, *Jiva* does not just exist in living bodies, but also resides in non-living entities. Jainism divides *Jiva* into two types: one is stuck in reincarnation cycle; the other is liberated. The "reincarnated" *jiva* is further divided into *Trasa jiva* (mobile *jiva*) and *Sthavara jiva* (immobile *jiva*). *Sthavara jiva* exists in earth, water and plants, while *Trasa jiva* exists in animals that possess more than one sense-organ. Thus, the "reincarnated" *jiva* exists in virtually everything, including living things and non-living things, like earth and water. Therefore, it can be said that Jainism had actually proposed a belief that "everything is alive", which is a notion highly representative of the religion. The liberated *jiva* apparently refers to the souls that have broken free from material bondage. It is a fundamental goal of Jainism to free *Jiva* from bondage.

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The so-called *Ajiva* is mainly comprised of four parts: *Dharma*; *Adharma*; *Akasha* and *Pudgala*, all of which are important Jain concepts concerning the state or forms of existence of things.

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In regard to *dharma* and *adharma*, *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 5.17 explains, "the role of dharma and adharma, is to help motion and rest, respectively". According to Jainism, things can move and rest due to the presence of dharma and adharma. The two concepts were also mentioned by other Indian schools of thought; for instance, the Vaisesika *dharma* and *adharma* are equivalent to *karma*, and are related to one's actions. Jainism does not espouse such an interpretation and only considers them the condition or cause for motion and rest of things.

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Concerning "Akasha", *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 5.18 states, "akasha provides shelter for all other things.”Jainism used the concept of Akasha in explaining “space”.

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*Kalpa Sūtra, Jainism*

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Concerning “Pudgala”, *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 5.19-25 explains, “the function of Pudgala is to form the basis of the body and the organs of speech and mind and respiration, and also to contribute to sensuous pleasure, suffering, life and death of living beings”. As we can see, “Pudgala” in Jainism actually means “matter” as the fundamental elements of worldly things and is of the form of an atom and of the form of an aggregate. Atom was actually considered by most ancient Indians as the smallest unit for each type of matter, a theory that was later adopted by many schools of thought.

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Jainism also tackles the issue of “time”. *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 5.22 says, “The function of time is to assist substances in their continuity of being (through gradual changes), in their modifications, in their actions and in their proximity and non-proximity in time”, which represent an important Jain theory on the forms of existence of things.

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Jainism regards Dharma, Adharma, Akasha, Pudgala and Jiva as the five eternal substances (draya’s), pointing that the fundamental elements of universe are the five substances plus time. *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 5.1-4 states, “Dharma, adharma, akasha and pudgala constitute the Ajiva. They are called drayas or substances. Jivas are also substances. The five substances are eternal in nature and they, along with time, form the whole universe.”

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The Jain theory of “jiva” and “ajiva” represents the religion’s view on categorisation of worldly things. The theory is a kind of Anamabhavada theory, contending that things form resulting from the combination of numerous kinds of elements, including both material and non-material elements.

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The Jain concept of “Jiva” contains undertones of reincarnation or release; however, the Jain “Jiva” is distinct from the concept of “Atman” or “Brahman” in the mainstream Brahmin philosophy. The Jain jiva exists in all kinds of things, or achieve release and break away from bondage; while the Brahmin “Atman” or “Brahman” refers to the things themselves, assuming that things and Atman/Brahman are essentially one and the same. In contrast, in interpreting “Jiva”, Jainism never made the claim that only Jiva is real and all things are unreal.

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From the Jain interpretations of Jiva and Ajiva, we can see the basic theoretical paradigm Jainism developed on the issue of universe or worldly phenomena. The religion held that jiva is a spiritual substance that will never perish. It exists in both human bodies and other animals and plants, even in such non-living things like earth, water, fire and wind. Ajiva contains the basic material elements (atoms) that constitute all type of things in the world, and also contains dharma and adharma, which, respectively, are responsible for making things move and making things rest. The concept also contains space and time, which provide necessary conditions for things to exist. This kind of Jain theory had actually done a fairly good job analysing in a systematic manner the basic composition and forms of existence of natural things.

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Five Kinds of Jnana

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The Jain epistemology contains certain religious elements, emphasising sense-perception and considering it a sure path leading toward enlightenment. Accordingly, *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* proposed five kinds of Jnana ie *Mati*, *Sruta*, *Avadhi*, *Manah paryaya* and *Kevala*.

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Mati-Jnana refers to knowledge acquired through the senses. The Jain “senses” mainly mean such external organs as eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body. “Mind” is an internal organ, which normally plays the role of directing external organs to convey externally acquired information to the “knower”.

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*Sruta-Jnana* refers to scriptural (articulate) knowledge derived through language, symbols, signs, etc. Without using such external organs as eyes and ears to directly sense external objects, knowledge can nonetheless be gained by examining and comprehending words contained in scriptures or said by gurus, teachers or prophets. Sruta shall be based on Mati.

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*Basic Division of Universe according to Jainism, a 15ᵗʰ century painting*

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Jainism: History, Society, Philosophy and Practice (front cover)

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Avadhi-Jnana refers to direct perception of self, time and space. It is a natural born and direct perception of things and shall be distinguished from the faculty of perception assumed by regular living bodies. The object of Avadhi can be ordinary material-based things.

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Manah paryaya-Jnana refers to mind-reading ie direct perception of what people thought about in the past and what people will ponder in the future. Jainism believes that the object of Manah paryaya is minuscule and subtle.

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Kevala, or Ominiscience, refers to knowledge of all substances in all their modes: past, present and future, unlimited as to space, time and object. It is a state of highest perfection in Jainism, in which one has boundless vision. This kind of state can actually be construed as a state of liberation. Kevala can only be attained by eliminating karma.

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In analysing the five Jnana, Jainism posited that the first two Jnana are indirect, while the last three ones are direct. *Mati*, *Sruta* and *Avadhi* are prone to errors, while *Manah paryaya* and *Kevala* are error-proof.

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According to Jainism, knowledge acquired through organs and speech normally has to pass through a medium and therefore is prone to distortions and mistakes. In contrast, direct acquisition of knowledge without the aid of such medium as organs or speech is more impervious to error. The reason why Avadhi is also considered error-prone is that the degree to which Avadhi knowledge is directly acquired is not high enough.

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In framing its “five Jnana” theory, Jainism was actually trying to emphasise that: the capacity of human organs to understand things is limited, and might very likely give rise to misconceptions or incorrect perceptions. To attain perfect knowledge one must eliminate reliance on sense organs and try to directly perceive or intuit.

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Seven naya (Sapta Bhanga, or seven-fold judgment)

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Epistemologically, Jainism proposed a seven-fold judgment theory, positing that things could be judged as falling under either of the following seven categories: existent; non-existent; existent-cum-nonexistent; indescribable; existent and indescribable; non-existent and indescribable; and, existent-cum-non-existent and indescribable. It also held that things are subject to constant change, and due to the fact that things are diverse in terms of location, time and attribute, word Syät (“probable”, “perhaps”, “maybe”) shall be prefixed to each of these seven predications to prevent the proposition from being absolute. A fairly representative Jain work on this theory is *Syadavamanjari* by Malisena (around 13th century CE).

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The Jain seven-fold judgment is obviously of regular worldly knowledge and. therefore. cannot be relied on to attain absolute truth. According to Jainism, any judgment or mode of understanding regular, worldly knowledge is limited, hence the prefix Syat. Theoretically, this theory has elements of eclecticism or agnosticism. However, it is worth pointing out that Jainism did not propose this theory without an ax to grind as an unorthodox system, like Buddhism, Jainism represents the values, beliefs and opinions of the middle-to-upper class people of non-Brahmin origins in ancient India who had long held a grudge against the Brahmin superiority and hence tended to reject the Brahmin claim that canons are absolutely sacred and are not to be questioned, leading to the Jain tendency to regard with suspicion all of the judgments that had by then been widely upheld as “truth” - a tendency that helps explain why Jainism espoused this particular seven-fold predication theory.

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Wheel of Life, Tibetan thangka

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An ascetic in Rajasthan, India

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Reincarnation and Release

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Jainism also has its own “reincarnation and release” theory. Concerning the issue of reincarnation and cause thereof, *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* believes that the action of the body, the speech organ and the mind is called activity.

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Karmic particles generated by one’s activities flow into *jiva* and impose bondage thereupon, giving rise to reincarnation. *Karma* can be divided into good *karma* and bad *karma*. The former will allow one to enjoy pleasure and live longer, get born into a good family; while the latter will subject one to awful forms of existence. Jainism held that to get released is to break free from the bondage of all the karmic particles. And when *jiva* gets liberated, one will attain a blissful state of consummation.

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This particular Jain theory is actually aligned with the traditional Indian religious theories that had emerged since the advent of the Upanishads, all of them emphasising that human actions produce Karma which is an invisible force or a small particle that will exert influence on one’s afterlife and lead to painful reincarnation. To exit the cycle of reincarnation one must try and suppress his or her actions. *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 1.1 states that “*Samyag Darshan* (Right Belief or Perception), *Samyag Jnan* (Right Knowledge) and *Samyag Charitra* (Right Conduct) together constitute the path to liberation.” The so-called *Samyag Darshn* means to understand and uphold such basic Jain theories as Seven *Tattvas*; the so-called *Samyag Jnan* means to acquire wisdom or right knowledge by means of the last two of the Jain Five *Jnana*; and the so-called *Samyag Charita* means to observe and abide by such Jain code of discipline as the Five Vows, including its rules of ascetic practices. Taken altogether, this theory is similar to the liberation theory advocated by other Indian religious sects and can be described as a “wisdom-based liberation” theory.

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Social Ethics

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The Jain social ethics theory is mainly reflected in their vows. *Tattvarthadhigamasutra* 7.1 specifies that “desisting from killing, falsehood, stealing, unchastity and attachment is the five-fold vow.”

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The Jain “Five Vows” are not unlike the codes of conduct of other religious sects in ancient India. It is worth noting that Jainism put extra emphasis on the “no killing” vow, which it enforced most strictly. Besides, the scope of the vow is also much wider than that of other sects. For instance, Jainists are not allowed to kill not just people and animals, but certain plants as well, which might be attributable to the Jain theory that plants also contain “*jiva*”. Quite some historic records contain passages describing Jainists as being extremely careful walking out for fear of hurting small plants.

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Jainism is also known for its ascetic practices. Many religious sects in ancient India endorsed ascetic practices, but Jainism attached greater importance to them. Certain Buddhist works contain extensive references to Jain asceticism.

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The “no killing” precept and asceticism of Jainism were once very well-known in ancient India, and their influence continues to this day. The “non-violent” philosophy and ascetic lifestyles popular in contemporary and modern India can be traced back to these ancient Jain traditions.

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**Spread and Influence in China** - Jain theories and ideas spread to ancient China along with Buddhism. Most people in ancient China gained their first glimpses into the religion through Buddhism.

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As a sister religion of Buddhism, Jainism maintained extensive contacts with Buddhism, hence the extensive references to Jainism in many Buddhist texts including both seminal works of early-day Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhist texts that emerged still later on. Large bodies of such Buddhist works were introduced to China and translated into Chinese. Some Chinese monks mentioned Jainism frequently when repudiating or introducing relevant theories of other schools of thought.

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Queen Trishala conceiving Mahavira, Kalpa Sūtra, Jainism

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When introducing the “Six Masters” active during the Buddhist era, the Chinese versions of various Agama sutras all mention the main founder of Jainism, Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. *Samyuktagama-sutra* (volume XXXII) and *Samyuktagama-sutra* (alternative translation) (volume VII), both contain an overview of the “no killing” percept advocated by Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Ekottaragama-sutra (volume L) states Buddha’s opinion of Nirgrantha-jñātaputra — “Nirgrantha-jñātaputra is of a dim, confused and agitated mind”.

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In his book *Chenweishilun*, Master Xuanzang also repudiated relevant Jain theories. For instance, the “saivites” mentioned in the book actually refers to some early-day Jain thinkers. In its first volume, the book dedicates some portions addressing the “saivites” theory, rejecting it as unreasonable and implausible. In addition, the book also mentioned some other Jain concepts when repudiating “ātma-grāha”.

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There are also many other Chinese Buddhist works containing Jain references, which greatly facilitated Chinese people’s efforts to get to know Jainism and its theories.

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In contemporary and modern China, Jain theories have also stirred up a lot of renewed interest. Jainism still has a large following in India, as is known to those Chinese who have visited the country. Some Chinese scholars also paid special visits to Jain temples and interacted with modern Jainists. Some Indian visitors to China also made active efforts to introduce the religion to Chinese people, with relevant Jain literature also brought to China.

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Some Chinese scholars focus their research on Jainism. Many research papers on Jainism have also been published in relevant Chinese scholarly journals. There are also chapters dedicated to Jainism in books published in China about Indian philosophy or religions. In Indian philosophy or culture, courses offered in Chinese universities, Jain theories are also extensively mentioned.

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(Yao Weiqun)

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