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Religions
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Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology
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Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 17766

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Christopher Key Chapple

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, CA 90045, USA
Interests: Sanskrit literature; Samkhya philosophy; yoga; Jainism; Buddhism

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Ecological issues loom worldwide. Climate change wreaks havoc on glaciers and disrupts regular patterns of rainfall and wind velocity. The Sixth Great Extinction threatens diversity of life on Earth. Plastic waste pollutes the oceans and human physiology. Social media distorts human perceptions of reality. The traditions of India offer resources for rethinking the relationship between humans and the Earth. Hindu philosophy invites recollection of intimacy between the Self and the Universe. Jain theories of life call for a recognition of the power of the smallest bacteria (nigoda) to affect and infect larger organisms and ecosystems. Yoga counsels vigilance in matters of diet and consumption. This Special Issue of Religions explores ideas and practices from India that might offer healing for the intimate biosystem of the human body and the larger ecosystem of the planet.

Prof. Dr. Christopher Key Chapple
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Religion and Ecology
  • Jain Ethics
  • Veganism
  • Hindu Ethics
  • Yoga

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2201 KiB  
Article
Framing the Pandemic: An Examination of How WHO Guidelines Turned into Jain Religious Practices
by Claire Maes
Religions 2022, 13(5), 377; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel13050377 - 19 Apr 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2277
Abstract
This paper identifies and examines a Jain narrative that frames Jain tenets as being in line with some of the most impactful COVID-19 measures. It demonstrates how during the early stages of the pandemic (i.e., mid-March 2020 to January 2021), some Jains drew [...] Read more.
This paper identifies and examines a Jain narrative that frames Jain tenets as being in line with some of the most impactful COVID-19 measures. It demonstrates how during the early stages of the pandemic (i.e., mid-March 2020 to January 2021), some Jains drew parallels between various Jain principles and the WHO guidelines, finding agreement, for instance, between the muhpattī (“face cloth”) and the public face mask and the dig-vrata (a Jain vow of restraint) and social distancing. This paper shows how some also viewed several unintentional consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic (such as not being able to go shopping during the lockdown) as being in line with Jain practices (here the practice of aparigraha or non-possessiveness). By means of an analysis of two Jain writings on the WHO guidelines, I demonstrate how some Jains framed several COVID-19 measures within a distinctive Jain worldview. I argue that the equation of Jain practices with the WHO guidelines should be understood within the ongoing universalization and scientization of Jainism, processes that present Jainism as a universal and scientific solution to global disasters, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology)
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20 pages, 723 KiB  
Article
Jain Veganism: Ancient Wisdom, New Opportunities
by Christopher Jain Miller and Jonathan Dickstein
Religions 2021, 12(7), 512; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel12070512 - 08 Jul 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 6451
Abstract
This article seeks to elevate contemporary Jain voices calling for the adoption of a vegan lifestyle as a sign of solidarity with the transnational vegan movement and its animal rights, environmental protection, and health aspirations. Just as important, however, this article also seeks [...] Read more.
This article seeks to elevate contemporary Jain voices calling for the adoption of a vegan lifestyle as a sign of solidarity with the transnational vegan movement and its animal rights, environmental protection, and health aspirations. Just as important, however, this article also seeks to present some of the unique features of contemporary Jain veganism, including, most specifically, Jain veganism as an ascetic practice aimed at the embodiment of non-violence (ahiṃsā), the eradication (nirjarā) of karma, and the liberation (mokṣa) of the Self (jīva). These are distinctive features of Jain veganism often overlooked and yet worthy of our attention. We begin the article with a brief discussion of transnational veganism and Jain veganism’s place within this global movement. This is followed by an overview of Jain karma theory as it appears in the Tattvārtha Sūtra, an authoritative diasporic Jain text. Next, we present two case studies of contemporary Jain expressions of veganism: (1) The UK-based organization known as “Jain Vegans” and (2) The US-based organization known as “Vegan Jains”. Both organizations have found new opportunities in transnational veganism to practice and embody the virtue of ahiṃsā as well as Jain karma theory. As we will show, though both organizations share the animal, human, and environmental protection aspirations found in transnational veganism, Jain Vegans and Vegan Jains simultaneously promote ahiṃsā to varying degrees in service of the Jain path to liberation. We conclude the article with a brief reconsideration of Marcus Banks’s diasporic “three tendencies” model to demonstrate how contemporary manifestations of Jain veganism compel us to revisit our understanding of diasporic expressions of Jain religious belief and praxis. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology)
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8 pages, 203 KiB  
Article
Relationality and Revelation: Early Hindu Ecological Visions
by Rita D. Sherma
Religions 2021, 12(7), 465; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel12070465 - 24 Jun 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2908
Abstract
This article, titled Relationality and Reverence: Hindu Ecological Visions, for the Special Issue on “Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology”, edited by Christopher K. Chapple, focuses on the relationship of early Hindu texts (Samhitas and Upanishads) to the natural world. In relation to this [...] Read more.
This article, titled Relationality and Reverence: Hindu Ecological Visions, for the Special Issue on “Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology”, edited by Christopher K. Chapple, focuses on the relationship of early Hindu texts (Samhitas and Upanishads) to the natural world. In relation to this effort, it is first necessary to recognize the value that ecotheologians confer on the recovery of epistemologies of respect for the earth’s ecosystems for recontextualizing theoethics and theopraxis for a viable future. The fabric of Hindu thought, from its inception, has contained strands which have been informed by a deep reverence for, and profound intimacy with, the natural world. Much of this perception and practice has become attenuated in the modern era. This paper will seek to draw attention to some key principles and perspectives within early Hindu textual traditions that can and should be ecotheologically re-evisioned for ecosystemic and societal sustainability within the “global” Hindu ethos. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology)
12 pages, 1771 KiB  
Article
A Reinterpretation of Hindu Spirituality for Addressing Environmental Problems
by Ashutosh Awasthi
Religions 2021, 12(5), 358; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/rel12050358 - 18 May 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 5261
Abstract
Global environmental change is a serious threat to our existence and requires immediate actions from every dimension of our efforts. The cultural pathway has much potential to address environmental problems because it is expected to promote environment-friendly behavior in people. However, its implementation [...] Read more.
Global environmental change is a serious threat to our existence and requires immediate actions from every dimension of our efforts. The cultural pathway has much potential to address environmental problems because it is expected to promote environment-friendly behavior in people. However, its implementation on the ground requires a wise coordination of the cultural and scientific ways of thinking. Hinduism has great potential to embrace environment-friendly behavior due to its receptivity to change and tendency of adopting and theologizing new developments. However, due to the presence of a wide gap between theoretical philosophy and actual practices, the potential of environmental sensibility, inherent in Hindu spirituality, could not be harnessed. Here, I reinterpret the key concepts of Hinduism in the light of modern scientific wisdom for their synchronization with current challenges. I identify some solutions for promoting environment-friendly practices in Hinduism through the coordination of science and culture. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Hinduism, Jainism, Yoga and Ecology)
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