Article: Jainism and scientific thought

Home of liberated souls
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The fundamental Jain aim is true knowledge of reality and the self, which enables final liberation. ‘Karmons’ adhere to the soul as karmic matter and prevent true understanding.

In Jain thought, karmic activity is associated with minute particles of subtle matter. These can be referred to as ‘karmons‘ because their activities often appear similar to those of electrons and photons in physics.

The ‘karmons’ form karmic matter – aggregates – only by interacting with the soul. This karmic matter attracts new ‘karmons’ through the modification of the soul. This modification is caused by action and is generally described as ‘vibration of the soul’ – bhava-āsrava. The bond between the karmic matter and the soul is known as bandha – karmic bondage. Combined with the distorted ‘energy’ element in the soul, karmic matter creates āsrava – karmic influx – by which more ‘karmons’ are attracted. So the more karmic matter there is attached to a soul, the more it attracts.

Examples of types of living beings
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True knowledge is based on understanding some fundamental Jain notions and respecting the variety of forms the soul or jīva can take and their places in the universe. The most crucial examples are the concept of time, the cycle of birth and the hierarchy of types of bodies.

In Jainism, there is no ‘First Cause’ or creator deity. The universe, like energy itself, can neither be created nor destroyed. Time is viewed as cyclical, with each cycle or kalpa composed of two phases or half-cycles. One is progressive, the other regressive. These in turn are divided into six periods. The progressive or ascending half-cycles are known as utsarpiṇī and the descending cycles are called avasarpiṇī.

These cycles and phases last for aeons and then repeat themselves continuously as the universe renews itself. At the individual level, they are replicated in the cycle of existence known as saṃsāra. This is a repetitive cycle of birth, death and rebirth that lasts until liberation from the inhabited universe. Liberated jīvas inhabit siddha-loka, an upper or parallel universe that is ‘the place of perfect(ed) beings’. The samsaric cycle can encompass all the stages of evolution, involve transmigration between genders and from one species to another and also can involve regression as much as progress in the hierarchy of life (Noble Truth 3).

The soul – jīva – is embodied in different forms of life each time it is reborn. These life-forms can be ranked into hierarchies. One of the common Jain hierarchies is based on the number of senses a being has. An instance of a creature with the two senses of touch and taste is a worm, whereas a dog also has the three senses of smell, sight and hearing.

The characteristics of these life-forms vary according to the karmic density and types of karmic matter interacting with the soul (Noble Truth 2). Types of life-form in the inhabited universe range from micro-organisms to the most spiritually advanced human beings.

However, this concept of hierarchy cannot be reduced to an idea of human superiority or supremacy. On the contrary, humans are reminded that all life-forms have jīva in common. Therefore they have the potential for spiritual development and, ultimately, freedom from karmic entrapment. Furthermore, a higher level of spiritual intelligence confers responsibilities rather than rights, in particular the responsibility to show compassion and respect for all forms of life.

All types of intelligence have their place within dharma. The pursuit of knowledge involves learning to understand the ‘viewpoints’ and insights of humans and non-humans alike.

Perfect beings and paths to liberation
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For Jains, all life in the inhabited universe is interconnected and interdependent. From this it follows that all beings are held to have a unique purpose and the potential for enlightenment. The ancient Jain concept of ‘careful action’ takes account of this and gives equal significance to each form of life. Contemporary science is finding evidence of how deeply interrelated eco-systems are, in which even minute or overlooked elements are necessary for the whole system to continue.

Millennia before the invention of the microscope, Jain thinkers held that the earth and cosmos were teeming with ‘invisible’ life-forms, which could be complex systems playing a crucial role in sustaining life as a whole. In Mahāvīra’s words, ‘Non-violence and kindness to living beings is kindness to oneself’. Compare also Noble Truth 4B.

Modern laboratory-based science is increasingly bearing out these conclusions. The critical role of plankton in regulating the health and temperature of the oceans is an example of previous assumptions about a micro-organism turning out to be wrong. In fact, plankton occupies a powerful place in the hierarchy of life and is complex rather than elementary, as once supposed. Similarly, the cyclical view of time and the universe accords with what is now known of the expansion and contractions of stars or galaxies. This view is much more accurate than the linear view of progress.

Like Jainism, modern science asks radical questions about the way human beings behave and think, including the exploitation of other species. Īryā-samiti – careful action – is a concept that lies at the core of Jain philosophy (see Noble Truth 4C). It involves thinking of ways to minimise actions that harm or adversely affect other forms of life. This ancient insight gives a philosophical basis to contemporary understanding of the effects of human activity on the environment.

In the context of the 21st century, the concept of careful action has profound implications for human behaviour. It asks human beings to live within limits rather than continuously expand and is a reminder that knowledge has a wider social purpose. In this context the term ‘social’ covers all living systems.

The implications for scientific research are also radical. Taking this stance of careful action, human society is realigned with ‘the rest’ of nature, rather than viewed as superior to or in conflict with it. In the same way, science is reunited with an ethical framework. Its purpose becomes understanding of and working with dharma, rather than asserting human mastery of it. In this holistic world view, the rational and intuitive aspects of human thought work in partnership, rather than opposition. They are aspects of the reality for which both the laboratory researcher and the spiritual practitioner search.