Jain Bhawan: Its Aims and Objects

Summary

The article describes the establishment and activities of Jain Bhawan, founded in Calcutta in 1945 to promote Jain philosophy and culture. The institution’s objectives are to demonstrate the rational greatness of Jainism, foster intellectual and moral development, provide instruction in Jain teachings and encourage research. To fulfil these aims, Jain Bhawan operates several programmes. It runs the Jain Śikṣālaya school, which follows the West Bengal Board syllabus while integrating moral education; the school has about 550 students and 25 teachers. Recognising modern needs, the Bhawan offers vocational and physical classes in tailoring, stitching, embroidery, music and martial arts such as judo and karate; these programmes are popular with women from Calcutta’s Burra Bazaar. The Bhawan maintains a library housing over 10,000 books on Jainism and related subjects and about 3,000 rare manuscripts; it subscribes to around 100 religious periodicals which members may consult. The institution publishes three journals: Jain Journal in English, Tīthyāyātra in Hindi and Śrāmaṇa in Bengali. These publications, edited by scholars like Professor Satya Ranjan Banerjee and Lata Bothra, have gained renown for promoting Jain literature and philosophy. The Bhawan also organises seminars and symposia and hosts a research centre aimed at encouraging young scholars to pursue studies in Prakrit and Jainism. In addition to educational initiatives, Jain Bhawan supports vocational self‑reliance. It opened a computer training centre in 1998 to familiarise students with programming, internet and email communication, thereby enabling them to engage with global communities and spread Jain teachings. The Bhawan’s publication wing produces books in English, Hindi and Bengali on Jain scriptures and philosophy, including editions of the Bhagavatī Sūtra and works by scholars such as James Burgess and Ganesh Lalwani. The article emphasises that through its diverse programmes—education, vocational training, library services, journal publication, research and digital outreach—Jain Bhawan has become a significant cultural centre nurturing both academic scholarship and lay understanding of Jainism.