Jain and Buddhist
Ethical Ideals
Jain and Buddhist traditions are
alike in being non-theist (not making reference to a creator God). Thus, they
do not think of living beings as “creatures,” created by God. Jains
believe in an eternal soul, (thejīva) and living beings
classified according to the number of senses they have. On the other hand,
Buddhists believe in no self,anātmanof persons, and the emptiness of
all phenomenashūnyatā. Nevertheless,
they both have highly developed ethical systems. Here is the Points to Ponder
3.3 question from Module 3.
In this discussion,
reflect on the following two passages, considering how the ethical ideals from
Jain and Buddhist traditions are expressed. What similarities in spiritual
practice do you notice? How does the Jain aspiration to a life of ahimsā (non-harming) compare
to the Buddhist practice of the bodhisattva? Can you find any
significant differences in approach to life reflected here?
[PASSAGE 1] This
is the vow that a Jain layperson takes, based on words of some of Mahāvīra
Vardhamāna’s lay disciples, who lived in the sixth century B.C.E.
I will desist from
the knowing or intentional destruction of all great lives [trasa, i.e., souls
embodied with two or more senses]. As long as I live, I will neither kill nor
cause others to kill. I shall strive to refrain from all such activities,
whether of body, speech, or mind (Jaini, p. 173).
[PASSAGE 2] This
passage is from the Bodhicharyāvatāra, written by Shāntideva
(2006), a seventh-century C.E. Buddhist. It is a prayer that expresses a bodhisattva’s aspirations to be
of help to all living beings.
Through all these
[meritorious] actions now performedAnd all the virtues I
have gained,May all the pain of
every living beingBe wholly scattered
and destroyed.
For all those ailing
in the world,Until their every
sickness has been healed,May I myself become
for themThe doctor, nurse,
the medicine itself. …
This body I have now
resignedTo serve the pleasure
of all living beings.Let them ever kill,
despise, and beat it,Using it according to
their wish.
—Bodhicharyāvatāra III. 7–8, 13,Padmakara, pp. 48–49
Clearly LABEL and
EXPLAIN your answers. 350-400 words
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