JAINISM: PROVIDING THE PATH TO “MOKSHA,” THE SECOND OLDEST RELIGION THAT ORIGINATED FROM INDIA

The concept of Moksha in Jainism is synonymous with the ultimate liberation of the soul from samsara and the attainment of eternal happiness, free from all forms of karmic pollution. This paper examines various facets of Moksha in Jainism such as contemporary expressions of Jain practices, Jain cosmology, art, ecological consciousness, and the relevance of monastic life.

Jain Practices for Attaining Moksha in the Modern World:

• Ahimsa, non-violence is at the core of ethical considerations for Jains. The principle goes beyond physical violence to cover non-violent speech and thought. These include:
• Dietary Practices: Several Jains follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, which avoids harm to animals. This practice corresponds with contemporary movements promoting animal rights and ethical eating.
• Professional Choices: Jains can opt for professions that cause less damage to living beings; a good example is military service or butchery or even some types of business activities that involve dishonesty or violence.

1. The Origin of Sikhism: The Oneness Vision of Guru Nanak The founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak, set out on a spiritual quest in the fifteenth century that resulted in the establishment of a new way of life. The idea of oneness—oneness with the divine, oneness with people, and oneness with nature—lies at the core of Sikhism. The teachings of Guru Nanak uphold the equality of all people, regardless of gender, caste, or creed, and they inspire a revolutionary spirit of acceptance and inclusivity.

कई प्रयासों के बाद नष्ट नहीं हुआ यह वृक्ष 

Understanding karma and its real impact on daily life. Discover how ancient wisdom meets modern psychology for better decisions, relationships, and peace of mind.

I was 23, sitting in a Starbucks in Pune, complaining to my friend Arjun about how unfair life was. My colleague who did half the work got promoted. My neighbor who cheated on his taxes bought a new car. Meanwhile, I was working 12-hour days, paying every rupee I owed, and struggling to make rent.

"Where's the justice?" I fumed, stirring my overpriced cappuccino aggressively.

Arjun, who'd just returned from a Vipassana retreat (classic Bangalore techie move), smiled and said something that initially annoyed me but eventually changed my perspective: "Bro, you're thinking about karma like it's some cosmic scoreboard. It's not. It's more like... gravity."

I rolled my eyes. "Great, now you're going to lecture me about spirituality."

"No," he said calmly. "I'm going to tell you why you're miserable, and it has nothing to do with your colleague's promotion."

That conversation sent me down a rabbit hole exploring the concept of karma—not the Instagram-quote version or the "what goes around comes around" cliché, but the actual, practical, life-changing philosophy that's been guiding humans for thousands of years.

And here's the plot twist: modern psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral economics are all basically rediscovering what ancient Indian philosophy figured out millennia ago.

What Karma Actually Means (Hint: It's Not Cosmic Revenge)

Let's get one thing straight right away: karma is not some divine punishment-reward system. It's not God sitting in heaven with a ledger, marking your good deeds and bad deeds, deciding whether you get that promotion or that parking spot.

The word "karma" literally means "action" in Sanskrit. That's it. Just action.

But here's where it gets interesting: every action has consequences. Not because the universe is keeping score, but because actions create ripples. Like throwing a stone in a pond—the ripples spread, interact with other ripples, and eventually come back to where they started.

Karma in daily life is about understanding that your actions, words, and even thoughts set off chains of consequences that inevitably affect you. It's cause and effect. Physics, not mysticism.

Think about it:

• You're rude to the waiter → He's having a bad day → He messes up someone else's order → That someone is your boss → Your boss is in a foul mood → Guess who catches it at the meeting?
• You help your neighbor move → She remembers your kindness → Six months later, she refers you for a dream job → Your life changes

Karma isn't magic. It's patterns.

The Three Types of Karma (And Why You're Probably Stuck in One)

Ancient texts describe three types of karma, and honestly, understanding these changed how I make decisions.

1. Sanchita Karma: The Accumulated Baggage

This is your "karmic savings account"—all the accumulated effects of your past actions, from this life and supposedly previous ones (if you believe in that). Think of it as your starting point, your default programming.

In practical terms? It's your habits, your conditioning, your automatic responses. The reason you always procrastinate, or get defensive when criticized, or reach for your phone when you're anxious.

You can't change what's already accumulated, but you can stop adding to it.

2. Prarabdha Karma: What You're Dealing With Right Now

This is the portion of your accumulated karma that's "ripe" and manifesting in your current life. Your family, your socioeconomic situation, your natural talents and limitations.

Some people call this "destiny" or "luck." But here's the thing: you can't control prarabdha karma. You were born in the family you were born in. You have the genetic makeup you have. Fighting this reality is like being angry at rain for being wet.

The Bhagavad Gita's entire message is basically: "Do your duty with the cards you're dealt, without obsessing over outcomes."

सेक्रेड हार्ट का कैथेड्रल लैटिन संस्कार से संबंधित एक रोमन कैथोलिक कैथेड्रल है,जो भारत में सबसे पुरानी चर्च इमारतों में से एक है।

Meta Description: Explore the real message of love and forgiveness in Christianity—what it actually means, how it's practiced, and why it's both more radical and more difficult than most people realize.

Let's talk about what might be Christianity's biggest marketing problem.

You've seen the bumper stickers. "God is love." "Jesus forgives." "Love thy neighbor." These phrases are everywhere—t-shirts, coffee mugs, Instagram bios, church signs with terrible puns.

And because they're everywhere, they've become... empty. Cliché. The spiritual equivalent of "live, laugh, love" wall decorations. Words that sound nice but mean approximately nothing because they've been repeated so often they've lost all weight.

But here's the thing about love and forgiveness in Christianity: when you actually examine what these concepts meant in their original context and what they demand in practice, they're not sentimental platitudes. They're radical, uncomfortable, countercultural demands that most Christians (including me, frequently) fail to live up to.

Christian teachings on love aren't about warm fuzzy feelings. Forgiveness in the Bible isn't about letting people off the hook consequence-free. These are difficult, costly, transformative practices that challenge everything about how humans naturally operate.

So let me unpack what Christianity actually teaches about love and forgiveness—not the sanitized Sunday school version, but the challenging, often uncomfortable reality that makes these concepts powerful instead of just pretty.

Because if you think Christianity's message about love is just "be nice to people," you've completely missed the point.

And honestly? So have a lot of Christians.

What Christianity Actually Means By "Love"

Christian concept of love is far more specific and demanding than generic niceness.

The Greek Words Matter

The New Testament was written in Greek, which had multiple words for different types of love:

Eros: Romantic, passionate love. (Interestingly, this word doesn't appear in the New Testament)

Storge: Familial affection. Love between parents and children.

Philia: Friendship love. Affection between equals.

Agape: Unconditional, self-giving love. This is the word used most often when describing Christian love.

Agape isn't about feelings. It's about action, will, and choice. You can agape someone you don't particularly like.

Love Your Enemies: The Radical Part

Jesus didn't say "love people who are easy to love." He said: "Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you." (Matthew 5:44)

This isn't natural. Humans naturally love those who love them back—reciprocal affection. That's basic social bonding.

Christianity demands more: Love those who hate you. Pray for those who harm you. Actively seek the good of people who wish you ill.

Why this is radical: It breaks the cycle of retaliation. It refuses to mirror hostility with hostility. It treats enemies as humans worthy of love despite their enmity.

Why this is difficult: Because every fiber of your being wants to write off, avoid, or retaliate against people who hurt you. Choosing their good feels like betraying yourself.

Love Your Neighbor: Who's Your Neighbor?

When Jesus was asked "Who is my neighbor?" he told the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Context matters: Samaritans and Jews were ethnic and religious enemies. Mutual contempt. Deep historical animosity.

In the parable, a Jewish man is beaten and left for death. Jewish religious leaders pass by without helping. A Samaritan—the enemy—stops, cares for him, pays for his recovery.

The point: Your neighbor isn't just people like you. It's anyone in need you encounter, regardless of tribe, belief, or whether they'd help you in return.

Modern application: The refugee from a country you fear. The homeless person who makes you uncomfortable. The political opponent you find morally repugnant. According to Christianity, these are your neighbors.

Love Is Action, Not Feeling

"Love" in Christianity isn't primarily emotional. It's behavioral.

1 Corinthians 13 describes love as patient, kind, not envious, not boastful, not arrogant, not rude. It's a list of behaviors, not feelings.

1 John 3:18: "Let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth."

You demonstrate love through action—feeding the hungry, welcoming strangers, visiting prisoners, clothing the naked (Matthew 25). Love manifests in tangible ways.

This means: You can "love" someone while not liking them, not agreeing with them, not feeling warm affection. You choose their good through action.

What Christianity Actually Means By "Forgiveness"

Biblical forgiveness is equally misunderstood, often simplified to "just get over it" or "pretend it didn't happen."

Forgiveness Is Costly

In Christianity, forgiveness isn't cheap. It required God's incarnation, suffering, and death. The cross is central precisely because forgiveness is costly, not easy.

Human forgiveness mirrors this: It's releasing the debt someone owes you. The hurt they caused, the justice you deserve—you release your claim to repayment.

This doesn't mean:

• Pretending the harm didn't happen
• Allowing continued abuse
• Trusting someone who hasn't changed
• Avoiding accountability or consequences

It means: Releasing your right to vengeance, resentment, and holding the offense against them indefinitely.

Seventy Times Seven

Peter asked Jesus, "How many times should I forgive someone? Seven times?"

Seven was considered generous. Jesus responds: "Not seven times, but seventy times seven." (Matthew 18:22)

Translation: Unlimited forgiveness. Stop counting. Forgive as many times as offense occurs.

Why this is hard: Because forgiving repeatedly feels like being a doormat. Like enabling bad behavior. Like betraying yourself by allowing repeated hurt.

The nuance: Forgiveness doesn't mean continuing to place yourself in harm's way. You can forgive and establish boundaries. You can forgive and end a relationship. Forgiveness is about your heart, not their access to you.

The Unforgiving Servant

Jesus tells a parable: A servant owed a massive debt to his king, couldn't pay, begged for mercy. The king forgave the entire debt.

That same servant then found someone who owed him a tiny amount. The debtor begged for mercy. The servant refused, had him imprisoned.

When the king learned this, he reinstated the original debt and punished the unforgiving servant.

The lesson: Those who have received forgiveness must extend forgiveness. Refusing to forgive others while accepting forgiveness yourself is monstrous hypocrisy.

The Christian framework: Everyone has sinned, fallen short, harmed others. Everyone needs forgiveness. Recognizing your own need for mercy should make you merciful toward others.

Forgiveness and Reconciliation Aren't Identical

Forgiveness is unilateral. You release resentment whether or not the offender repents, asks for forgiveness, or changes.

Reconciliation is bilateral. It requires both parties—the offender must acknowledge harm, change behavior, rebuild trust.

You can forgive without reconciling. You can release your anger toward someone while not restoring the relationship if they're unchanged and dangerous.

Joseph's example: His brothers sold him into slavery. Years later, Joseph forgave them but tested them before fully reconciling. Forgiveness happened, but reconciliation required evidence of change.