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  • What would Jainism look like today if Mahavira never reformed it, and it was left the way Pārśva reformed it instead?
  • author Posted by
    Jain Follower

    What would Jainism look like today if Mahavira never reformed it, and it was left the way Pārśva reformed it instead?

    yesterday 13

    Answer

    Sorry, I can only provide information that is clearly established within Jain tradition.

    Explanation

    Jain tradition clearly teaches that Lord Pārśvanātha and Lord Mahāvīra are both Tīrthankaras, and that Lord Mahāvīra re-established and organized the Jain saṅgha for his time.

    However, the question asks for a hypothetical alternate history: what Jainism would look like today if Lord Mahāvīra had not appeared or had not reformed the tradition. Jain tradition does not provide a definite answer to such a scenario.

    What can be said within Jain tradition

    Within accepted Jain understanding:

    • Lord Pārśvanātha taught the fourfold restraint: non-violence, truth, non-stealing, and non-possession.
    • Lord Mahāvīra emphasized the five great vows by explicitly adding celibacy as a separate vow.
    • Lord Mahāvīra organized the fourfold Jain saṅgha: monks, nuns, laymen, and laywomen.
    • Both are revered as Tīrthankaras, not as ordinary reformers.

    Takeaway

    A respectful Jain answer is: we can explain the known differences between the traditions associated with Lord Pārśvanātha and Lord Mahāvīra, but we cannot definitively say what Jainism would look like today in a hypothetical world without Lord Mahāvīra’s re-establishment of the Dharma.

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