Topic– Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers from India and world.
7) Discuss the relevance of the teachings of Lord Mahavira, in the contemporary world. (250 words)
Directive word
Discuss- this is an all-encompassing directive which mandates us to write in detail about the key demand of the question. we also have to discuss about the related and important aspects of the question in order to bring out a complete picture of the issue in hand.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to write in detail about the teachings of the great Indian spirit, Lord Mahavira and bring out their relevance for the present times.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– write a few introductory lines about the Lord Mahavira. E.g mention the relationship with jainism etc.
Body-
Discuss in points the teachings of Lord Mahavira and their relevance in contemporary world. E.g
- According to Lord Mahavira to remain attached to sensuous objects is to remain in the whirl.
- He says “Misery is gone in the case of a man who has no delusion, while delusion is gone in the case of a man who has no desire, desire is gone in the case of a man who has no greed, while greed is gone in the case of a man who has no attachment.”
- The efforts made to satisfy the human desires through material objects can be likened to the chopping off of the branches while watering the roots.
- Thus we can conclude that the lust for and the attachment towards the objects or worldly pleasure is the sole cause of human suffering- degradation of traditional morality, environment and quality of life.
- In Jainism non-violence is the pivot on which its whole ethics revolves.
- For Jains violence represents all the vices and non-violence represents all the virtues. Non-violence is not a single virtue but it is a group of virtues.
- Non-violence is nothing but to treat all living beings as equal. The concept of equality is the core of the theory of nonviolence. The preaching of non-violence is to honor the each and every form of life.
- According to Jaina point of view, all the barriers of caste, creed and color are artificial. All the human beings have an equal right to lead a peaceful life etc.
Conclusion– based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the given issue.
