Why not wear ornaments during pratikaman
Answer
In Jain Dharma, ornaments are generally avoided during Pratikraman because Pratikraman is a practice of repentance, humility, simplicity, and inner purification. Ornaments represent decoration, attachment, pride, and worldly identity, while Pratikraman asks us to turn inward with simplicity and detachment.
Explanation
During Pratikraman, a person reflects on mistakes committed through:
- Thoughts
- Words
- Actions
The purpose is to ask for forgiveness, reduce ego, and purify the soul.
Wearing ornaments can be seen as connected with:
- Rāga — attachment or liking
- Māna — pride or ego
- Śṛṅgār — bodily decoration
- Parigraha — possession or possessiveness
Pratikraman is not a time for outward beauty or display. It is a time for spiritual seriousness, discipline, and self-examination.
Spiritual Understanding
Jain Dharma teaches that the soul’s true beauty is not in the body or ornaments, but in qualities like:
- Forgiveness
- Humility
- Self-control
- Non-attachment
- Right conduct
By removing ornaments, one symbolically reduces attachment to the body and worldly possessions, and approaches Pratikraman with a pure and humble mindset.
Takeaway
Ornaments are avoided during Pratikraman to support simplicity, humility, non-attachment, and inner purification. The focus should be on cleansing the soul, not decorating the body.