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Hinduism, Jainism,
and Ecology
Christopher
Key Chapple
Loyola Marymount University
The religious traditions of India are rich and various,
offering diverse theological and practical perspectives
on the human condition. During the course of the Center
for the Study of World Religions (CSWR) series of conferences
on “Religions of the World and Ecology,” three
major traditions originating from India were explored:
Buddhism (the topic of a separate summary), Hinduism,
and Jainism. Other traditions found in India could also
have been explored, including Sikhism and Zoroastrianism,
which have dual roots in the Middle East and India.
We look forward to seeing future reflections from scholars
and practitioners of these religions on the topic of
ecology. Another prominent religion in South Asia, Islam,
has been examined in light of ecology in another essay
on this website.
Hinduism and Jainism comprise the oldest continually
observed religious traditions of the Indian subcontinent.
Both have spread beyond the subcontinent to virtually
all parts of the globe, though most adherents to these
faiths claim Indian ancestry. In the two conferences
devoted to these traditions, scholars and religious
leaders explored Hindu and Jaina literature, history,
sociology, ritual, and asceticism in light of the current
ecological crisis.
The Vedic traditions of Hinduism offer imagery that
values the power of the natural world. Scholars of the
Vedas have held forth various texts and rituals that
extol the earth (bhu), the atmosphere (bhuvah),
and sky (sva), as well as the goddess associated
with the earth (Prthivi), and the gods associated
with water (Ap), with fire and heat (Agni),
and the wind (Vayu). They have noted that the
centrality of these gods and goddesses suggests an underlying
ecological sensitivity within the Hindu tradition. In
later Indian thought, these Vedic concepts become formalized
into the Samkhya denotation of five great elements (mahabhuta):
earth (prthivi), water (jal), fire (tejas),
air (vayu), and space (akasa). The meditative
and ritual processes of Hinduism entail awareness of
these constituents of materiality. Daily worship (puja)
employs and evokes these five powers.
Hinduism has long revered the tree. Early seals from
the Indus Valley cities (ca. 3000 BCE) depict the tree
as a powerful symbol of abundance. References to India’s
trees can be found in a wide range of literature, particularly
in epic and poetic texts. India has a long history of
forest protection, from the edicts of Asoka,
to the individual work of various Rajas, to the modern
Chipko movement, wherein women have staved off forest
destruction by surrounding trees with their own bodies.
Rivers have been and continue to be an integral part
of Hindu religious practice. More than fifty Vedic hymns
praise the Sarasvati, a river (now dry) associated with
the goddess of learning and culture. The Ganges River
which flows through northern India likewise is referred
to as a goddess originating from the top of Siva’s
head in the Himalaya Mountains, giving sustenance to
hundreds of millions of modern Indians. Traditionally,
the rivers of India have always been considered pure.
Modern industrial contaminants and human wastes have
fouled the rivers, though Ganges water still plays an
important role in India’s ritual life.
Hinduism offers a variety of cosmological views that
may or may not situate the human in the natural world
in an ecologically friendly manner. On the one hand,
the agrarian and often near-wilderness images of India
found in the Vedas, Upanisads, and epic texts present
a style of life seemingly in tune with the elements.
The Samkhya and Tantra traditions affirm
the reality and efficacy of the physical world. On the
other hand, the Advaita Vedanta tradition, while
adopting the basic principles of Samkhya cosmology,
asserts that the highest truth involves a vision of
oneness that transcends nature and, in a sense, dismisses
the significance of the material world by referring
to it as illusion or maya.
One model of Hindu spirituality encourages physicality
through yoga practices that enhance the health of the
body and the vitality of the senses. Other spiritual
paths advocate renunciation of all sensual attachments
to the world. However, even within the paths that relegate
worldly concerns to a status of secondary importance,
the doctrine of Dharma emphasizes a need to act
“for the sake of the good of the world.” Particularly
in regard to such issues as the building of dams in
the Narmada River Valley, this requires taking into
account social ecology or the need to integrate environmental
policy with the daily needs of tribal and other marginalized
peoples.
The current worldwide ecological crisis has only emerged
during the past four decades and its effects have been
felt within South Asia more recently. As the region
copes with decreasing air quality in its cities and
degraded water in various regions, religious thinkers
and activists have begun to reflect on how the broader
values of Hindu tradition might contribute to fostering
greater care for the earth. Gandhi’s advocacy of
simple living through the principles of nonviolence
(ahimsa) and holding to truthfulness (satyagraha)
could give some Hindus pause as they consider the lifestyle
changes engendered by contemporary consumerism. Most
of the Hindu population lives within villages that,
barring natural disasters such as flood or drought,
are self-sustaining and use resources sparingly. However,
as the population of South Asia increases, and as the
modern lifestyle continues to demand consumer goods,
the balance of sustainability can shatter. With appreciation
and acknowledgment of the five great elements, with
a new interpretation of social duty (dharma)
expanded to include the ecological community, and with
remembrance of its ethic of abstemiousness, the Hindu
tradition can develop new modalities for caring for
the earth.
The Jaina tradition has existed in tandem with Hinduism
in India since at least 800 BCE. Whereas the Hindu faith
looks to the Vedas for texts and rituals and to the
Brahman caste for religious leadership, the Jainas developed
their own sacred texts (including the Acaranga Sutra,
ca. 300 BCE) and follow the authority of itinerant monks
and nuns who wander throughout India preaching the essential
principles and practices of the faith. As indicated
above, Hinduism includes both monistic and dualistic
theologies, with several variations of each. Jainas
ascribe to the belief in plural lifeforms populating
a storied universe with hell beings at the base, humans
and animals in the middle region, with gods and goddesses
in the upper or heavenly domains. The goal within Jainism
is to ascend to the Siddha Loka, a world beyond
heaven and earth, where all the liberated souls dwell
eternally in a state of energy, consciousness, and bliss.
Although this goal utterly removes one from all worldly
entanglements, the path to reach this highest attainment
entails great care in regard to how one lives in relationship
to all the other living beings that surround one in
the earthly realm. Hence, from the aspect of practice,
Jainism holds some interesting potential for ecological
thinking, though its final goal transcends earthly (or
earthy) concerns.
At the core of Jaina faith lies five vows that dictate
the daily life of Jaina laypersons, monks, and nuns.
These five vows, which inspired and influenced Mahatma
Gandhi, are nonviolence (ahimsa), truthfulness
(satya), not stealing (asteya), sexual
restraint (brahmacarya), and nonpossession (aparigraha).
One adheres to these vows in order to minimize harm
to all possible life-forms. In Jainism, life is arranged
hierarchically according to the number of senses a particular
form possesses. For instance, life particles (jiva)
in earth, water, fire, air, microorganisms, and plants
each experience the world through the sense of touch.
Worms add the sense of taste. Crawling bugs can feel,
taste, and smell. Flying insects add seeing. Higher
level animals, including fish and mammals, can feel,
taste, smell, see, hear, and think. For observant Jainas,
to hurt any being results in the thickening of one’s
karma, obstructing advancement toward liberation. To
reduce karma and prevent its further accrual, Jainas
avoid activities associated with violence and follow
a vegetarian diet. The advanced monks and nuns will
sweep their path to avoid harming insects and also work
at not harming even one sensed beings such as bacteria
and water.
The worldview of the Jainas might be characterized
as a biocosmology. Due to their perception of the “livingness”
of the world, Jainas hold an affinity for the ideals
of the environmental movement. The Jaina vows can easily
be reinterpreted in an ecological fashion. The practice
of nonviolence in the Jaina context fosters an attitude
of respect for all life-forms. The observance of truthfulness
prompts an investigation of the interrelatedness of
things; a truthful person cannot easily dismiss the
suffering caused by uncontrolled waste. The vow of not
stealing can be used to reflect on the world’s
limited resources and prompt one to think of the needs
of future generations. Sexual restraint might help minimize
population growth. The discipline of nonpossession gives
one pause to think twice before indulging in the acquisition
of material goods, one of the root causes of current
ecological concerns. The monks and nuns, due to the
heightened nature of their daily spiritual practice,
leave little or no imprint on the broader ecological
system. Jaina laypeople, due to their care and attention
to what in other philosophical traditions is none other
than inert materiality, can use their experiences of
applying nonviolent principles with a new, ecological
intention in mind.
The Jainas are particularly well-suited to reconsider
their tradition in an ecological light, particularly
because of their history of advocacy against meat eating
and animal sacrifice, as well as their success at developing
business areas that avoid overt violence. However, some
challenges remain. One expression of environmentalism
involves tree planting projects. Though Jaina laypeople
might participate in such activities, their nuns and
monks most likely would not plant trees because of the
harm caused to the earth in the digging process. Another
expression of environmentalism in India has been to
establish forest preserves on property surrounding Jaina
temple sites. However, this generally requires blocking
access to prevent collection of fodder, resulting in
a further impoverishment of struggling peasants. In
addition to these questions of organic and social life,
the extensive involvement of Jainas in heavy industries
in India raises issues of appropriate economic activity
and environmental health. These instances demonstrate
the complexity of effectively applying ecological principles
in a religious context.
Hinduism and Jainism offer unique resources for the
creation of an earth ethic. The variegated theologies
of Hinduism suggest that the earth can be seen as a
manifestation of the goddess (Devi) and that
she must be treated with respect; that the five elements
hold great power; that simple living might serve as
a model for the development of sustainable economies;
and that the concept of Dharma can be reinterpreted
from an earth-friendly perspective. The biocosmology
of Jainism presents a worldview that stresses the interrelatedness
of life-forms. Its attendant nonviolent ethic might
easily be extended to embrace an earth ethics. Both
traditions include a strong emphasis on asceticism that
might discourage some adherents from placing too much
value on earthly concerns, but, as we have seen, Hinduism
and Jainism both contain concepts that can lead to the
enhancement of core human-earth relations.
Christopher Key Chapple is Doshi Professor of Indic and Comparative Theology at Loyola Marymount University . He has published several books including: Karma and Creativity (Albany N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 1986); Nonviolence to Animals, Earth, and Self in Asian Traditions (Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 1993); a co-translation of Patanjali’s, Yoga Sutra (Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications, 1990) , Reconciling Yogas: Haribhadra's Array of Views on Yoga (SUNY 2003) and several edited collections of essays, including, Ecological Prospects: Scientific, Aesthetic, and Religious Perspectives (Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 1993) , Hinduism and Ecology: Intersections of Earth, Sky, and Water (Harvard series on Religion and Ecology, 2000), and Jainism and Ecology: Nonviolence in the Web of Life (Harvard Series on Religion and Ecology, 2002), as well as the forthcoming Yoga and the Luminous (SUNY). For a complete bio, visit: http://myweb.lmu.edu/cchapple.
This article was originally
published in Earth Ethics 10, no.1 (Fall 1998).
Copyright © 1998 Center for Respect of Life and
Environment.
Reprinted with permission.
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