A serious question
August 24, 2010 2 Comments
This is an honest question that I seriously doubt any of my readers would know, but I think it’s worth asking (it’ll also be worth looking up on Wikipedia after I post this):
Do Jains drive?
Jains are, after all, notorious for going so far in their quest not to kill any living thing that they sweep the ground before them so they won’t kill bugs and limiting even what vegetables they eat so they can avoid killing plants.
So, are there Jains who drive? I ask this because I have seen my car after I drive in the spring and summer, and the front of it is typically covered in dead bugs.
There’s no real judgment to this, except my usual thought that the Jain principle of non-violence is necessarily impossible for a human to achieve. We kill by existing; we must kill to fuel our bodies, and our bodies kill through no action of our own just to maintain basic health. I appreciate the good intentions of the philosophy, I really do.
I just hope, for their peace of mind, Jains all live within walking distance of work.
Dubito Ergo Sum 
A while back on the Atheist Experience there was a call from a Jain, and he made it sound like it was only the hardcore Jains (the monks intent on being really strict about the not killing) actually went to the trouble of covering their mouths and sweeping the way in front of them to avoid accidentally killing things.If that's the case then I would think the average Jain wouldn't have a problem driving but might be a pretty careful driver when they did. The hardcore Jain monks wouldn't really have a need for it.Besides, most of them are in India, and my impression is that a lot of Indians don't drive.
Oddly, growing plants in fact necessitates that animals die. What do you think plants eat? Dead animals!The logical gap in all these fringe thinking circles is astounding. never mind that a car burns dead animals to move. "The Vegetarian Myth" is a book i am currently reading, because i was always suspicious of vegans claiming they consumed no animal or byproducts.