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High Court stays auction of
jain temple artefacts
Bangalore, March 12, 2010: The High Court has stayed the auction of 139 artefacts belonging to Adinath Jain Temple Trust at Chickpet in the City.
Hearing a petition by G Parasmal and four others, the division bench headed by Justice V Sridhar Rao has stayed the auction. The petitioners had moved the High Court to prevent
the demolition of 90-year-old temple and protect the artefacts and sought directions to convert it into a museum. The respondents had planned an auction on March 24.
Jain principles relevant to problems of modern world: Sonia Gandhi
New Delhi, March 8, 2010 (PTI): Congress president Sonia Gandhi today stressed the relevance of Jain
principles to tackle the problem of violence and terrorism afflicting the modern world.
Gandhi also underlined the importance of politics that believes in non-violence,
environment-centric development and taking all sections together. The Congress president said she belongs to a political tradition that believes in these values."World is facing problems of violence and
terrorism..In such darkness, the
light to save humanity is found in the philosophy of Jain religion," Gandhi said
while addressing a silver jubilee programme of Jain organisation Kund Kund
Bharti.Eulogising the philosophy of Anekantwad (Recognition of the relativity of truth
from the perspective of life in this world), Gandhi said," there could be many
aspects of a problem and it can be seen from various angles."
The philosophy teaches one to respect others' beliefs, she said, adding it establishes democratic values.
The Congress president also handed over a cash award of Rs5 lakh and a citation
given by the organisation to professor Natalia Zhelznova.Zhelznova, a professor of Moscow University,
translated various books on Jainism into Russian language.Gandhi also inaugurated a library and a newly constructed building of the Jain
organisation.Chief minister of Delhi, Sheila Dikshit, and minister of state for rural
development Pradip Jain Aditya and Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi also attended the programme. |
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Jewellery worth Rs 7.12L stolen from Khadia derasar
AHMEDABAD, Feburary 22, 2010: A Jain derasar has filed a complaint with Khadia police against a
priest's helper at the temple for theft of Rs 7.12 lakh. According to complaint
filed by Vijay Shah, a resident of Ellisbridge and a trustee of Shreyansnath
derasar in Shamla ni Pol, Khadia, the accused Jeetendra Singh Chauhan, a helper
with a priest from Rajasthan, has stolen 33 kilograms of silver ornaments worth
Rs 6.60 lakh and 44 grams of gold ornaments worth Rs 52,800 from the safe of the
derasar. "According to trustees, the jewellery was used only for one big religious event
on Phalguni Sudi Trij every year and was kept in the safe for rest of the time.
The safe is never opened by other men. However, Chauhan somehow got hold of the
key or made a duplicate one and stole the jewellery between February 28, 2009
and February 17, 2010," said RB Nimavat, inspector of Khadia police station and
the investigating officer in the case. According to city police officials, it is one of the biggest thefts reported
from a religious place in recent times. Source: The Times of India
Trust of oldest Jain temple in Mumbai fined Rs 10 lakh
MUMBAI, Feburary 17, 2010: An internal inspection by the Mumbai Heritage Conservation
Committee (MHCC) has found the city’s oldest Jain temple, Kot Shantinathji Derasar, to
have lost its historical importance and character because of careless repair
work carried out by the caretakers.The temple, which is being rebuilt entirely in white Makrana marble, stands in
the middle of the congested Bora Bazaar area near Fort and is a listed Grade II-B heritage structure.
The MHCC has slapped a penalty of Rs 10 lakh on the trust for carrying out the
work that has “led to loss of temple architecture, unique to the fabulously rich
history of Mumbai”. “We had given them permission for repair and reconstruction as per the Jain
religious code. But when an inspection was carried out, it was found that a
gross violation of norms had taken place. Since the trust did not do its work
faithfully and dutifully, the committee sought it fit to penalise them,” said committee chairman Dinesh Afzulpurkar.
The ghar-derasar style gained prominence at a time when the country was
constantly facing threats from marauding intruders of the 17th and 18th
centuries. The grand ghar-derasars were camouflaged inside structures that
looked like ordinary homes. “Many of these derasars were built in Kalpa
Sutra- style murals and intricate wooden structures, More then the architectural
damage, we have penalised them to set an example on others,” said a member. Source: The Times of India |
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Court restrains committee from damaging Yanaimalai a Jain cavern
Madurai , February 12, 2010 : The Madras High Court Bench
here on Thursday restrained a high- level committee, constituted by
the State government on December 30 to consider the possibility of
creating a sculpture park by carving the Yanaimalai near here, from
causing any damage to the hillock. Passing interim orders on a
public interest litigation petition challenging the constitution of
the committee headed by Commissioner of Archaeology Department,
Justices Prabha Sridevan and B. Rajendran said that it should not
even take rock samples from the hillock without obtaining permission from the court.
The judges also ordered notices to the Union Ministry of
Environment and Forests, Archaeological Survey of India, State
government represented by the Tourism Secretary, Madurai Collector,
Yanaimalai Othakadai panchayat president and a few other officials
returnable in four weeks.Ms. Justice Sridevan said that the court
prima facie did not find any reason for altering the Yanaimalai,
which derived the name from its resemblance to an elephant in
squatting posture. “We think that the particular rock formation
itself is unique. It is a record of history of evolution,” she said.
A. Mahaboob Batcha, managing trustee of the Society for
Community Organisation (SOCO) Trust, a voluntary organisation here,
filed the PIL petition. He sought a direction to the Union
government to acquire the hillock and ensure its proper protection
without disturbing its original character. According to him, the
hillock was a solid block of gneiss approximately 3 km long and
90 metres tall. Stating that it resembled the Ayers Rock of
Australia, he claimed that the hillock had been declared as a
protected monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological
Sites and Remains Act, 1958. It has sites of archaeological
importance such as a Jain cavern with Bas Relief of Mahavira,
Parsuvanath and others. Ancient Tamil Brahmi scripts on the hillock
describe it as ‘Ivakunram,’ meaning elephant hill. The Narasinga
Perumal temple on the hill also contains ancient Tamil Vattalethu
inscriptions.The petitioner alleged that the plan to crack the
hillock would only benefit the “granite lobby.” Already several
hills in the district had been razed to exploit granite.
Source: The Hindu
11
panchaloha idols includes a 1,000-year-old idol of Parsavanatha recovered
CHENNAI, February 02, 2010: Sleuths of the economic offences wing (EOW) have busted a
seven member idol theft gang and seized 11 panchaloha statues worth Rs 1 crore stolen from
temples in Tiruvannamalai, Ve l l o re and Kancheepuram districts.“The recovered loot includes a 1,000-year-old idol of 23rd
Tirthankara Parsavanatha from the Digambara Jain temple in Isakulathur, Tiruvannamalai
district,” G Thilagavathi, ADGP, EOW, told presspersons here on Monday." The
idol weighs 23 kg and is priceless,” she said. Source: Express News Service
Primary schools should teach about Jainism and Zoroastrianism in RE
January 30, 2010: Children as young as five should be given lessons in minority religions such as
Baha'i, Jainism and Zoroastrianism, according to Government guidance. Pupils in primary schools should be taught about “world faiths”, even though
many only have a few thousand followers in Britain.
Religious education classes should also cover atheism alongside Christianity and
five other major religions - Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism and Hinduism. Legal row over humanism in religious studies It is the first time the Government
has produced guidance specifically tailored towards primary schools, although
teachers do not have to follow it. Diana Johnson, the Schools Minister, said it was vital that children developed a
good understanding of other people’s beliefs.
“This means learning about Christianity and other religions like Islam, Hinduism
and Judaism, but also considering other secular beliefs such as humanism and
atheism,” she said. “Our society has never been so diverse, and good religious
education plays an important role in helping to keep this country a tolerant and
inclusive place to live.
“RE goes much further than just helping children understand why different people
believe different things: it also gives them the chance to ask questions about
their own beliefs and spirituality, and provokes challenging ethical questions.”
Religious education is compulsory in all state schools. But it is not on the
national curriculum. Instead, syllabuses are drawn up locally by committees of officials, teachers
and religious groups. The latest guidance is intended to help improve the standard of lessons in
primary schools.
The document says: "To ensure that all children's backgrounds and experiences
are taken into account, it is recommended that there are also opportunities to
study other religious traditions such as the Baha'i faith, Jainism, and
Zoroastrianism, and secular world views, such as humanism, where appropriate."
The Baha'i faith, which believes all religions have true and valid origins, has
around 6,000 observers in Britain.
Jains believe in living lives of harmlessness and renunciation and are often
vegetarians or celibate. There are thought to be 30,000 in Britain.
Zoroastrianism is based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster, who founded the
religion in ancient Iran 3,500 years ago. Followers believe there is a cosmic
war being waged between good and evil and number some 140,000 worldwide.
The Government’s guidance says that schools which have a significant religious
community living nearby could learn about that faith.
Source: Telegraph Media Group
Bangalore
Governor Favours Cow Slaughter Ban Legislation
Bangalore, January 18, 2010: State Governor, H R Bharadhwaj,
advised the saints and the Sanyasis to exert pressure on the
government for enacting anti cow slaughter legislation. He was
speaking after inaugurating the World Peace Conference organized by
Oswal Parishad in the city on Sunday January 17. Lamenting that a
blanket ban on the slaughter of cows has not yet been enforced
in the country, he suspected this to be the fall out of the
political equations of projecting enforcement of a ban on cow
slaughter as a religious issue. As far as conserving of the cow
breeds, politics should not have any say, he opined.
“Shunning of all kinds of violence has been the crux of
every religion. No one should talk lightly of other religions. We
should develop high regard for every other religion. None of the
religions in the world glorify violence. Still, Jainism is the only
religions that has, since its inception, been vociferously upholding
non-violence,” he felt. Source: Daijiworld Media Network
Panchaloha idols stolen from a Jain temple seized
MALAPPURAM, January 12, 2010: The Perinthalmanna police
recovered two panchaloha idols worth crores of rupees from two
separate locations in Malappuram and Palakkad districts and
arrested five persons in connection with the incident on Sunday
night. The idols - a panchaloha idol of goddess Uma Maheshwari
weighing 9.5 kg and another idol weighing five kg - were
reportedly stolen from a Jain temple. Based on the information given
by the arrested, the police took them to Palakkad and recovered the
second idol from a house at Ottappalam.
According to sources, the house belonged to a Congress
leader. According to the police, the seized idols have a market
value of around Rs 7 crore. The arrested were produced before the
Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Perinthalmanna on Monday
and were remanded. The police said that they got valid clues from
the arrested about those having links with the idol theft.
Investigation has been expanded to nearby states to net the aides of
the arrested. Source: Expressbuzz |
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Dalai Lama visits Jain pilgrim town of Palitana
Bhavnagar, Jan 3 (PTI) Tibetan spiritual leader The Dalai Lama today visited the
Jain pilgrimage town of Palitana near here and delivered a religious discourse
along with Jain scholars. "The 20th century belonged to science and technology. The present 21st century
would belong to spirituality and non-violence," Dalai Lama told reporters.He said Jainism and Buddhism are in the forefront for promoting peace and
non-violence around the world. "Jainism and Buddhism are like twins who have brought along with them the
message of oneness and non-violence for the world," he said.
Dalai Lama also visited a camp for the physically challenged where over 25,000
disabled people are being treated free of cost. The camp, called 'Mobility Camp' being held in Palitana began on December 23 and
would continue till January 9. He later visited the Jain temples in Palitana town and interacted with Jain
scholars. |
Tibetan spiritual leader
Dalai Lama |
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