5000 Volts

Sunday, 16 November 2014, Udaipur

Jainism is a religion with about four million followers. Jains believe the universe was not created, will not end, and requires no god to maintain it. They believe that the soul is intrinsically pure but is made impure by karma. Jainism has developed techniques they believe can overcome karma.  

Pati and BeeBee listened to a description of this Jainism on a pair of headsets they were issued at a Jain temple.  Jains believe in non-violence, considering all viewpoints, and not using more than is needed. They believe these things in the extreme. For example, they do not eat root vegetables (e.g., potatos and onions) because their harvest may injure micro-organisms (they don't really like eating non-root vegetables but they do -- otherwise Pati couldn't write this blog). They have hospitals for injured rats. Some wear facemasks and sweep ahead of themselves to avoid injury to insects. They will not use milk products or honey because they feel that causes harm to cows and bees.

Jain have monks (male and female) who wander eight months each year. There are two denominations of Jain. (Why does this happen in every religion?) Pati and BeeBee had seen the female monks of one denomination start their annual journey. No shoes, no vehicles, no staying in the same place for very long. You know, monk stuff, something to blog about but no serious culture shock. Today, however, Pati and BeeBee saw a male monk of the Digambara sect. He was strolling down a major city street naked as a jaybird (technically speaking, jaybirds are not naked but the monk was) with no one in the extremely conservatively dressed culture (many women even wear veils) giving the slightest notice. Pati did not get a photo but he did get 5000 volts of culture shock.

17 Listening Points?

Jain Priestesses