Answer

In Jain Dharma, life is not seen as a random one-time phase of nature. Every living being has a jīva — a soul — and the soul’s journey continues through many forms of existence due to karma.

Dinosaurs, humans, animals, insects, plants — all are different bodily forms. But the Jain view is that the soul is different from the body. Bodies arise and disappear, but the soul continues until it becomes completely free from karma.

Explanation

According to Jain philosophy:

• Soul is permanent — it exists beyond one physical body.
• Body is temporary — it changes from birth to birth.
• Karma connects the soul to worldly existence — our actions, passions, attachments, anger, ego, deceit, and greed bind karma.
• Life has a spiritual purpose — to understand the true self, reduce karma, practice non-violence, and move toward liberation.

So from a Jain perspective, a dinosaur was also a living being with a soul. Its body belonged to a particular time and species, but the soul inside was part of the endless cycle of birth and death, called saṃsāra.

Spiritual Understanding

The point of life in Jain Dharma is not merely survival, pleasure, or evolution of bodies. The deeper point is:

• to recognize that “I am a soul, not just a body,”
• to stop creating harmful karma,
• to purify oneself through right faith, right knowledge, and right conduct,
• and ultimately attain mokṣa — complete freedom from birth, death, suffering, and karma.

Nature changes. Species come and go. Bodies are temporary. But Jain Dharma teaches that the soul’s bondage and liberation are the real spiritual issue.

Takeaway

Dinosaurs were a phase in nature, but the soul is not just a phase. In Jain Dharma, the purpose of life is to rise above temporary bodily existence and move toward the soul’s pure, liberated state.