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Apart from this, the Jains also carry out a 10 day celebration
called the Paryushan Parv in the Indian calendar month of
“Bhadra pada" which is also nothing but a celebration of
renunciation. All Jains young and old, Sadhus and
Gruhasthas — do observe some kind renunciations in these
days which could even be a 10 day fast without food and
water. This makes 58 days of fasting or food renunciation in
an year.ln the 10 days of Paryushan Parv, each of the 10
days (under the Digambar sect) stand for particular dharma
as follows:-
Day 1- day of Kshama — seek forgiveness
Day2 - day of Mardav - abjure wanton pride
Day3- day of Aarjav - adopt simplicity and avoid deceit
Day 4- day of Satya - Speak and adopt truth
Day 5 - day of Sauch - adopt peity and purity in life
Day 6- day of Sanyam - adopt discipline and curb desires
Day 7- day of Tap - observe penance or "Tapasya”
Day 8 - day of Tyag - renunciation
Day 9- day of Ankinchan - reduction of desires to possess
material things
Day 10- day of Bhramcharya - renunciation of all worldly
pleasures including sexual pleasures
At the end of Paryushan Parv the day of Kshmavani is
celebrated when all jains seek forgiveness for their conduct
from others irrespective of the age, social status and
relationship. This mutual exchange of forgiveness even with
the younger ones is intended to rid a person of his wanton
pride and anger and leads to purification of his soul.
BECAUSE in shwetambara sect of Jains, the practice of
“maaskhaman" is popular which involves fasting for one
month drinking only warm water once a day. The lain
acharyas follow even stricter forms of renunciation i.e having
food only once a day limiting themselves to 32 morsels
including water and renouncing the food if the desired
conditions are not met. (For a detailed reference on the
lifestyle of Jain Acharyas the Petitioner craves leave to
relavent portions of the Jain scriptures at the time of
hearing). It is submitted that not only this. several other
forms of renunciation like Dana (donations) and Aparigraha
(limiting the number of facilities you enjoy) is also practiced
widely. As is clear from the above, Jain religion seeks to
achieve happiness by abjuring desires for material
pleasures. It is believed that these desires lead to passions
and bondage of "karma" which binds the soul and prevent it
from attaining eternal bliss. Therefore the concept of
renunciation to achieve eternal bliss is at the very core of
Jainism which cannot be achieved without Tyag, Aparigraha
and Veetragta and hence all forms of Tyag, Aparigraha and
Veetragta constitute an essential religious practice which
distinguishes it from other religions where God is worshipped
for seeking material well being.
BECAUSE Sallekhana or Santhara is an extension of the basic
philosophy of renunciation followed by the jains through out
their lives. It is submitted that renunciation or Tyag and
Aparigraha are the very basic tenets ofjain philosophy and
is at the core of the very philosophy of the religion. It is
submitted that all Jains do practice them in their daily lives
in some form according to their ability. They seek and
endeavor to raise their spiritual level and decrease the influx
of karma by taking up stricter renunciations of material
pleasures for reduction of anger, deceit, wanton pride and
greed. This process of renunciation, and finding
contentment, detachment from passions and hatred, is a
way of life and goes on through out the life. The vow of
Sallekhana is nothing but a systematic process of
renunciation in which first the person tries to get himself rid
of all gross passions, hatred, attachment, anger, pride,
greed, deceit and finds contentment in renunciation of
material pleasures. It is a process of curbing all desires —
desires which lead to passions - which are responsible for
the influx of karmas - which ultimately results in bondage of
the soul and loss of the state of eternal bliss. In the Jain
faith, a soul never dies, it only changes bodies till it achieves
Moksha or the state of eternal bliss. Thus death, in Jainism,
is not an end but a mere change, a departure of the soul
from the body in order to acquire a new one unless the soul
attains moksha. The state of eternal bliss is the state where
the soul is pure and without the bondage of karma or body
and is thus free from the cycle of birth and rebirth. Thus to
get out of the said cycle, a vow of sallekhana is essential. At
which stage of the cycle birth and re-birth a person may be
is not known and this is error which the Honble High Court
has committed to decide whether this practice forms a core
of the religion. The High Court views the Jain religion
followed by an individual in the spectrum of one life span
only and therefore considers that since all Jains do not take
Santhara or Sallekhana it cannot be termed as an essential
religious practice. Thejain faith on the contrary is not limited
to one life span and but accepts birth and rebirth until the
soul attains moksha. Whether the soul gets liberated and
achieves the eternal bliss is dependant on the karmas of all
births and re-births which accumulate to decide the
liberation of the soul - at which stage of birth and re-birth a
person actually is not known. The soul would ultimately get
liberated only after being rid of all bondages or karmas. The
basic concept underlying a vow of Sallekhna or Santahara is
to prevent "influx" of new karmas so as to liberate the soul
from bondage of karmas. Thus sallekhana forms the core of
the philosophies of the Jain ideology.
BECAUSE The word “sallekhana” is derived from the word
“sat" and "lekhna". Sat means “samyak" i.e. rational or true,
“lekhna" means a gradual weakening of the
passions/desires. Thus by Sallekhana a person seeks to
renounce mundane desires, weaken the bondage of karmas
and to achieve the consequent state of eternal bliss. Thus
Sallekhana is only a continuation of the practice of
renunciation and curbing of desires which a Jain follows
throught his life. The culmination of Sallekhana is Santhara.
Though the words Sallekhana and santhara are used
synonymously there is difference between the two. The
preparatory penance to overcome all forms of bondage is
called Sallekhana and embracing death whenever it comes.
in a state of peace and equanimity of mind is called
samadhimaran or Santhara . It is also to be noted that
Santhara cannot be taken on ones own choice and can be
taken only if permitted by the sadhak gurus, family, friends
attained the goals of their lives and after the powers of the
body have exhausted, Indian saints in the normal course
deny the body adopting the path of great liberation. In
Brahamic tradition is called living Samadhi and under the
Jain auspices it is termed Santhara. The right to die or to end
one's life is not something new or unknown to civilization.
Some religions like Hindu and Jain have approved of the
practice of ending one’s life by once own act in certain
circumstances while condemning in it other circumstances.
Among Jain, practice of Sallenkhana is still prevalent. The
Ratnakarnda sravaka car (chapter 5) of Samantshadra
(about 2"“ century A.D.) diaates on Sallenkhana which
consists in abandoning the body for the accumulation of
merit in calamities, famines extreme old age and incurable
disease.
BECAUSE in the case of Smt. Gyan Kaur the Hon'ble
Supreme court while acknowledging that right to life does
not include a right to die but it was clarified as under:-
The ‘right to life’ including the right to live with human
Qgnity would mean the existence of such a right up to
the end of natural life. This also includes the right to a
Qinified life up to the point of death. includinu a
dignified procedure of death. In other words, this may
include the right of dying man to also die with dignity
when his life is ebbing out. But the “right to die” with
flinity at the end of life is not to be confused or
Quated with the “right to die” an unnatural death
curtailing the natural span of life"
It is submitted that the process of sallekhana is part and
parcel of the right to life with dignity and to live the duration
of the life in the manner one chooses to individually. The same
cannot be forced upon the in the matter in which others think
it to be appropriate.
Grounds for interim Relief:
That in the final judgment and order dated 10.8.2015 passed
by the H0n‘ble High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan for Jaipur in
D B Civil Writ petition no. 7414 /2006, the petitioner has prima