Answer

According to Jainism, a jīva does not change its true nature because of a region or environment. The soul remains soul everywhere.

But the body that a jīva receives—such as elephant, human, bird, insect, etc.—is formed according to its karma, especially nāma karma and āyu karma. Environment may affect the body’s physical condition, habits, and adaptation, but Jainism does not say that environment alone creates the body.

Explanation

In Jain Dharma:

• Jīva is eternal — the soul exists from beginningless time.
• Body is temporary — it is obtained according to karma.
• Karma determines birth — whether one becomes an elephant, human, animal, heavenly being, or hellish being depends on karmic bondage.
• Region can influence the body — climate, food, surroundings, and habitat can affect physical features and behavior during that life.

So if an elephant lives in a specific region, its body may adjust to that region in ordinary physical ways. But from Jain philosophy, this adaptation is not the main cause of its existence as an elephant. The deeper cause is karma.

Is this a universal law?

In Jainism, the universal law is:

• Every jīva experiences birth, body, lifespan, pleasure, pain, and conditions according to its karma.
• Each soul is responsible for its own karmic bondage and liberation.
• The soul itself remains pure in its true nature, but appears bound due to karma.

So yes, karma as the cause of bodily existence is a universal law in Jainism. But the idea that “a body becomes a certain way only because of a region” is not the complete Jain view.

Spiritual Understanding

Jainism teaches that outer conditions are secondary. The main cause of embodied existence is karma attached to the soul. Therefore, the purpose of life is not merely physical adaptation, but purification of the soul through right faith, right knowledge, and right conduct.

Takeaway

According to Jainism, an animal’s body may adapt to its region, but the birth and form of that body are fundamentally due to karma. The universal Jain law is the law of karma, not environment alone.