10 days of the daslakshan parv
Here are the 10 days of the Das Lakṣaṇa Parva (Daśa-lakṣaṇa Parva), with the supreme virtues (lakṣaṇas) each day focuses on. This festival is especially observed by Digambar Jains; Śvetāmbara traditions may observe Paryuṣaṇa differently, but the core tenets of the ten virtues are shared.
The ten days and their meanings:
- Uttam Kṣamā — Supreme Forgiveness: forgiving all beings and letting go of anger or grudges.
- Uttam Mardava — Supreme Humility (gentleness): behaving with modesty and without pride.
- Uttam Arjavasya (Arjava) — Supreme Straightforwardness/Honesty: speaking and acting honestly, simply, without deceit.
- Uttam Śaucā (Śaucha) — Supreme Purity/Contentment: keeping inner and outer purity; contentment with what one has.
- Uttam Satyā — Supreme Truth: speaking the truth and avoiding falsehood.
- Uttam Saṃyama — Supreme Self-restraint: controlling senses, desires, and passions; practicing restraint.
- Uttam Tapa — Supreme Austerity: enduring hardships; practicing penance and self-discipline.
- Uttam Tyāga — Supreme Renunciation: renouncing attachments and possessions.
- Uttam Akiñcanya — Supreme Non-possessiveness: minimalizing possessions; reducing attachment to material things.
- Uttam Brahmacharya — Supreme Celibacy/Chastity: restraint and purity in mind and conduct.
Notes:
- This is the Digambara presentation of Daś Lakṣaṇa Parva; Śvetāmbara communities often relate these virtues to Paryuṣaṇa and its practices in a broader way, with similar ethical aims.
- The days are typically observed with readings or discourses on the corresponding chapters of authoritative Jain texts, and many practitioners undertake varying degrees of fasting or vow observances corresponding to the day.