The Teachings of Jainism
Most of the world’s religions look to a glorious founding figure, who is typically regarded both as an exemplar of the religious life and as the revealer of the religion’s most significant teachings; the Buddha, Confucius, Jesus, and Muhammad are examples of such founding figures.
Jainism looks not to just one but to a series of founding figures, the tirthankaras, “makers of the ford (or river crossing).” Each is considered to be a jina, “conqueror”—whence comes the name Jainism. Through having conquered the realm of samsara, the continuing cycle of death and rebirth (a concept that is also prominent in Hinduism and Buddhism), the tirthankara has, metaphorically, successfully crossed the river from the worldly realm to the beyond—the realm of the liberated.The most recent of the tirthankaras, Mahavira, is especially significant. We begin this section by considering his captivating and highly influential life story.
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