An attempt to determine the meaning and contents of the notion of dravya and distinguish between the two concepts of guna and paryaya. Cursorily also discusses notions of realtivity, continuity, divisibilty and negation. It presents an analytical account and a critical estimation of the methods of knowledge with an investigation into the nature and the logical evolution of the theory of manifoldness (anekantavada). The work has aimed throughout at a comparative treatment of the problems. Effort has been made to avoid strained and far-fetched comparisons and contrasts and to treat criticisms and controversies in a constructive spirit.

This book is an exploration into the paradoxical structure of pluralistic thinking as illuminated by both Western and Eastern insights—especially Jainism. By calling into question the most fundamental assumptions of religious pluralists, the author hopes to contribute to a paradigm shift in discourse on religious pluralism and conflicting truth claims.

This book provides information on the two main sectarian traditions of Jainism, the Śvetāmbaras and Digambaras, from their early history to the present. It also includes information on various reform movements withing these two traditions. The dictionary section contains more than 450 individual entries with technical terms, mendicant lineages, mendicant and lay practices and vows, biographies of influential mendicant leaders and scholars in the mendicant and lay communities, as well as entries on various Tīrthaṅkaras, ancillary deities, and pilgrimage sites. This comprehensive dictionary will be a valuable reference for anyone interested in South Asian religions or the study of nonviolence and conflict resolution. --from back cover.

Jain is the term used for a person who has faith in the teachings of the Jinas ('Spiritual Victors'). Jinas are human beings who have overcome all passions (kasayas) and have attained enlightenment or omniscience (kevala-jnana), who teach the truths they realized to others, and who attain liberation (moksa) from the cycle of rebirth (samsara). At the core of these teachings is nonviolence (ahimsa), which has remained the guiding principle of Jain ethics and practices to this day. In comparison with other religious traditions of South Asia, Jains are few in number, comprising less than one percent of India's population. The Jain lay and mendicant communities, however, have maintained an unbroken presence in India for more than 2,500 years and have influenced its culture throughout this time. Historical Dictionary of Jainism covers the history of Jainism that spans a period of more than 2,500 years. The history, values, concepts and scriptures, eminent mendicant and lay leaders and scholars, places, institutions, and social and cultural factors are covered in over 450 dictionary entries. This comprehensive reference work also includes an introductory essay, explanation of the Jain scriptures, chronology, appendices, bibliography, and an 8-page black-and-white photo spread. This book provides an excellent introduction and overview to Jainism for scholars, students, and general readers.

A collection of papers presented at an international conference on Jainism and early Buddhism in honor of Prof. Padmanabh S. Jaini, organized and hosted by the Department of History of Religions at the University of Lund, Sweden in 1998. Prof. Jaini is professor emeritus of Buddhist Studies at University of California, Berkeley, California, USA and one of the foremost contemporary scholars of Buddhism and Jainism. The two part festschrift contains papers presented by thirty seven prominent scholars, covering a wide range of topics in both religions.

A free open access ebook is available upon publication. Learn more at www.luminosoa.org. Multiculturalism as a distinct form of liberal-democratic governance gained widespread acceptance after World War II, but in recent years this consensus has been fractured. Multiculturalism in the British Commonwealth examines cultural diversity across the postwar Commonwealth, situating modern multiculturalism in its national, international, and historical contexts. Bringing together practitioners from across the humanities and social sciences to explore the legal, political, and philosophical issues involved, these essays address common questions: What is postwar multiculturalism? Why did it come about? How have social actors responded to it? In addition to chapters on Australia, Britain, Canada, and New Zealand, this volume also covers India, Malaysia, Nigeria, Singapore, and Trinidad, tracing the historical roots of contemporary dilemmas back to the intertwined legacies of imperialism and liberalism. In so doing it demonstrates that multiculturalism has implications that stretch far beyond its current formulations in public and academic discourse.

The contributions to this book address a series of ‘confrontations’—debates between intellectual communities, the interplay of texts and images, and the intersection of monumental architecture and physical terrain—and explore the ways in which the legacy of these encounters, and the human responses to them, conditioned cultural production in early South Asia (c. 4th-7th centuries CE). Rather than an agonistic term, the book uses ‘confrontation’ as a heuristic to examine historical moments within this pivotal period in which individuals and communities were confronted with new ideas and material expressions. The first half of the volume addresses the intersections of textual, material, and visual forms of cultural production by focusing on three primary modes of confrontation: the relation of inscribed texts to material media, the visual articulation of literary images and, finally, the literary interpretation and reception of built landscapes. The second part of the volume focuses on confrontations both within and between intellectual communities. The articles address the dynamics between peripheral and dominant movements in the history of Indian philosophy.

This book presents a collection of essays, setting out both the special concern of classical Indian thought and some of its potential contributions to global philosophy. It presents a number of key arguments made by different schools about this special concern: the way in which attainment of knowledge of reality transforms human nature in a fundamentally liberating way. It also looks in detail at two areas in contemporary global philosophy - the ethics of difference, and the metaphysics of consciousness - where this classical Indian commitment to the spiritually transformative power of knowledge can lead to critical insights, even for those who do not share its presuppositions. Close reading of technical Indian texts is combined with wide-ranging and often comparative analysis of philosophical issues to derive original arguments from the Indian material through an analytic method that is seldom mastered by philosophers of non-western traditions.

Interest in Indian religion and comparative philosophy has increased in recent years, but despite this the study of Jaina philosophy is still in its infancy. This book looks at the role of philosophy in Jaina tradition, and its significance within the general developments in Indian philosophy. Bringing together chapters by philologists, historians and philosophers, the book focuses on karman theory, the theory of conditional predication, epistemology and the debates of Jaina philosophers with representatives of competing traditions, such as Ājīvika, Buddhist and Hindu. It analyses the relationship between religion and philosophy in Jaina scriptures, both Digambara and Śvetāmbara, and will be of interest to scholars and students of South Asian Religion, Philosophy, and Philology.

This book describes what the Jainas considered to be the way of life proper to a layman. It attempts to examine the contents of the principal Jaina Sravakacaras. As these texts are not well known and often not easily accessible, some information about