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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Articles_for_deletion/Hinduism_and_Jainism

Traditionally the term Hindu has meant an original inhabitant of India. During the Muslim rule the term "Hindu" was used in contrast with "Turk" (Muslim), and did not imply a single unified religion. However according to scholars, the term Hindu is defined as those religions that are based on the Vedas. [citation needed]

Elst writes[1]:

"Deciding the question whether Jainism is a sect of Hinduism requires a proper definition of Hinduism. The answer varies with that definition. If Hinduism means veneration of the Vedas, then Jainism may formally be taken to be outside the Hindu fold, though it remains closely akin to Hindu schools of philosophy springing from Hindu thought (particularly Nyaya-Vaisheshika). If Hinduism implies theism, then Jainism should definitely be counted out; but a theistic definition of Hinduism is highly questionable, eventhough after centuries of theistic devotionalism, many unsophisticated Hindus would accept it. On the other hand, if Hinduism means the actually observed variety of religious expressions among non-Muslims and non-Christians in India, then there is nothing in Jainism that would make it so radically different as to fall outside this spectrum. If Hinduism means all traditions native to India (as per Savarkar and the original Muslim usage), then obviously Jainism is a Hindu tradition." [dubious – discuss]

Hindu-Jain Relationship Since antiquity, botth Hindus and Jains have influenced one another. The Jain scripture do not accept the Hindu Vedas and non-Jain writings generally as sources of religious authority and practice. The concepts of divine creation, preservation and destruction are in fact criticized in certain Jain texts such as the Mahavira Charitam.

At Dharmasthala, the Shiavite temple was built by a Jain family which has manged it for several centuries. [2]

Impact of Jainism in Tamilnadu However, Jain influence on ancient and classical Tamil culture is deep. For example, the seminal moral scripture of the Tamils called The Kural by Thiruvalluvar (early common era), which is revered by Tamils of all creeds (Hindus, Jains, Christians, etc.) offers many clear indications of its author's Jain identity. Among other things, Thiruvalluvar's (1) introductory reverence for an "Adi Bhagavan" (a common Jain reference to Lord Rishabha) having specifically eight spiritual attributes (in Jainism, God, or the pure soul, has eight major attributes); (2) insistence upon complete vegetarianism and not eating even already killed/dead animals (in stark contrast to Buddhism); (3) praise for ascetics who "control the five senses"; (4) rejection of ritual sacrifices (contrary to common Vedic Hindu practices); (5) insistence upon eschewing violence even against one's enemies (in contrast to the Bhagavad Gita); and (6) other frequent allusions to Jain moral attitudes, each indicate a devoutly Jain moral thinker. However, The Kural was composed in a deftly non-sectarian fashion. Thiruvalluvar upheld universal human virtues which are also embraced and cherished by the Christians and Hindus of Tamil Nadu. In theory, Jainism is essentially a Heresy to orthodox Hinduism, since Hinduism is theoretically based upon the Vedas which the Jains reject - along with the Hindu conception of God (see Ishvara) as the Supreme Omnipotent Being. But in practice, Hinduism has absorbed some concepts from Jainism like vegetarianism (though in Hinduism neither a requirement nor a dogma), ahimsa and pacifism. In modern India, both Hindus and Jains reveredly visit each other's temples. [citation needed]

Jain-Hindu Disputes Despite a general doctrinal tolerance in the Hindu tradition, history shows instances of persecution against Jains such as in Tamil Nadu in the 7th century, AD when Hindu Shaiva poets and teachers popularized the notion of Jains (or Samanars in Tamil) as villains opposed to the Shaiva creed. Today, a concern of modern Jains in post-independence India has been the preservation of ancient pilgrimage sites and holy shrines -- such as Mt. Girnarji in Gujarat -- which in recent decades have come under pressure from certain fundamantalist groups -- in the case of Girnarji, Hindu devotees of the deity Dattatreya.

Is Jainism an "Offshoot of Hinduism"? In modern India, Jains share a variety cultural and linguistic affinities with other religious communities, and the same may be said of those other communities. Partly due to historical biases within some academic fields related to the study of religion and culture -- namely,

a greater emphasis placed on the demographically larger Hindu and Buddhist faiths, and a tendency to employ historical paradigms peculiar to Judeo-Christian history Jainism has been variously labeled an "offshoot" or "reform movement" of Hinduism, and an anti-Brahmin social movement, a lesser twin of Buddhism, a religion of "extreme asceticism", a pacifist creed, and other tableaus, generally at odds with both historical evidence and modern reality.

External Resources

Who is a Hindu? Definition at Hindu.org Are Jains Hindus? Koenraad Elst Sri Manjunatheshwara Temple, Dharmasthala Unexploited vestiges of Jainism Hinduism Resist ploy to divide in the name of Hindu, Jain and Buddhist-Jain Muni Acharya Vijay Ratnasunder Surishwar Maharaj Thiru-jnana-sambandar Is Jain Minority Right In India Receiving A Fair Deal?

References

http://voiceofdharma.com/books/wiah/ch7.htm http://www.mangalore.com/documents/dharmasthala.html

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