Ahimsa in Jainism

Summary

In “Ahimsa in Jainism” Amulyachandra Sen argues that non‑violence (ahiṃsā) constitutes the distinctive contribution of Jainism to Indian religious thought. Many Jains today emphasise Syadvada and Anekantavada, but Sen contends that the religion’s real originality lies in its uncompromising ethic of non‑killing. He situates Jainism in a historical context, noting that pre‑Aryan societies in the Indus Valley worshipped a feminine divinity and practised vegetarianism, while early Vedic society performed animal sacrifices. The Indus people and later Sramaṇa movements influenced Parsva and Mahavira’s teachings, so that ahiṃsā became the first vow required of monks and laity. Sen compares Jain non‑violence with the Buddhist and Upanishadic emphasis on compassion but argues that Jainism gave it unrivalled priority: in Jain ethics the prevention of injury to all life forms – humans, animals, plants and even micro‑organisms – is the fundamental duty. He recounts Emperor Aśoka’s edicts forbidding animal slaughter and meat eating at royal tables and notes that Aśoka explicitly supported “Nigganthas” (Jains) in his empire. Sen contrasts Jainism’s opposition to war and sacrifice with the more permissive stance of Brahmanical texts and points out that Jains condemned not only killing but even professions such as agriculture that inadvertently harm living beings. The article emphasises that interfering with another being’s span of life causes evil karma and that the Jain ethic operates on the reciprocal principle: one should not do to another what one would not like done to oneself. Sen argues that although the principle of non‑violence influenced Mahatma Gandhi and modern Indian politics, the original Jain insistence on ahiṃsā remains more radical than the partial vegetarianism and selective non‑violence practised elsewhere. He concludes by urging scholars to recognise Jainism’s unique contribution and to study its ethic in its historical evolution rather than treating it as a subset of Hinduism or Buddhism.