Sect of Jina

Summary

Major Colin Mackenzie’s ‘Sect of Jina’ is an early nineteenth‑century lecture that summarises Jaina philosophy and cosmology for a learned audience. Mackenzie introduces the Jains or Arhats—also called Vivasanas, Muktavasanas and Digambaras—and contrasts the austere Digambara monks with the later Śvetāmbara order who wear white garments. He explains that Jaina doctrine posits a dual universe consisting of jīva (animate soul) and ajīva (inanimate matter) without a creator‑god, and that the world is made of eternal atoms whose combinations produce earth, water, fire, air and space. The lecture outlines seven key principles: mithyā pravṛtti (misdirected activity driven by passions), saṃvara (restraint that stops the influx of karma), nirjarā (exhaustion of previously accumulated karmas through austerities such as fasting, silence and plucking out hair), bandha (bondage of the soul by karmic matter), and mokṣa (liberation). Mackenzie emphasises that liberation is achieved by right knowledge, faith and conduct, culminating in the soul’s ascent to the region of the liberated when karmic shackles are removed. He describes how Jains classify beings into broad categories—sentient souls and non‑sentient substances—and notes the absence of a supreme deity, with liberated souls serving as exemplary teachers. Throughout, Mackenzie draws comparisons with Hindu and Vaiśeṣika philosophy to help his audience grasp Jaina metaphysics and ethic. The lecture thus serves as one of the earliest English‑language expositions of Jainism, highlighting its emphasis on moral discipline, non‑violence and spiritual self‑effort.