Editor-in-Chief: Dr. H.A.Parshwanath

Vol.4      Issue 1

May 2005

Editorial

MAHATMA GANDHI AND JAINISM

     Mahatma Gandhiji, the great exponent of nonviolence, was greatly influenced by the principles of Jainism especially in the early part of his life. He has given prime importance to this aspect in his career. The Jain munis were meeting his father very frequently and discussing various dharmic and worldly aspects. His parents were clearly endowed with the influence of Jaina ascetics. His mother approached Becharji, a Jain saint, on the eve of departure of Gandhi to other countries. Gandhiji was advised to forbid nonvegetarianism during his stay abroad and he agreed to abide it and left for England. The practice of self control was observed by him. He aced many tribulations by following vegetarianism but never gave away the path. He was influenced by Raichand Bhai on his return from England. Raichand Bhai was a Jain poet and prolific writer who followed the principles of Jainism significantly. He was much admired by Gandhiji. Gandhiji always used to say that three people influenced him in his career, i.e. Raichand Bhai, Tolstoy through his work The kingdom of God Within You and Ruskin through his work Unto This Last. Raichand Bhai was a great follower of truth and his intense inclination to morality and religion incfluenced Gandhiji. Gandhiji used to seek advice by him whenever he was in turmoil's. He practiced good food habits and observed celibacy. He was a true Jain in practice. He followed the inner core of truth and non violence. He regarded truth as God. 'Service to truth is service to God' was his slogan. Satyagraha and non violence are indispensable to each other this brought Gandhiji nearer to Jainism. Gandhiji praised the teachings of Jainism and admired the division of community into shravakas and munis. One should remain pure and chaste in word and deed, one should not speak ill of others and always remain compassionate towards the needy. He condoned that attack of Pakistan on Kashmir in the year 1947 and always used to advice that one should not be revengeful towards the enimes. Religion was the basic element for observing satyagraha by Gandhiji. He opined that all religions of India gave importance to soul over body. He learnt observing the way of conducting fast and self retreat through Jainism. He considered politics only as a part of religion.                

-Dr. H.A.Parshwanath

11TH CENTURY PARSHWANATHA STATUE DRAWS A HUGE CROWD AT KASAMALIGE

Kasamalige (Karnataka), April 26: Kasamalige a small hamlet (situated in the Gokanatti Village panchayat in Khanapur taluk of Belgaum district, Karnataka) with a population of around 1600 has been the centre of attraction. It is due to the 11th Century Parshwanatha statue found  here while digging a foundation for the construction of primary school compound. It was a moment of hectic joy as well as anxiety for the toiled labourers when they noticed a flat stone submerged in the  mud. Slowly the dark green coloured monolithic statue of Parshwanatha emerged.

     After studying the inscription on the pedestal of the idol research scholars Dr.Bahubali Handura and Dr.R.M.Shadaksharaiah (Director of the Institute of Kannada studies, Karnataka University, Dharwad) have said that the statue might have belonged to the end of 11th century A.D. They also opined that the statue belonged to the period of the reign of Goa Kadambas who were ruling under the Kalyana Chalukyan king Vikramaditya VI. It is felt that this statue might have been buried deliberately due to some reasons like invasions by foes. The idol looks attractive even though it was amidst the mud and belonged to a period of not less than 1000 years. 

     The statue measures 47'' high and 19'' wide with a pleasant face, curly hairs and long ears attracting the viewers. The carving of the serpent begins from the right feet and ends on the top of the head with seven hoods. Atop the hoods is found an attractive carving of the umbrella. On the either sides of the idol are found small pillars on which are mounted the picturesqe makara torana. Parshwanatha statue is flanked on either side by seven inches high small idols of Yaksha Dharanendra and Yakshi Padmavathi on the right and left sides respectively. Scholars feel that ‘‘the Yaksha-Yakshi engraving on the statue prove that the tradition of worshipping them was, indeed, very ancient’’. They add that the theory behind yaksha worship had always been controversial.

The ancient Kannada (Halagannada) inscription on the feet of the idol reads as been carved by Hamashetty a disciple of Muni Sri Tribhuvana Chandraprabha of the Kasarmanage (Kasamalige) Basadi belonging to Sri Mulasangha, Balagara Gana.

With hardly 15 Jain families living in Kasamalige, efforts had been made since the past seven years for the construction of a Jain temple but invain due to several factors unexplained. The discovery of this statue has given a new impetus towards the construction of a shrine. The primary school premises has now been transformed into a sacred place and the visitors are busy worshiping by offering poojas and chanting bhajans. The village chiefs say that large crowds come here day and night. Devotees from neighbouring villages come in tractors, bullock-carts and other vehicles too.

Kasamalagi is situated at about 465 km from Bangalore on NH-4 and 56 km from Belgaum, the nearest district headquarters.  Belgaum is well connected by rail, road and air. - Jain Heritage Centres News Service

BAHUBALI JAYANTHI CELEBRATED AT SHRAVANABELAGOLA

GNANAMATHI MATHAJI'S DIKSHA GOLDEN JUBILEE

Sitapur (Mahbodabad, Uttar Pradesh): The Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Diksha of Sadhvi Gananipramukh Sri Gnanamathi Mathaji was held at Sitapur recently. It was on the same day 50 years ago that Sri Mathaji was initiated into the ascetic order by Acharya 108 Sri Virsagarji Maharaj (a disciple of Acharya Sri Shanthisagarji Maharaj). On the occasion of the 3000th Parshwanatha Jayanthi and Golden Jubilee celebrations a rathayatra of Lord Parshwanatha was organised. Thousands of devotees from across India attended the dharmasabha. Speaking on the occasion Kshullak Motisagarji said that Sri Mathaji was a guiding spirit to the thousands of devotees and recalled her contributions to Jainism. Aryika Chandanmathiji opined, "Sri Mathaji is a beacon light to the shravaks and tyagis". She recalled her achievements in the 53 long years of her ascetic life. She also said that the coming year would be observed as the 'Aryika Golden Jubilee Year'. During this period a compendium comprising the profiles of Aryikas of present and the past will be published according to Aryika Chandanamathiji. Gnanamathi Mathaji advocated that sacrifice and penance are the sheet anchors of achievements, patience and perseverance should be imbibed by everybody during one's life time. - Jain Heritage Centres News Service 

2604TH MAHAVIR JAYANTHI CELEBRATIONS

PRESIDENT’S GREETINGS ON THE OCCASION OF MAHAVIR JAYANTI

PRIME MINISTER GREETS NATION ON THE OCCASION OF MAHAVIR JAYANTHI

SCHOLARS AND ARTISTS ARE SOCIETIES WEALTH

-Swasti Sri Charukeerthi Bhattarakhji

Shravanabelagola, April 22: Swasti Sri Charukeerthi Bhattarakha Mahaswamiji the pontiff of the Shravanabelagola Jain Mutt opined that the Scholars and artists are the wealth of the society. He also felt that it was the duty of the society and Jain organisations to recognise and encourage them. He was speaking on the occasion of conferring the 26th Annual Gommateshwara Vidya Peetha Awards.

Jain scholar Dr.Nelam Jain from Haryana, astrology scholar Dr.S.K.Jain from Bangalore, Dr.S.V.Sujatha of Bangalore were conferred with the Sri Gommateshwara Vidyapeetha Literary Awards. Sculptor Sri R.Kalachar of Narayanagondahalli and Sri M.Brahmapal Jain of Channarayapatna were conferred with the Sri Gommateshwara Vidyapeetha Cultural Awards. The Yakshadegula Trust of Bangalore was conferred with the Sri A.R.Nagaraj Award for the propagating the literary works of poet Ratnakara. - Jain Heritage Centres News Service

MAHAVIR JAYANTI CELEBRATION AT THE INDIA HIGH COMMISSION, LONDON

London (U.K.), May 8: The annual Mahavir Jayanthi celebration in London was held at the prestigious venue of India House in Aldwych, on Sunday 8^th May, 2005.  HE the High Commissioner, Mr Kamalesh Sharma was the Chief Guest, accompanied by Mrs Sharma who inaugurated the event by lighting the traditional lamp.  The event hall at the High Commission was filled before the start time.                  

     On arrival, His Excellency was met by the Trustees of the Institute of Jainology and requested to unveil the granite pedestal donated by the Institute for the idol of Bhagavan Mahavir.  A plaque recognising the donation of the idol by Shri Sahu Ashok Jain, erstwhile Chairman of the Times Group of India was unveiled by His Excellency.  The idol will henceforth be permanently placed on this stand near his office in the High Commission.

     Mr Rajatava Bagchi opened the event with a welcome and introduction of the compere, Mrs Nisha Sheth who started the program by calling upon Samaniji Punya Pragya to recite Namaskar Mahamantra and Vitaraga Vandana.  Samaniji Pratibha Pragya then delivered a lecture on “Training in Non-violence and Mahavir”, explaining how one can cultivate non-violence through the three guptis: control over mind, speech and body.

     Smaniji Punya Pragya recited “Shanti Ka Sandesh” a poem by Acharya Shri Mahapragyaji as “The Message of Peace”.  Copies of the song with roman transliteration and meaning in English were distributed to the audience who joined in the chorus.

     Nisha introduced HE Mr Sharma to formally welcome the audience and to address them.  He expressed his pleasure in hosting the event at India House and praised the Jain community both here and in India for their contributions which always exceeded their comparative presence in numbers.  He recounted his personal experiences from his visits to Jain temples in Rajasthan and explained that the perfection in the architecture of the Jain temple and perfection of the idols established therein, though material perfections, reflected the spiritual perfection of the philosophy which was universal in its expression.  Through the example of Mahatma Gandhi, he demonstrated how Jain doctrines were relevant and practical in contemporary times.  In closing, he expressed his wish that this important celebration should continue every year and that the High Commission will host it with pleasure.

     A video disk depicting a dialogue between Bhagavan Mahavir and his first disciple Indrabhuti Gautam was projected.  As the play was in Gujarati, a translation sheet in English was provided to the audience.    

As the Director of Education for the Institute of Jainology, Mehool Sanghrajka had to travel at short notice, his paper presenting an ‘Update on the Jain Education Project’ was read by Harshad Sanghrajka.  It showed remarkable progress in the direction of developing text books and related material for introduction of Jainism in primary schools as well as the preparation of an Internet based course for which the software was already in place.

     Perhaps a surprising item for the UK was a presentation by Shri Nitin Mehta who informed the audience of the presence of some animal sanctuaries in the UK which needed support in terms of Jiva Daya from the Jain community.  He urged the Jains to support the efforts of the British people in protesting against the cruelty to animals.

     Mrs. Nisha Sheth then invited Mr Sharma to present certificates to 25 attendees who had completed the Birkbeck IOJ certification course titled: Jainism: History & Doctrine.  Certificates were also handed out to 13 participants of the Basic Prakrit Course which was run jointly with Jain Vishwa Bharati in the summer of 2004.

     Mrs Nitu Shah and her musical accompaniment entertained the audience with Jain stavans selected especially for the occasion.  As always, the audience was spell-bound by the lovely voice of Nitu and the beautiful accompaniment on the keyboard and tabla.  The audience was invited to join-in with the popular numbers.

     Shri Mahesh K Shah requested permission for a surprise announcement of the award of Doctorate to the father and son pair of Harshad N Sanghrajka and Mehool H Sanghrajka.  After giving some details of their theses, he suggested that this was probably an unprecedented event in history that such a pair received their doctorates at the same time. Their certificates were presented by HE the High Commissioner and the Deputy High Commissioner.

     A vote of thanks was presented by the Honorary Secretary of the Institute, Harshad N Sanghrajka, after which everybody was invited to enjoy Jain refreshments before departing for a safe journey home. News & Photo Courtesy: Jay S Mehta, Institute Of Jainology

TENSION AT HASSAN ON MAHAVIR JAYANTHI DAY

CENTRE FOR RESEARCH ON JAINISM SOUGHT

New Delhi, April 22: The president of the Indian Bar Association, R. K. Jain, on Friday urged the Union Government to set up a centre for research and learning of Jain scriptures. Speaking at a function organised by the Jain Samaj Delhi to celebrate Mahavir Jayanti, the birth anniversary of Lord Mahavir, at Parade Ground here, Mr. Jain said the philosophy of Jainism preached by Lord Mahavir and other Tirthankars should be spread for the benefit of mankind. "For this, it is essential that authoritative books on Jainism be published and circulated to the universities of the world." He also suggested inclusion of Jainism in university syllabus chapters.

     While throwing light on the teachings of Jainism, Mr. Jain said the principles enshrined therein have solutions to all the problems and conflicts being witnessed in India and other parts of the world and thus stressed the importance of propagating the message of "ahimsa" (non-violence). He also said that Mahatma Gandhi's message of non-violence was also purely based on the preaching of Jainism. The well-attended meeting ran for nearly three hours and was also addressed by the former Delhi Chief Minister and BJP leader, Madan Lal Khurana, who emphasised the importance of the teachings of Lord Mahavir and Tirthankars, and Member of Parliament, Pushpesh Pant.

Procession: To mark the Mahavir Jayanthi a procession of more than 2,000 people was observed at New Delhi. The procession started from Jain Mandir (New Rohtak Road) in West Delhi and reached Gangeshwar Dham Mandir in Central Delhi. The procession started around 9 a.m. and observed the following route: Jain Mandir (New Rohtak Road)-Dev Nagar-Ganga Mandir Marg-Vishnu Mandir Marg-Jain Mandir Marg-Ajmal Khan Road-Kishan Dass Marg-Jain Mandir Chhapparwala-Faiz Road-East Park Road-Gangeshwar Dham Mandir. -News Courtesy: The Hindu

HYDERABADI'S CELEBRATE MAHAVIR JAYANTHI IN A UNIQUE WAY

Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh), April 22: Unlike the Jains in other cities the Hyderabadi's celebrated Mahavir Jayanthi in a unique way. It was through the inauguration of the Jain Gallery at the Andhra state museum. The new Jain Gallery housed in a restored heritage building consists of 39 sculptures, two inscriptions and one thorana. The granite sculptures are of Mahavira, Bahubali, Jain Saraswati and Jain Thirthankaras. The 11th century monolith of Mahavira made of red sandstone and the granite rashi chakra - with the 12 zodiac signs and astadikpalas or eight cardinal directions are rare discoveries made in Patancheru. Just beside this will be an auditorium that will hold art exhibitions from time to time. The Jain Seva Sangh of the twin cities contributed for this gallery in a perfect gesture of bridging community and museums. Says member Bharlal Bhafna "We are proud of our heritage that has stood the test of time and this effort will help spread the message of Jainism. The simple tenets can be followed by anyone and will surely benefit future generations." - Jain Heritage Centres News Service & JAINDHARM.NET 

CHANDIGARH JAIN'S CELEBRATE MAHAVIR JAYANTHI

FIRST NATIONAL MAHAVIR MAHATMA AWARDS CONFERRED WITH THE LAUNCH OF ONENESS FORUM

New Delhi: The universe is one. It is merely our perception which causes us to see differences - be it in human beings, their colour, nature, and even time and space. This was the essence of the discussions at the launch of the Oneness Forum at a glittering function held at Vigyan Bhavan on Wednesday. The event also saw the distribution of the Mahavir Mahatma Awards to organisations working in the field of human welfare and spiritual enlightenment.

Spiritual Guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Vice-President Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, Home Minister Shri Shivraj Patil, Defence Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee, Soka Gakkai dignitaries from Japan, industrialist B.K Modi, Shri Mahamantra Das, Musician A. R Rehman graced the occasion in an illuminating ceremony. The function began with Mahavir Stuti which was followed by prayer offerings to Tulsi.

Mrs Indu Jain in her lively speech enthralled the audience and urged them to unite in this endeavour of creating oneness not only in small communities but across the globe. She said: "The forum is a helipad, a launching for everyone. Come let's begin your campaign of oneness from here.'' Stressing on the motto of oneness, she said: You can achieve anything you want if you help enough people to get what they want. ''For the first time in history, a Sikh Sardar like Mr. M.S.Bitta being a non jain celebrating Mahavir Jayanti was a great step towards Oneness.

Sri Sri said: "Nature is diverse yet it is one. There is one human race, one truth and that's why this endeavour becomes significant.'' Complimenting the initiative Patil said: "This is a wonderful effort to propagate the ideals of unity." Narrating an interesting anecdote, Mukherjee emphasised on how power can never determine the course of civilisation has never been determined by forces of power.

The proceedings of the programme saw some interesting moments with Sri Sri mesmerising the audience with an 18-minute meditation.
The Mahavir Mahatma Awards are being conferred on youthful and active members of various socio-economic, spiritual and religious groups at ceremonies which shall be held at district, state, national and global levels.

The awards for the national and global levels were given away to Martha Merchant of Baha'i Foundation, Hiromasa Ikeda on behalf of Dr Daisaku Ikeda from Soka Gakkai International (SGI), Tushar A Gandhi from Mahatma Gandhi Foundation, Brahmatej Ji from the Art of Living Foundation, Swami Nisarga from Isha Foundation, Shulamith Ezekiel Malekar from Judah Hyam Synagogue, Ranjit Makkuni and Dr Madhu Khanna from Sacred World Foundation, musician A R Rehman, Namman Ji from Oneness University and Shashi Kumar Nair from Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram. The Times Group sponsored Rs 10 lakh worth of prizes in kind.

A.R.Rehman Presented With The Mahavir Mahatma Award. In the picture are seen chairman of Times Foundation Mrs. Indu Jain, Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Spiritual Guru Ravishankar.

A.R. Rehman said "I am honoured to get this award. I hope this endeavour brings people together.''

Expressing his father's "lasting gratitude to Times Foundation for conferring this award,'' Hiromasa read out Dr Daisaku Ikeda acceptance speech and said: "Given the greatness of the two giants whose names adorn this award, its recipient bears an enormous weight of expectation for he or she must be actively engaged in the worthiest of endeavours to establish lasting peace for humanity.'' He added that peace and youth may prevail in the 21st Century.

Sri Sri concluded the event explaining the essence of M & M: "If you tell a child M&M, it is a brand of chocolate. For students, it is Marks and Music. For young people, it is money and marriage. For managers, it is management and marketing. For businessman, it is money and market. For philosophers and historians, it is Mahavir and Mahatma, For Oneness, it is M for you and M for me". Sri Sri was also conferred the prestigious Bharat Shiromani Award on this occasion.

The purpose of the Oneness Forum is to unite global humanitarian organisations for collective actions to save and transform mankind by social, political and spiritual awakening. This is a part of a series of events being organised across the country to acknowledge and felicitate youth leaders from various social, spiritual and economic groups. The broader vision is to support and mobilise a network of those involved in positive change, peace initiatives and cultural integrity. -News & Photo Courtesy: Times Foundation

Feature..

ONENESS FORUM - A GLIMPSE

     Oneness Forum possesses a unique vision, mission and structure. It is constituted of an advisory council with foregoing tasks and has the firm foothold consisting of the secretariat, membership, communications and financing as follows:

Its vision is to create a forum of convergence and not just unite socio-economic, spiritual and Faith based belief systems.

The mission of the Oneness Forum is to enable collective engagements of global Faith based and spiritual organisations.  It will engage communities to converge for sustainable action.

Structurally, the Forum will work with pre-eminent Faith based leaders and communities.  Councils of the Oneness Forum will be located at various spiritual and Faith based organisations.

Advisory Council is composed of eminent leaders from the Faith based and spiritual communities.  The board would consist of business, government, media, academic and thought leaders to help create the bridge between belief systems, government and the business and community. The Advisory Council would guide and engage the regional councils and each will have co- Presidents and a Secretary who will relate with the Advisory Council. The Advisory Council will have a rotating President every year, who will look closely and guide the activities of the Forum and provide new directions for growth and change.

Tasks of Advisory Council

· Inter faith synergies and engagements would be monitored to evolve perspectives

· Work towards active promotion of mutual respect

· Mobilizing and empowering youth to play a more active role in conflict resolution and reconciliation  

· Preserve and conserve ancient traditions and wisdom

· Identification of events to draw synergy with spirituality and religion

· To promote sharing and compassion among various beliefs

· Hear, consider and propose solutions for disputes

· Propose recommendations to global bodies i.e., World Council of Religious Leaders, United Nations, Local and  

  National governments, Parliament of Worlds Religions etc.

· Work towards collective next generation leadership programs with inter faith experiential learning

· This board will help raise the funds to implement the programs of the Oneness Forum.

· Guidance in developing and selection process for Mahavir - Mahatma Award.

The secretariat

· The Secretariat plays a key role in coordinating action plans derived from the numerous global and national declarations that have been passed in the many conferences and seminars held on these issues.

Membership

· The Oneness Forum invites distinguished representatives of major Faith based, spiritual and socio economic organisations. Membership is by invitation conferred from the Oneness Forum. Balanced representation from belief systems is maintained.

Tasks of regional councils

· Assist formation and implementation of regional, national and global level directives of the Forum.

· Establish working task groups for promoting compassion and preventing maladies i.e., gender bias, socio-economic disparities and terrorism.

· Create forums to dialogue upon concerns of religions and spirituality.

· Create linkages with local governance and communities.

· Community development with synergy of local Ngo’s and developmental organisations.

· Integrate business and professional organisations to work towards localised peace and socio economic equality.

· Invite co-members of Oneness Forum to initiatives for sustained interactions and continuation of dialogue and action plans.

Communications

· All communications will be centralised at the website of the Forum i.e. www.onenessforum.indiatimes.com

· Ongoing contributions are invited in order to enable the building of online communities integrating with offline interactions

· Annual reports will be published online

· Statements of inclusion into the Advisory Council, regional council’s information, upcoming regional events, ongoing program updates etc will be updated on a regular basis

Financing

· A corpus is being instituted.  Financial support will be called upon from Faith based organisations, foundations, corporations, individuals, government and multi/bilateral agencies.     

Feature..

WORKING PATTERN OF ONENESS FORUM

The Formation of the Advisory Oneness Forum of the Oneness Forum will lead towards the formation of the  Steering Committee and plan for meetings and Forum objectives of the goals of the forum.This Forum will apply for ECOSOC membership of the United Nations. The unique role of the Oneness Forum is the formation of a common platform to forge an alliance of religious and spiritual leaders with the global bodies to address global problems. 

Non Violence and commitment to converging communities fostering peace and common action agendas would be areas that the Advisory Oneness Forum would work towards.  Youth and Women who play multiplier effects in communities would be the focus audience target of all Advisory Oneness Forum action plans.  

The Mission, Structure and activities of the Oneness Forum would be reviewed by the first Advisory council of the  Oneness Forum with participatory inputs.  These would include:

Structure, Funding, Response methodologies and other steps.

For Further Details Of the "Oneness Forum" please visit website: http://oneness.indiatimes.com/

NATIONAL CONVENTION OF AKHIL BHARATVARSHIYA DIGAMBAR JAIN PARISHAD

TAMILNADU JAINS DEMAND MINORITY STATUS

GRAVE YARD ISSUE FOR MINORITIES TAKEN UP

JAINA- USA  OFFERS- VIRCHAND RAGHAVJI SCHOLARSHIP

JAINA-USA, had established Shri Virchand Raghavji Gandhi Scholarship to honour and commemorate the centenary of the great historical event of the first ever organised Parliament of World Religions held in 1893 at Chicago, U.S.A.. Shri V.R. Gandhi, the great Jain Scholar   attended it as a representative of the  Jain Religion. He was a first Jain  to spread Bhagwan Mahavir's message of universal love, brotherhood, compassion and nonviolence to the West in person.

This scholarship is  awarded to students doing M.A, M.Phil, Ph.D in  Jain Literature, Philosophy, Sculpture, Temple architecture,etc. at recognised institutions and Universities. Eligible students are requested to download the form from the website www.jaina.org /VRG Committee and fill in all the particulars carefully,attach required documents duly certified by the institution head and send the COMPLETED FORM  to Mrs Raksha Shah, 71-B/1, Adarsh Bldg, Saraswati Road,Santacruz [ West ] Mumbai-400054, tel-91-22-26490164, e-mail  shahraksha99@yahoo.com before the 31st of July 2005. For further details contact Dr Gulab Dedhia-91-22-26240020 Dr Nilesh Dalal-91-22-25115918 or Niranjan shah-91-22-22811660. News Courtesy: shahraksha99@yahoo.com  

JAINHERITAGECENTRES.COM GETS 'BEST SPIRITUAL SITE - 2005' AWARD

Mysore (Karnataka), April 27: WWW.JAINHERITAGECENTRES.COM has been awarded with the Best Spiritual Site - 2005 Award by WWW.SPIRITANDSKY.COM. Spiritandsky.com is the internets authority hub for spiritual related websites. Ms Amy Lui the junior editor of Spirit and Sky in her message said "Jain Heritage Centres is  a fine example of what a spiritually oriented site should be!"

PANCHAKALYANAS

New York:The panchakalyana pratishta mahotsav of the newly constructed Jain temple at New York (USA) will be held from Friday - June 10, 2005 to Sunday June 19, 2005. The consecration of the Lord Adinatha temple of the Digambar tradition will be held on Wednesday, June 15, 2005. The inauguration of the Dhyasn Mandir (Meditation Hall) of Srimad Rajachandra tradition will be on Friday, June 17, 2005. The Mahavir Swami Temple  of the Swethambar tradition and Dadawadi will be held on Saturday, June 18, 2005. 

Sargur: The panchakalyana pratishta mahotsav of the newly renovated Ananthanatha Swami Jain temple and a Chowmukha to be consecrated in the manasthambha at Sargur will be held from Wednesday 8th June 2005 to Tuesday 14th June 2005. The panchakalyana pratishta will be held under the guidance of His Holiness Swasti Sri Bhuvanakeerthi Bhattarakha Swamiji of the Kanakagiri Jain Mutt and His Holiness Swasti Sri Dhavalakeerthi Bhattarakha Swamiji of the Arihanthagiri Jain Mutt.  

Kallola: The panchakalyana pratishta mahotsav of Bhagawan Adinatha as the main deity, Bhagawan Parshwanatha in the pinnacle and a choumukha idol to be consecrated in the Manasthambha will be held from 10th to 26th May 2005. The panchakalyana proceedings will be held under the guidance of Yuvacharya 108 Sri Gunadharanandi Maharaj and Swastisri Jinasena Bhattarakh Maharaj of the Nandani Jain Mutt. Swastisri Vrushabhasena Bhattarakha Maharaj of the Lakkavalli Jain Mutt and Swastisri Dharmasena Bhattarakha Maharaj of the Amminabhavi Jain Mutt will grace the proceedings. Kallola is situated in the Chikkodi taluk of Belgaum district (Karnataka).

JAIN HERITAGE TOURS & TRAVELS Catering to your travel needs in south India... Specialists in Jain Tour packages Contact us for accommodation. Houses available for rentals on monthly basis in Mysore and Bangalore on the occasion of Mahamasthakabhishekha of Lord Bahubali at Shravanabelagola in 2006. Travel options in more than 25 specialised Jain routes in South India.  For Further Details Contact: info@jainheritagecentres.com Cell: 91-09880818869

Tigadolli: The panchakalyana pratishta mahotsav of Chowmukha idol of Bhagawan Shanthinatha in the Manasthambha at the Bhagawan Sri Shanthinatha Jain temple will be held from 15th to 20th May 2005. The panchakalyana proceedings will be held under the guidance of Swastisri Lakshmisena Bhattarakh Maharaj of the Kolhapur Jain Mutt. Muni 108 Sri Samudrasena Maharaj and other ascetics will grace the  occasion. Tigadolli is situated in the Bylahongala taluk of Belgaum district at a distance of 45 Kms from Belgaum.

Sampagaon: The panchakalyana pratishta mahotsav of Bhagawan Shanthinatha as the main deity, Bhagawan Mahavir in the pinnacle and the choumukha idol of Bhagawan Shanthinatha in the Manasthambha will be held from 10th to 14th May 2005. The panchakalyana proceedings will be held under the holy presence of Muni 108 Sri Gunabhushana Maharaj, Muni 108 Sri Dharmasena Maharaj, Muni 108 Sri Samudrasena Maharaj, Muni 108 Sri Gunabhushana Maharaj, Swastisri Lakshmisena Bhattarakh Maharaj of the Kolhapur Jain Mutt and Swastisri Jinasena Bhattarakh Maharaj of the Nandani Jain Mutt.

Kesti: The panchakalyana of the Jain idols to be consecrated at Shikar and Manasthambha of the Jain temple in Kesti village of Hukkeri taluk will be held from 11th to 15th May 2005.  - Jain Heritage Centres News Service

JAIN PUBLICATIONS

JAIN PUBLICATIONS AVAILABLE AT HINDI GRANTH KARYALAY:

BHAGAVATI SUTRA Vol. 1
VYAKHYA PRAJNAPTI
Prakrit Gatha - Hindi exposition - English exposition; with a glossary
Ed. by Pravartaka Amar Muni, Shrichand Surana Saras
Eng. tr. by Surendra Bothra
14 Oil paintings by Dr. Trilok Sharma reproduced on art plates
2005    250 x 190 mm    584 pp    14 colour plates
Hardcover    Rs. 600.00

PRAMEYAKAMALAMARTANDA (Sanskrit)
A Sanskrit exposition on Manikyanandi's "Parikshamukham"
By Prabhacandra
Ed. with Intro., Indices, etc. by Mahendrakumar Nyayacarya
Foreword by V.N. Jha
Pub. by Nirnayasagara Press in Mumbai, 1941
1990    220 x 145 mm    755 pp
81 7030 206 4    Hardcover    Rs. 500

For copies of these books please contact:

HINDI GRANTH KARYALAY, Booksellers and Publishers, 9, Hirabaug, C.P. Tank, Mumbai 400004, India
Phone: + 91 - (0) 22 - 23826739, Email: manish.modi@mtnl.net.in, Web: www.hindibooks.8m.com

READERS VOICE...

- Anand Jain

The main intention of this column is to provide a platform to the news of even the small villages spread all over India. We here by request our readers to kindly send the news of the pooja mahotsav's in the Jain temples taking place at the nooks and corners of the world.

Nellikaru (Karkala Taluk, Udupi District, Karnataka): The annual rathayatra of Bhagwan Sri Ananthanath Swamy Jain Temple was organised on the 16th of April, 2005 under the guidance of Swasti Sri Lalithakeerthi Bhattarakh Swamiji of the Karkala Jain Mutt. The chip whip of the Government of Karnataka Sri Abhay Chandra Jain presided the religious meet organised on the occasion.  

Sankigatta (Magadi Taluk, Bangalore Rural District, Karnataka): The annual pooja mahotsav of Bhagawan Sri Vardhamana Swamy and Brahma Yaksha at the Jain temple was held on the 15th of May, 2005 under the guidance of Swasti Sri Lakshmisena Bhattarakh Swamiji of the Narasimharajapura Jain Mutt. On the occasion Bhaktamar Aradhana, 1008 Kalash Abhisheka, cultural programmes and religious discourse were organised.  

Bantwal (Dharwad District, Karnataka): The annual pooja mahotsav of Bhagawan Sri Adinatha Swamy Jain temple was held on the 10th of March, 2005. On the occasion the palki procession of Goddess Padmavathidevi was also held.   

Tuesday 17th May 2005 -  Diksha Kalyana of Bhagawan Sumathinatha.

Wednesday 18th May 2005 - Kevalagnana Kalyana of Bhagawan Mahavira.

Friday 20th May 2005 - Annual pooja Kallu Basadi at Venur.

Monday 23rd May 2005 - Samadhi day of Acharya Deshabhushan Maharaj.

Wednesday 25th May 2005 - Garbha Kalyana of Bhagawan Parshwanatha.

Tuesday 31st May 2005 - Kevalagnana Kalyana of Bhagawan Munisuvratha, Samadhi day of Acharya Jayakeerthi.

Wednesday 1st June 2005 - Janma Kalyana and Diksha Kalyana of Bhagawan Munisuvratha.

Friday 3rd June 2005 - Samadhi day of Sri Arhaddasji of Huncha.

Saturday 4th June 2005 - Garbha Kalyana of Bhagawan Dharmanatha.

Sunday 5th June 2005 - Moksha Kalyana of Bhagawan Neminatha.

Saturday 11 June 2005 - Moksha Kalyana of Bhagawan Dharmanatha, 133rd Birth day of Charitra Chakravarthi Sri Shanthisagaji Maharaj.

Sunday 12th June 2005 - Shrutapanchami, Vardanthi Utsava of Sri Bhuvanakeerthi Bhattarakha Maharaj of Kanakagiri (Chamarajanagar district, Karnataka).

Sunday 19th June 2005 - Janma Kalyana and  Diksha Kalyana of Bhagawan Suparshwanatha.

Monday 27th June 2005 - Garbha Kalyana of Bhagawan Shreyamsanatha.

Additions as on 1st May 2005:

Calendar Wallpapers

Heritage Of Shravanabelagola: Jain Temples Of Chandragiri - I

Additions as on 15th May 2005:

Heritage Of Shravanabelagola: Jain Temples Of Chandragiri - II