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Life Force: The World of Jainism
An introduction to Jainism, one of the oldest religions in the world.
120 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 17, 2012
A well-written work. First book I have read as I explore Jainism history and practice. Wonderful read.
May 16, 2025
good book but not my favorite on the topic
April 30, 2016
Far from a thorough description of the religion (also, keep in mind that it is written by a Western observer), but it is suitable for anyone looking to glean a general sense of Jainism. Additionally, it serves as a useful index, as it carries a handy list of references.
May 24, 2024
AN EXCELLENT PRESENTATION OF SOME KEY IDEAS OF JAINISM
Michael Charles Tobias is an American author, environmentalist, mountaineer, and filmmaker (e.g., in 1991 ‘Voice of the Planet’ for Turner Broadcasting).
He wrote in the Preface of this 1991 book, “[This book] heeds no stubborn objectivism, because my own experiences of Jainism have affected me greatly… My aim is that such affection become contagious, meaningful to the point of action… The following work sets out to examine just what it means, according to the Jains, to live harmoniously, and how it is possible to do so in a world of contradiction and pain. These ‘personal meditations’ … [are] merely one westerner’s interpretation of certain aspects of a complex Asian religion…
“I have attempted to juxtapose some of those elements which I consider most important to my notion of a LIFE FORCE---an ethical, aesthetic, biological, indeed, comprehensive miracle of being… That life force… suggests a mental rampart of effective conscience inherent to the human animal… The heart is the mirror image of the life force. From childhood, every human being knows of this implacable catalyst for good, for joy, for unselfishly that which the universe has mysteriously conspired to foster in the name of life, here on Earth…. I have not adhered to a strictly academic train of thought. It is my own train of thought… [that is] part of a humble effort to convey a sense of that reverence for life which this religion of India has so uniquely articulated.”
In the first chapter, he explains, “the Jains have recognized non-injury to all creatures (a principle called ‘ahimsa’) as the fundamental law---not only of our being, but of all nature. Ahimsa, say the Jains, is our only possible joy, our true salvation.” (Pg. 8)
He observes, “Jainism is the only religion that has no god, and yet is not atheistic. How can that be? … the Jains have replaced the notion of God, with ‘the own nature of things’… Perhaps that is the secret of their idealism: God has never let them down, has never wavered.” (Pg. 15) He adds, “Strikingly, Jains do not worship nature, nor harbor any particular romance of the wilderness, and thus they are not led astray by the simplistic picture of man in nature that has fueled so much western, and oriental mysticism. Jains are almost entirely urban oriented.” (Pg. 18) He notes, “not all Hindus… are vegetarian, any more than Buddhists are. Jains constitute what it the only major religion in the world that is unconditionally vegetarian.” (Pg. 21)
He explains, “In Jainism, there are two types of devotees---lay votaries, who observe the small vows… and must live their lives in constant moderation, and the ascetics who practice the great vows… and live lives totally focused on self-control. Such control implies the absolute limiting of one’s desire…? (Pg. 27)
He points out, “Jainism was the only large-scale force in Indian society that never accepted the caste system, and that provided equal status and equal rights to women.” (Pg. 31) Later, he adds, “The Jains have QUIETLY infiltrated politics within India, placing judges in supreme positions, enacting animal legislation in various state governments, and serving on many levels to help resolve national conflicts.” (Pg. 36)
He observes, “there is virtually no record of Jain crime in modern India; and … few Jains can be found in the military. While Jains provided sanctuary for both Hindus and Moslems during the turmoil following India’s independence, the Jain community has always been essentially neutral, a window of conscience overlooking the surrounding world---a little Switzerland embedded in a turbulent and fast changing nation.” (Pg. 41)
After a quotation explaining the “strict behavioral code of Jain monks” about not killing/harming any sentient being, he clarifies, “obviously, wheat harvesting and the heavy manufacture of radiators is bound to kill organisms. Such differences between monks and lay votaries, or even assimilated Jains, find analogous contradiction in any world religion.” (Pg. 42)
He notes, “the oldest extant Jain canonical work… makes it quite clear that the so-called contradiction … [between] artistic passivity versus active non-violence---is no contradiction… [The] exhortation---‘not allow others to act so’… opens up whole worlds of decisive, non-violent action… We have already seen such active intercessions as the Jain animal sanctuaries. Yet given it doctrinal propensity to remain neutral, to neither exhibit nor interfere, the Jains might well have boxed themselves into a double-bind of schizophrenic magnitudes and frustratingly ineffective theory.” (Pg. 55)
He explains, “All violence perpetuates increasing whirls of karma, reifies the negation of experience, condemning the perpetrator to ceaseless reincarnations, ceaseless pain, endless accretions of matter…. This is a crucial point for Jainism: ALL organisms possess a soul that is evolving towards a condition of non-violence, a state of general, non-exclusive bliss. An organism that has by chance become a human being finds himself momentarily fraught with a peculiar mental circumstance, namely, a problematic, restless self-consciousness… However he got to be who he is… none of it matters now: The original soul can be reacquired. It has left traces in consciousness. And when you are aware of that, and act accordingly, then you are a Jain.” (Pg. 73-74)
He clarifies, “The Jains are not pacifists. They actively affirm non-violence. They have staged various protests and provided sanctuary for refugees during wartime. Their position on war can be deduced from the elaborate corpus of rules and insights regarding non-violence in general that makes up their world view.” (Pg. 101)
He concludes, “The simplicity is perfect… every revolution contains a seed of pure thought. Jainism does not lose hold of that purity in the mad rush to transform the world, but rather nurtures the seed from within, as one would raise children or cultivate a wild and restless garden.” (Pg. 103)
This book will be of great interest to those (particularly Westerners) studying Jainism.
Michael Charles Tobias is an American author, environmentalist, mountaineer, and filmmaker (e.g., in 1991 ‘Voice of the Planet’ for Turner Broadcasting).
He wrote in the Preface of this 1991 book, “[This book] heeds no stubborn objectivism, because my own experiences of Jainism have affected me greatly… My aim is that such affection become contagious, meaningful to the point of action… The following work sets out to examine just what it means, according to the Jains, to live harmoniously, and how it is possible to do so in a world of contradiction and pain. These ‘personal meditations’ … [are] merely one westerner’s interpretation of certain aspects of a complex Asian religion…
“I have attempted to juxtapose some of those elements which I consider most important to my notion of a LIFE FORCE---an ethical, aesthetic, biological, indeed, comprehensive miracle of being… That life force… suggests a mental rampart of effective conscience inherent to the human animal… The heart is the mirror image of the life force. From childhood, every human being knows of this implacable catalyst for good, for joy, for unselfishly that which the universe has mysteriously conspired to foster in the name of life, here on Earth…. I have not adhered to a strictly academic train of thought. It is my own train of thought… [that is] part of a humble effort to convey a sense of that reverence for life which this religion of India has so uniquely articulated.”
In the first chapter, he explains, “the Jains have recognized non-injury to all creatures (a principle called ‘ahimsa’) as the fundamental law---not only of our being, but of all nature. Ahimsa, say the Jains, is our only possible joy, our true salvation.” (Pg. 8)
He observes, “Jainism is the only religion that has no god, and yet is not atheistic. How can that be? … the Jains have replaced the notion of God, with ‘the own nature of things’… Perhaps that is the secret of their idealism: God has never let them down, has never wavered.” (Pg. 15) He adds, “Strikingly, Jains do not worship nature, nor harbor any particular romance of the wilderness, and thus they are not led astray by the simplistic picture of man in nature that has fueled so much western, and oriental mysticism. Jains are almost entirely urban oriented.” (Pg. 18) He notes, “not all Hindus… are vegetarian, any more than Buddhists are. Jains constitute what it the only major religion in the world that is unconditionally vegetarian.” (Pg. 21)
He explains, “In Jainism, there are two types of devotees---lay votaries, who observe the small vows… and must live their lives in constant moderation, and the ascetics who practice the great vows… and live lives totally focused on self-control. Such control implies the absolute limiting of one’s desire…? (Pg. 27)
He points out, “Jainism was the only large-scale force in Indian society that never accepted the caste system, and that provided equal status and equal rights to women.” (Pg. 31) Later, he adds, “The Jains have QUIETLY infiltrated politics within India, placing judges in supreme positions, enacting animal legislation in various state governments, and serving on many levels to help resolve national conflicts.” (Pg. 36)
He observes, “there is virtually no record of Jain crime in modern India; and … few Jains can be found in the military. While Jains provided sanctuary for both Hindus and Moslems during the turmoil following India’s independence, the Jain community has always been essentially neutral, a window of conscience overlooking the surrounding world---a little Switzerland embedded in a turbulent and fast changing nation.” (Pg. 41)
After a quotation explaining the “strict behavioral code of Jain monks” about not killing/harming any sentient being, he clarifies, “obviously, wheat harvesting and the heavy manufacture of radiators is bound to kill organisms. Such differences between monks and lay votaries, or even assimilated Jains, find analogous contradiction in any world religion.” (Pg. 42)
He notes, “the oldest extant Jain canonical work… makes it quite clear that the so-called contradiction … [between] artistic passivity versus active non-violence---is no contradiction… [The] exhortation---‘not allow others to act so’… opens up whole worlds of decisive, non-violent action… We have already seen such active intercessions as the Jain animal sanctuaries. Yet given it doctrinal propensity to remain neutral, to neither exhibit nor interfere, the Jains might well have boxed themselves into a double-bind of schizophrenic magnitudes and frustratingly ineffective theory.” (Pg. 55)
He explains, “All violence perpetuates increasing whirls of karma, reifies the negation of experience, condemning the perpetrator to ceaseless reincarnations, ceaseless pain, endless accretions of matter…. This is a crucial point for Jainism: ALL organisms possess a soul that is evolving towards a condition of non-violence, a state of general, non-exclusive bliss. An organism that has by chance become a human being finds himself momentarily fraught with a peculiar mental circumstance, namely, a problematic, restless self-consciousness… However he got to be who he is… none of it matters now: The original soul can be reacquired. It has left traces in consciousness. And when you are aware of that, and act accordingly, then you are a Jain.” (Pg. 73-74)
He clarifies, “The Jains are not pacifists. They actively affirm non-violence. They have staged various protests and provided sanctuary for refugees during wartime. Their position on war can be deduced from the elaborate corpus of rules and insights regarding non-violence in general that makes up their world view.” (Pg. 101)
He concludes, “The simplicity is perfect… every revolution contains a seed of pure thought. Jainism does not lose hold of that purity in the mad rush to transform the world, but rather nurtures the seed from within, as one would raise children or cultivate a wild and restless garden.” (Pg. 103)
This book will be of great interest to those (particularly Westerners) studying Jainism.
January 26, 2013
I my quest to scratch the surface of multiple religions, I read this to understand "the other's view" of Jainism. Very easy to read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews