What is meant by Svetambara?
: a major Jain sect whose members clothe themselves and their sacred images in white and in contrast to the Digambaras assert that women can attain salvation.
What are Jainism beliefs?
Like Hindus and Buddhists, Jains believe in reincarnation. This cycle of birth, death, and rebirth is determined by one’s karma. Jains believe bad karma is caused by harming living things. To avoid bad karma, Jains must practice ahimsa, a strict code of nonviolence.
Who were Svetambara and Digambaras?
According to Svetambaras, they are the original followers of God Mahavira, and Digambaras arose 609 years after the death of Mahavira (about 1st-century CE) because of an arrogant man named Sivabhuti who became a Jain monk in a fit of pique after a fight at home.
Why do Jains wear white?
Because they are allowed no possessions whatsoever they live without clothes and go “skyclad”, which means naked. (Digambara nuns wear simple white clothes.) Their nakedness is also a statement that they are beyond feelings such as modesty and shame.
Who is the leader of Svetambara?
Bhadrabahu, the leader of the emigrants, insisted on the observance of nudity, following the example set by Mahavira, the last of the Jain Tirthankaras (Ford-makers, i.e., saviours).
What do Jains believe about life after death?
Jain beliefs about the soul The Jain word that comes closest to soul is jiva, which means a conscious, living being. After each bodily death, the jiva is reborn into a different body to live another life, until it achieves liberation.
What God do Jains worship?
Lord Mahavir
Lord Mahavir was the twenty-fourth and the last Tirthankara of the Jain religion. According to Jain philosophy, all Tirthankaras were born as human beings but they have attained a state of perfection or enlightenment through meditation and self realization. They are the Gods of Jains.
What is the difference between Digambara and Svetambara?
Śvētāmbara means “white-clad”, and refers to its ascetics ‘ practice of wearing white clothes, which sets it apart from the Digambara “sky-clad” Jains, whose ascetic practitioners go naked. Śvētāmbaras, unlike Digambaras, do not believe that ascetics must practice nudity.
What kind of religion is the Shvetambara sect?
…of image worship by the Shvetambara Lonkasaha sect.…. monasticism: Jainism. The Shvetambara (“White-Clad”) sect is so called because its monks wear a white robe and a white piece of cloth to cover the mouth (mukhavastrika), thereby preventing the inhalation and annihilation of microbes and insects.
Who are the Svetambaras and what do they do?
Śvētāmbaras trace their practices and dress code to the teachings of Parshvanatha, the 23rd tirthankara, which they believe taught only Four restraints (a claim, scholars say are confirmed by the ancient Buddhist texts that discuss Jain monastic life). Mahāvīra taught Five vows, which Digambara follow.
What did the Svetambaras believe about female liberation?
Women must gain karmic merit, to be reborn as man, and only then can they achieve spiritual liberation in the Digambara sect of Jainism. The Śvētāmbaras disagree with the Digambaras, believing that women can also achieve liberation from Saṃsāra through ascetic practices. The Śvētāmbaras state the 19th Tirthankara Māllīnātha was female.