Jainism and Hinduism: Comparing Two Indian Traditions

Introduction: Three Traditions of India

Jainism, along with Hinduism and Buddhism, constitutes the three central religious and philosophical traditions of India. In many ways the linkages and evolution of these three religions are inextricably intertwined and can be seen as coterminous and related to one another. Jainism and Buddhism emerged from within the growing and evolving matrix of Hindu doctrine and philosophy.

Jainism in particular developed in reaction to various aspects of the Hindu worldview, particularly with regard to the Brahmanistic stratification of society and its ritual theism.

A comparison of these two faiths also draws attention to the various interpretations of Hinduism. It should be noted that Hinduism is not one homogenous body of clear-cut practice and doctrine; it is in fact a complex amalgam of various interpretations and views that form a sometimes contradictory whole. Jainism also cannot be seen in isolation from the cultural and philosophical substratum from which it broke away.

As one scholar observes, these new religions did not spring fully formed from the minds of their founders, nor are they disconnected from the speculation and devotion that preceded them — as though they were, to use the metaphor of the Sanskrit schoolmen, "flowers in the sky" or "horns on a hare." Both Jainism and Buddhism are, after all, phases of the long Hindu development, absorbing elements from its complexity and responding to certain demands of the spirit it expresses. (MacNicol, 62)

The Veda and Brahmanism

The differences between Jainism and Hinduism can best be seen in the reasons for the emergence of the Jainist worldview and epistemology, which developed in opposition to the Hindu view of reality. An essential point of difference is the rejection of the Vedas as foundational doctrine. For the Hindu faith, at least in theory, the Vedas are the source of religious authority. Jainism, however, views the Vedas as "not particularly sacred and cannot be used as agencies of release from rebirth." (Noss, 99)

This also refers to a central tenet of Jainism, which emphasizes the drive toward release from Samsara — the cycle of birth, generation, and death — and the attainment of Moksha, or liberation from karmic return to the earthly plane of existence.

Another difference with Hinduism is that rather than appealing to authorial gods and supernatural referents, Jaina theory asserts that there is no objective God or entity to rely upon; instead, salvation must come from "within himself." (ibid) This brings Jainism closer to the views of Buddhism. Coupled with the rejection of the Vedas was the rejection of Brahmanism and the Brahmanic stratification of society that would develop into the caste system.

"In the sixth century B.C., the stratification of society and the hardening of religious ritual provoked a simmering discontent that found an outlet in several protest movements… because these protests were directed against the extravagant claims of the Brahmans, they assumed at the outset a heretical and even anti-religious form." (Lerner, 128)

This denial of the authority of the Vedas was a highly significant difference and introduced a fundamental separation from the mainstream of Hinduism:

"The Veda has been considered in Hinduism as the sole source of true religion, and rejection of its authoritativeness was a major factor in turning Buddhism and Jainism into separate religions. But despite the fact that study of the Veda was made an absolute duty for men of the three higher classes, an accurate knowledge of it was lost at an early date, and the works of medieval commentators give ample evidence of incomplete understanding." (Brockington, 5–6)

These protests resulted in the development of Jainism and Buddhism. The essential difference in both traditions was the rejection of priestly Brahman authority. "Each repudiated the authority of priests and Vedas, rejecting all the paraphernalia of religion and replacing it with a system of philosophy." (ibid)

Jainism moved away from dependence on ritual and gods toward a sense of religious independence. This movement implied the necessity of finding enlightenment — or release from the world — within oneself, rather than through organized ritual and doctrine. This is one of the main aspects that differentiates Jainism from Hinduism. This belief was supported by the examples of those who had accomplished enlightenment in the past: the Jinas.

The Jaina tradition rests on one fundamental fact: that human beings are capable of becoming omniscient, and that this view is grounded in the teaching of omniscient beings who attained enlightenment through strict ascetic discipline. These beings are called "Jinas," or victors — those who have conquered the passions that bind human beings to worldly life. Since such beings have seen through reality itself, their teaching is regarded as authoritative by the tradition, and Jaina thinkers throughout the ages have striven to reiterate their insights in the hope of arriving at the same realization as the Jinas.

Conclusion

There are many areas of subtle difference between Jainism and Hinduism. The essential aspect that differentiates them is the Jaina mode of thought, which denies the theistic and ritualistic elements that Hinduism incorporated into its doctrine. In fact, Jainism is more radical: it is opposed to all forms of imposed doctrine, viewing all human knowledge as inherently flawed and therefore neither essential nor helpful in the quest for the liberation of the soul from the world. In this sense Jainism is more closely aligned with Buddhist modes of thought.

Another crucial aspect is the emphasis on liberation through self-knowledge and through radical renunciation of the world and all sensory attachments associated with it. In practice, however, there are many similarities between the two religions, and many Hindu deities are, for example, accepted within the actual context of Jainist practice.

It is also worth noting an alternative scholarly perspective on Jainism's origins. Some theories suggest that Jainism developed independently and even earlier than the Hindu Vedas. Archaeological finds at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro have been cited in support of this view: figures on excavated seals have been identified as resembling Jaina yogis in the Kayotsarga posture, and one seal inscription has been interpreted as bearing a Jaina reference. These excavations are dated to more than 4,000 years ago. As one legal scholar observed, "there can be little doubt that Jainism as a distinct religion was flourishing several centuries before Christ." On this basis, some scholars conclude that Jainism is a pre-Vedic religion that flourished in India even before the arrival of the Aryans.

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