Cosmology:
Main article: Jain cosmology
Jain beliefs postulate that the universe was never created, nor will it ever cease to exist. It is independent and self-sufficient, and does not require any superior power to govern it. Elaborate description of the shape and function of the physical and metaphysical universe, and its constituents, is provided in the canonical Jain texts, in commentaries and in the writings of the Jain philosopher-monks. The early Jains contemplated the nature of the earth and universe and developed detailed hypotheses concerning various aspects of astronomy and cosmology.
According to the Jain texts, the universe is divided into three parts, the upper, middle, and lower worlds, called respectively urdhva loka, madhya loka, and adho loka. It is made up of six constituents: Jīva, the living entity; Pudgala, matter; Dharma tattva, the substance responsible for motion; Adharma tattva, the substance responsible for rest; Akāśa, space; and Kāla, time.
Wheel of time:
According to Jainism, time is beginningless and eternal; the cosmic wheel of time, called kālachakra, rotates ceaselessly. It is divided into halves, called utsarpiṇī and avasarpiṇī. Utsarpiṇī is a period of progressive prosperity, where happiness increases, while avasarpiṇī is a period of increasing sorrow and immorality. According to Jain cosmology, currently we are in the 5th ara, Duḥṣama (read as Dukhma). As of 2015, exactly 2,539 years have elapsed and 18,461 years are still left. It is an age of sorrow and misery. The maximum age a person can live to in this ara is not more than 200 years. The average height of people in this ara is six feet tall. No liberation is possible, although people practice religion in lax and diluted form. At the end of this ara, even the Jain religion will disappear, only to appear again with the advent of 1st Tirthankara in the next cycle.
The following table depicts the six Aras of Avasarpini-
| Name of the Ara | Degree of happiness | Duration of Ara | Average height of people | Average lifespan of people |
| Suṣama-suṣamā | Utmost happiness and no sorrow | 400 trillion sāgaropamas | Six miles tall | Three palyopama years |
| Suṣamā | Moderate happiness and no sorrow | 300 trillion sāgaropamas | Four miles tall | Two palyopama Years |
| Suṣama-duḥṣamā | Happiness with very little sorrow | 200 trillion sāgaropamas | Two miles tall | One palyopama years |
| Duḥṣama-suṣamā | Happiness with little sorrow | 100 trillion sāgaropamas | 1500 meters | 705.6 quintillion years |
| Duḥṣamā | Sorrow with very little Happiness | 21,000 years | 6 feet | 130 years maximum |
| Duḥṣama- duḥṣamā | Extreme sorrow and misery | 21,000 years | 2 feet | 16–20 years |
This trend will start reversing at the onset of utsarpinī kāl.
Jainism views animals and life itself in an utterly different light, reflecting an indigenous Asian understanding that yields a different definition of the soul, the human person, the structure of the cosmos, and ethics.
Jain texts:
Main article: Jain literature
Agamas:
The tradition talks about a body of scriptures preached by the tirthankaras. These scriptures are said to be contained in fourteen parts called purvas. These were memorised and passed on through the ages, but were vulnerable and were lost because of famine that caused the death of several saints within a thousand years of Mahāvīra's death.
The Jain Agamas are canonical texts of Jainism based on Mahāvīra's teachings. These comprise forty-six works: twelve angās, twelve upanga āgamas, six chedasūtras, four mūlasūtras, ten prakīrnaka sūtras and twocūlikasūtras.
There are two major denominations of Jainism, the Śvētāmbara ("white-clad", who wear white garments) andDigambara, or "Sky-clad", who, as a further austerity, eschew clothing altogether. The Digambara sect of Jainism maintains that the Agamas were lost during the same famine that the purvas were lost in. In the absence of scriptures, Digambaras use about twenty-five scriptures written for their religious practice by great acharyas. These include two main texts, four Pratham-Anuyog, three charn-anuyoga, four karan-anuyoga and twelve dravya-anuyoga.
Tamil literature:
Some scholars believe that the author of the oldest extant work of literature in Tamil (3rd century BCE), the Tolkāppiyam, was a Jain. The Tirukkuṛaḷ by Thiruvalluvar is considered by many to be the work of a Jain by scholars like V. Kalyanasundarnar, Vaiyapuri Pillai, Swaminatha Iyer, and P. S. Sundaram. It emphatically supports vegetarianism in chapter 26 and states that giving up animal sacrifice is worth more than thousand offerings in fire in verse 259.
The Nālaṭiyār was composed by Jain monks from South India between 100-500. It is divided into three sections, the first section focusing on the importance of virtuous life, second section on the governance and management of wealth, and the third smaller section on the pleasures.
The Silappatikaram, the earliest surviving epic in Tamil literature, was written by a Jain, Ilango Adigal. This epic is a major work in Tamil literature, describing the historical events of its time and also of then-prevailing religions, Jainism, Buddhism and Shaivism. The main characters of this work, Kannagi and Kovalan, who have a divine status among Tamils, were Jains.
According to George L. Hart, who holds the endowed Chair in Tamil Studies by University of California, Berkeley, has written that the legend of the Tamil Sangamsor "literary assemblies: was based on the Jain sangham at Madurai: "There was a permanent Jaina assembly called a Sangha established about 604 A.D. in Madurai. It seems likely that this assembly was the model upon which tradition fabricated the Sangam legend."
Jain scholars and poets authored Tamil classics of the Sangam period, such as the Cīvaka Cintāmaṇi and Nālaṭiyār In the beginning of the mediaeval period, between the 9th and 13th centuries, Kannada authors were predominantly Jains and Lingayatis. Jains were the earliest known cultivators of Kannada literature, which they dominated until the 12th century. Jains wrote about the tirthankaras and other aspects of the faith. Adikavi Pampa is one of the greatest Kannada poets. Court poet to the Chalukya king Arikesari, a Rashtrakuta feudatory, he is best known for his Vikramarjuna Vijaya.
Education:
Jains encourage their monastics to do research and obtain higher education. Monks and nuns, particularly in Rajasthan, have published numerous research monographs. Jains, according to the 2001 census, have the highest degree of literacy of any religious community in India (94.1 per cent), and their manuscript libraries are the oldest in the country. Jain libraries, including those at Patan and Jaisalmer, have a large number of well preserved manuscripts.
Art and architecture:
Main article: Jain art
Jainism has contributed significantly to Indian art and architecture. Jains mainly depict tirthankara or other important people in a seated or standing meditative posture. Yakshas and yakshinis, attendant spirits who guard the tirthankara, are usually shown with them. Figures on various seals from the Indus Valley Civilisation bear similarity to Jain images, nude and in a meditative posture. The earliest known Jain image is in the Patna museum. It is approximately dated to the 3rd century BCE. Bronze images of Pārśva, can be seen in the Prince of Wales Museum, Mumbai, and in the Patna museum; these are dated to the 2nd century BCE. A sandalwood sculpture of Mahāvīra was carved during his lifetime, according to tradition. Later the practice of making images of wood was abandoned, other materials being substituted.
Remnants of ancient Jain temples and cave temples can be found all around India. Notable among these are the Jain caves at Udaigiri Hills near Bhelsa(Vidisha) in Madhya Pradesh and Ellora in Maharashtra, and the Jain temples at Dilwara near Mount Abu, Rajasthan. The Jain tower in Chittor, Rajasthan is a good example of Jain architecture. Decorated manuscripts are preserved in Jain libraries, containing diagrams from Jain cosmology. Most of the paintings and illustrations depict historical events, known as Panch Kalyanaka, from the life of the tirthankara. Rishabha, the first tirthankara, is usually depicted in either the lotus position or kayotsarga, the standing position. He is distinguished from other tirthankara by the long locks of hair falling to his shoulders. Bull images also appear in his sculptures. In paintings, incidents of his life, like his marriage and Indra's marking his forehead, are depicted. Other paintings show him presenting a pottery bowl to his followers; he is also seen painting a house, weaving, and being visited by his mother Marudevi. Each of the twenty-four tirthankara is associated with distinctive emblems, which are listed in such texts asTiloyapannati, Kahavaali and Pravacanasaarodhara.
There are 26 caves, 200 stone beds, 60 inscriptions and over 100 sculptures in and around Madurai. It was in Madurai that Acharya Bhutapali wrote the Shatkhandagama. This is also the site where Jain ascetics of yesteryear wrote great epics and books on grammar in Tamil.
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The Sittanavasal cave temple is regarded as one of the finest examples of Jain art. It is the oldest and most famous Jain centre in the region. It possesses both an early Jain cave shelter, and a medieval rock-cut temple with excellent fresco paintings of par excellence comparable to Ajantha paintings; the steep hill contains an isolated but spacious cavern. Locally, this cavern is known as Eladipattam, a name that is derived from the seven holes cut into the rock that serve as steps leading to the shelter. Within the cave there are seventeen stone beds aligned into rows, and each of these has a raised portion that could have served as a pillow-loft. The largest stone bed has a distinct Tamil- Bramhi inscription assignable to the 2nd centuryB.C., and some inscriptions belonging to 8th centuryB.C. are also found on the nearby beds. The Sittannavasal cavern continued to be the "Holy Sramana Abode" until the seventh and eighth centuries. Inscriptions over the remaining stone beds name mendicants such as Tol kunrattu Kadavulan, Tirunilan, Tiruppuranan, Tittaicharanan, Sri Purrnacandran, Thiruchatthan, Ilangowthaman, sri Ulagathithan and Nityakaran Pattakali as monks.
The 8th century Kazhugumalai temple marks the revival of Jainism in South India.
A monolithic, 18 m statue of Bahubali referred to as "Gommateshvara", built by the Ganga minister and commander Chavundaraya, is situated on a hilltop in Shravanabelagola in the Hassan district of Karnataka state. This statue was voted by Indians the first of theTimes of India's list of seven wonders of India.
A large number of ayagapata, votive tablets for offerings and the worship of tirthankara, were found at Mathura.
Reception:
Negative:
Main article: Criticism of Jainism
Like all religions, Jainism is criticized and praised for some of its practices and beliefs. A holy fast to death in Jainism called sallekhana is a particular area of controversy. When a person feels that all his or her duties have been fulfilled, he or she may decide to gradually cease eating and drinking. This form of death (santhara) has been the center of controversy with some petitioning to make it illegal. Many Jains, on the other hand, see santhara as spiritual detachment requiring a great deal of spiritual accomplishment and maturity and a declaration that a person is finished with this world and has chosen to leave.[131] Jains believe this allows one to achieve death with dignity and dispassion along with a great reduction of negative karma.
Positive:
Mahatma Gandhi was greatly influenced by Jainism. Jain principles that he adopted in his life were asceticism, compassion for all forms of life, the importance of vows for self-discipline, vegetarianism, fasting for self-purification, and mutual tolerance among people of different creeds.
Swami Vivekananda appreciated the role of Jainism in the development of Indian religious philosophy. In his words, he asks:
| “ | What could have saved Indian society from the ponderous burden of omnifarious ritualistic ceremonialism, with its animal and other sacrifices, which all but crushed the very life of it, except the Jain revolution which took its strong stand exclusively on chaste morals and philosophical truths? |
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