Jain communities

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The Jains in India are the last direct representatives of the ancient Shramana tradition. People who practice Jainism, an ancient religion of the Indian subcontinent, are collectively referred to as Jains.

Contents

Sangha

Jainism has a fourfold order of muni (male monastics), aryika (female monastics), Śrāvaka (layman) and sravika (laywoman). This order is known as a sangha.[ citation needed ]. Many Jains are in general caste.

Cultural influence

The Jain have the highest literacy rate in India, 94.1.% compared with the national average of 65.38%. They have the highest female literacy rate, 90.6.% compared with the national average of 54.16%. [1] [2]

As per national survey NFHS-4 conducted in 2018 Jains were declared wealthiest of any community with 70% of their population living in top quintiles of wealth. [3] The sex ratio in the 0-6 age group is the second lowest for Jain (870 females per 1,000 males).

Communities

Jains are found in almost every part of India. There are about 100 different Jain communities in India. They can be divided into five groups based on historical and current residence:

Central India

Western India

Northern India

Southern India

Eastern India

Diaspora

Virchand Gandhi made a presentation of Jainism at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893, marking one of the earliest appearances of Jainism outside India. [4] The World Jain Congress was held in Leicester in 1988. [5]

Population

The Jain population in India according to 2011 census is 0.54% i.e. 4,451,753 (Males 2,278,097; Females 2,173,656) out of the total population of India 1,210,854,977 (males 623,270,258; females 587,584,719). [8] The tabular representation of Jain population in the major states of India as per 2011 Census data released by the government is:

S. No.StatePersons (total)Persons (rural)Persons (urban)Male (total)Male (rural)Male (urban)Female (total)Female (rural)Female (urban)
1India4,451,753904,8093,546,9442,278,097467,5771,810,5202,173,656437,2321,736,424
2 Maharashtra 1,400,349269,9591,130,390713,157140,476572,681687,192129,483557,709
3 Rajasthan 622,023166,322455,701317,61484,649232,965304,40981,673222,736
4 Gujarat 579,65444,118535,536294,91122,357272,554284,74321,761262,982
5 Madhya Pradesh 567,028109,699457,329291,93757,431234,506275,09152,268222,823
6 Karnataka 440,280220,362219,918225,544113,598111,946214,736106,764107,972
7 Uttar Pradesh 213,26730,144183,123110,99415,85295,142102,27314,29287,981
8 Delhi 166,231192166,03985,6059485,51180,6269880,528
9 Tamil Nadu 89,26510,08479,18145,6055,04440,56143,6605,04038,620

It is likely that the actual population of Jains may be significantly higher than the census numbers.[ citation needed ]

The Jain population in United States is estimated to be about 150,000 to 200,000. [9] [10]

In Japan, there are more than 5,000 families who have converted to Jainism and is growing faster there. [11]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jain vegetarianism</span> Set of religion-based dietary rules

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jainism in India</span> Indias sixth-largest religion

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rishabhanatha</span> First Tirthankara of Jainism

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neminatha</span> 22nd Jain Tirthankara

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Porwal</span>

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References

Citations

  1. "Jains steal the show with 7 Padmas", The Times of India , 9 April 2015
  2. "Literacy race: Jains take the honours", The Times of India , 7 September 2004
  3. "Delhi and Punjab richest states, Jain wealthiest community: National survey". 13 January 2018.
  4. J. Gordon Melton & Martin Baumann 2010, p. 1555.
  5. Dundas 2002, p. 246.
  6. 1 2 Gregory, Robert G. (1993), Quest for equality: Asian politics in East Africa, 1900-1967, New Delhi: Orient Longman Limited, p. 26, ISBN   0-863-11-208-0
  7. Mehta, Makrand (2001). "Gujarati Business Communities in East African Diaspora: Major Historical Trends". Economic and Political Weekly. 36 (20): 1738–1747. JSTOR   4410637.
  8. Office of registrar general and census commissioner (2011), C-1 Population By Religious Community, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India
  9. Lee, Jonathan H. X. (21 December 2010), Encyclopedia of Asian American Folklore and Folklife , ABC-CLIO, pp.  487–488, ISBN   978-0-313-35066-5
  10. Wiley, Kristi L. (2004), Historical dictionary of Jainism, Scarecrow Press, p. 19, ISBN   978-0-8108-5051-4
  11. "Thousands of Japanese making a smooth transition from Zen to Jain". Hindustan Times. 23 February 2020.

Sources