Chapter 9 Jaina Traditions Test Bank Answers

Chapter 9

Jaina Traditions

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The Jaina ritual of sallekhana involves which of the following?
   1. Meditating for long periods of time
   2. Sweeping the path before walking
   3. Fasting unto death
   4. Carefully cleaning statues of Mahavira
   5. Straining all water to avoid killing small insects
2. According to the Jaina tradition, the path to happiness, truth, and self-realization is the path of which of the following?
   1. Total dependence on God
   2. Total opposition to worldly power
   3. Action
   4. Aggression
   5. Restraint
3. The Jaina community is well known for which of the following?
   1. Its worldly success
   2. Its strong social identity
   3. Its business acumen
   4. All of the above
   5. None of the above
4. What does the term “Jina” mean?
   1. Ascetic
   2. Sage
   3. Victor or conqueror
   4. Warrior
   5. Poet
5. What is another name for Jinas, the highest expressions of the Jaina ideal?
   1. Chakravartins
   2. Tirthankaras
   3. Bodhisattvas
   4. Gurus
   5. Sadhus
6. Who was Mahavira?
   1. The first Jina
   2. The tenth Jina
   3. The twenty-fourth Jina
   4. The forty-eighth Jina
   5. The twenty-third Jina
7. The idea of the chakravartin in Jaina tradition refers to which of the following?
   1. The “bridge-builder” across samsara
   2. The ideal benevolent ruler
   3. The soul belonging to all living things
   4. A non-believer
   5. A great spiritual teacher
8. Which of the following best describes the Arhat or perfected being in Jaina tradition?
   1. The perfect warrior
   2. Entirely detached from worldly concerns
   3. Divine, as a god
   4. Benevolent emperor
   5. World conqueror
9. What does “ahimsa paramo dharma” express as the supreme path in the Jaina tradition?
   1. Clear-mindedness
   2. Worldly success
   3. Power
   4. Non-violence
   5. Happiness
10. What is the estimated number of Jainas worldwide?
    1. 5 to 8 million
    2. 20 million
    3. 15 to 25 million
    4. 1 to 2 million
    5. 10 to 15 million
11. In the Jaina tradition, what does the term jiva refer to?
    1. Eternal soul that each life form possesses
    2. Acts of violence that keep us trapped in samsara
    3. Deities that live in other realms
    4. Supreme reality of the universe
    5. Rules of conduct that all Jainas must follow
12. According to Jaina teaching, acts of harm, even unintentional, result in which of the following?
    1. Reincarnation outside the human realm
    2. One hundred extra lifetimes before liberation
    3. Punishment in hell
    4. Karmic bondage
    5. Greater inability to understand the teachings of the Jinas
13. What does the Jaina Acaranga Sutra (“Scripture of Correct Conduct”) focus on?
    1. The interconnectedness of all things
    2. Proper sexual conduct
    3. The rules of ethical leadership in government
    4. The sallekhana ritual
    5. The requirement of non-violent action
14. What term do Jainas use to refer to the momentary awakening of the conscious mind catching a glimpse of the pure soul, the starting point of Jainism?
    1. Ajiva
    2. Samyak darshan
    3. Tirthankara
    4. Samsara
    5. Ahimsa paramo dharma
15. What is the English meaning of samyak darshan?
    1. Right action
    2. Impure thought
    3. Right faith
    4. Misguided intuition
    5. Peaceful heart
16. What are the two main Jaina sects?
    1. Ahimsa and Rsabha
    2. Digambara and Mahavira
    3. Agama and Caturvidhyasangha
    4. Digambara and Svetambara
    5. Theravada and Mahayana
17. What does the name of the Jaina sect Svetambara literally mean?
    1. Sky-clad
    2. Final life
    3. White-clad
    4. Non-harmer
    5. Ascetic
18. What does the name of the Jaina sect Digambara literally mean?
    1. White-clad
    2. Final life
    3. Ascetic
    4. Sky-clad
    5. Non-harmer
19. What issues have divided Jainas?
    1. The worship of images or idols
    2. Whether harm can be done to “pests”
    3. The use of “living beings” such as flowers, water, and fire in worship
    4. Both A and C
    5. All of the above
20. Jainism arrived on the historical scene as part of the same shramana movement that gave rise to what other religion?
    1. Islam
    2. Sikhism
    3. Hinduism
    4. Zoroastrianism
    5. Buddhism
21. What is the meaning of the term shramana?
    1. Pleasure-renouncing
    2. World-renouncing
    3. Disciple
    4. Asceticism
    5. Life-renouncing
22. Whom do Jainas revere as the most recent of the Jinas in this time cycle, sometimes considered the “founder” of present Jainism?
    1. Neminath
    2. Rsabha
    3. Mahavira
    4. Buddha
    5. Parsavanath
23. What does the Jina Mahavira’s name literally mean?
    1. Great Hero
    2. Saint
    3. Stream-crosser
    4. Ford-builder
    5. Great Conqueror
24. What prenatal myth is associated with the Jina Mahavira?
    1. He miraculously prematurely emerged from the womb, only to re-enter it later.
    2. His presence in the womb caused his mother to levitate.
    3. Animals from all over India attended his mother before birth.
    4. He began teaching even inside the womb.
    5. His embryo was miraculously transferred from a brahmin woman’s womb to that of Queen Trisala.
25. According to Jaina tradition, how many Jinas appear in every time cycle of generation and degeneration?
    1. 24
    2. 12
    3. 5
    4. 48
    5. 2
26. According to Jaina teaching, when was the cosmos created?
    1. No specific time, but when God willed it so
    2. 6 million years ago
    3. 42 billion years ago
    4. 13.7 billion years ago
    5. It is timeless and has no point of origin
27. According to Jaina tradition, Jaina teachings are only accessible to what form(s) of life?
    1. Animals
    2. Deities
    3. Humans
    4. Both B and C
    5. All of the above
28. What is the four-fold community (sangha) of Jainism made up of?
    1. Monks, nuns, laymen, laywomen
    2. Men, women, animals, microscopic life forms
    3. Priests, warriors/rulers, merchants, servants
    4. Senior monks, junior monks, senior nuns, junior nuns
    5. Kings, ministers, householders, children
29. What was the proportion of women in the early Jaina community?
    1. Roughly equal numbers of women and men
    2. Virtually all women
    3. More women than men
    4. More men than women
    5. Virtually no women
30. What do many sources suggest was the original turning point in the fourth century C.E. split between the two Jaina groups?
    1. One group moving to the south and developing in isolation
    2. Disagreement over who Mahavira suggested as his successor
    3. Dispute over whether or not women should be admitted into the community
    4. Warfare over control of the community’s land
    5. Fighting over the financial support of the lay community
31. Why did the Digambara Jaina sect hold that women are ineligible for full membership in the community?
    1. They menstruate.
    2. They were thought to be less rational than men.
    3. Mahavira was a man.
    4. They were thought to be incapable of detaching themselves from worldly desires.
    5. It is impossible for them to go naked.
32. What was unusual or different about the nineteenth Jina (Mallinath), according to Svetambara tradition?
    1. It was an animal.
    2. She was female.
    3. He never manifested in human form, only as a voice heard by disciples.
    4. He died as a child.
    5. He never left the world.
33. The teachings and sacred literature of the present time cycle are believed to have been first propounded by which Jina?
    1. Mallinath
    2. Neminath
    3. Mahavira
    4. Rsabha
    5. Parsavanath
34. What is the name of the Jaina canon?
    1. Bhagavad Gita
    2. Tripitaka
    3. Ahimsa
    4. Agama
    5. Dravya
35. What second-century text is cherished by both the Svetambara and Digambara Jainas?
    1. The Lotus Sutra
    2. The Nataktrayi
    3. The Tattvartha Sutra
    4. The Angabahya
    5. The Satkhandagama
36. According to Jaina cosmology, the entire universe is made up of what two broad categories of substances?
    1. Samyak caritra and samyak darshan
    2. Jiva and ajiva
    3. Ajiva and pudgala
    4. Samsara and moksha
    5. Punya and paap
37. According to the Jaina tradition, what is the most fundamental existential problem that prevents the soul from achieving a state of bliss?
    1. We do not have a living Jina to teach us.
    2. Humans have “fallen” from a state of perfection.
    3. Humans are born in a state of sin.
    4. We are incapable of restraining our cravings in the degenerate cycle of time.
    5. Jiva and ajiva are thoroughly enmeshed.
38. According to the Jaina tradition, what are the names of the two types of karmic particles, auspicious and inauspicious?
    1. Jiva and ajiva
    2. Punya and paap
    3. Puja and samayika
    4. Samsara and moksha
    5. Kala and dharma
39. What are some possible explanations as to why the Jainas resisted the influence of Hindu devotionalism in the medieval period far more successfully than the Buddhists?
    1. The strong support of Jaina ascetics by Jaina householders.
    2. Willingness to resist with force when necessary.
    3. The decentralized nature of Jaina groups.
    4. Both A and C
    5. All of the above
40. What are the “Three Jewels” of the Jaina tradition?
    1. Jivas, ascetics, laypeople
    2. Karma, moksha, Jiva
    3. Correct practice, correct intuition, correct knowledge
    4. Rsabha, Parsavanath, Mahavira
    5. Buddha, Dharma, Sangha
41. What is the main purpose of Jaina practice?
    1. To constantly accumulate as much good karma as possible
    2. To gain the favour of the gods
    3. To withdraw from society completely to avoid pollution
    4. To memorize as much as possible the scriptures
    5. To purify the soul by impeding the accumulation of new karma and burning off old karma
42. What are the five mahavratas (“great vows”) taken by all Jaina ascetics?
    1. Non-harm, truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy, non-attachment
    2. Prayer, meditation, fasting, celibacy, vegetarianism
    3. Right effort, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right concentration
    4. Truthfulness, non-stealing, non-attachment, non-killing, meditation
    5. Non-harm, non-stealing, celibacy, non-attachment, meditation
43. Which of the following is NOT an obligation on Jaina ascetics, in addition to the five mahavratas?
    1. Repentance
    2. Equanimity (samayika)
    3. Eating only what they kill themselves
    4. Homage to teacher
    5. Praise to the Jinas
44. For 48 minutes a day, Jaina devotees practice which of the following?
    1. Praying at the foot of a statue of a Jina
    2. Chanting
    3. Samayika meditation or reflection
    4. Missionary work in the neighbourhood
    5. Sallekhana
45. Which term refers to the “small (or lesser ) vows” that govern Jaina lay life?
    1. Anuvratas
    2. Tirthankaras
    3. Mahavratas
    4. Jivas
    5. Shramanas
46. What is the name of the central prayer in Jainism?
    1. Om
    2. Namokar Mantra
    3. Sakra Stava
    4. Pratikramana
    5. Nembutsu
47. What do Jainas commemorate in the festival of Divali (Deepavali)?
    1. The harvest
    2. The liberation (moksha) of Mahavira
    3. The end of the rainy season and period of sustained interaction between the same group of householders and renouncers
    4. The birth of Mahavira
    5. The defeat of the evil king/demon Ravana
48. What are the Five Auspicious Events (Panch Kalyanaka), to which almost all Jaina cultural expressions are tied?
    1. Birth, naming, initiation into adulthood, parenthood, and death
    2. The births of each of the final five Jinas of this time cycle
    3. Mahavira’s birth, renunciation, first lesson, final lesson, and liberation
    4. Prayer, meditation, fasting, temple-building, and almsgiving
    5. Conception, birth, renunciation, omniscience, and moksha in the lives of the Jinas
49. Since the time of Mahavira, the majority group to respond to the call of Jainism?
    1. Men from age 20–30
    2. Poor men and women
    3. Elites
    4. Women
    5. Men from age 30–50
50. The ideas of womanhood and female piety in Jainism are which of the following?
    1. Modesty, patience and chastity
    2. Prudence, wisdom and meekness
    3. Humility, courage and calmness
    4. Tolerance, hospitality and fragility
    5. Weakness, submissiveness and instability
51. What most highly esteemed path in Jainism is made available to women?
    1. Chastity
    2. Modesty
    3. Humility
    4. Mysticism
    5. Renunciation
52. In the Jaina tradition, who was Chandabala?
    1. Female mystic
    2. Female poet
    3. Female warrior
    4. Female renouncer
    5. Female musician
53. There is said to have been how many female disciples under the tutelage of Chandabala?
    1. 12
    2. 36
    3. 2,400
    4. 12,000
    5. 36,000
54. Through whose efforts does the institution of Jaina mendicancy exist?
    1. Lay men
    2. Monks
    3. Lay women
    4. The acharyas
    5. Nuns
55. What has been the central contemporary issue for Jainas in India?
    1. High levels of poverty and illiteracy amongst the Jaina community
    2. Defining Jaina identity as distinct from Hinduism, and Jainism as a world religion
    3. The drastically decreasing numbers of Jainas
    4. Systematic persecution by the Hindu majority
    5. Forming a separate, independent state governed by Jainas

True or False Questions

Most Jainas believe in a Creator God.

All Jaina ascetics are required to undertake the sallekhana ritual, fasting to death.

The term Jina means “victor” or “conqueror.”

For Jainas, the highest possible value is ahimsa (non-violence).

The most recent Jaina Tirthankaras is Mahavira.

According to Jaina teaching, only human beings possess an eternal soul (jiva).

The permanent state of Enlightenment achieved by Jaina devotees is known as samyak darshan.

One of the main differences between the Svetambara and Digambara Jainas concerns the spiritual capacity of women.

Jainism emerged out of the same time period and context in India that gave rise to Sikhism.

The followers of Mahavira rejected brahminical orthodoxy.

Mahavira was born into the shudra (servant) caste.

According to Jaina tradition, there are 36 Jinas per cycle of generation and degeneration.

According to Jainism, the eternal message of liberation is only accessible to human beings, in the realms of action, in certain time periods.

Nuns significantly outnumbered monks in the early Jaina sangha.

According to Jaina tradition, Svetambara monastics go naked as a sign of complete non-attachment to worldly things.

Svetambara Jainas believe that one of the Jinas in the most recent cycle was female.

Jaina sacred literature is believed to have been composed by Mahavira.

Learned mendicants in Jainism are known as acharyas.

Svetambaras and Digambaras fundamentally disagree on the nature of the soul.

Substance without consciousness, in Jaina cosmology, is called ajiva.

Jainas believe that all forms of karma, good and bad, must be purged.

All Jaina groups reject the worship of idols.

According to the Jaina tradition, suffering is caused by misperception of the true nature of reality, and can be dispelled through clearer thinking.

The five “great vows” undertaken by Jaina ascetics are called the anuvratas.

Jaina monks and nuns cannot accept food that has been prepared expressly for them.

Jaina ascetics must not walk on grass.

Jainas believe that it is not possible for souls to ascend to liberation in the current time cycle.

The Jinas are viewed as being indifferent to their worshippers.

The Jaina festival of Mahavira Jayanti celebrates the liberation of Mahavira.

Jainas often debate the question of identity, that is, who is an authentic and true Jaina.

The majority of people who respond to Jainism’s call have been men.

Women and men are considered equal in the Jaina tradition.

The ideals of womanhood in Jainism are different from the other South Asian traditions.

Svetambaras forbid women full entry into mendicancy.

35. The female body is at the center of the debate over spiritual liberation between Digambara and Svetambara Jains.

36. The majority of Jaina women and men live an ascetic life without much focus on career, community and family.

37. Reform movements sought to keep Jainism as traditional as possible during India’s colonial period (1857–1947).

38. Following Indian independence, there have been efforts to gain recognition of Jainism as a world religion with universal appeal.

39. In 2014, the Supreme Court of India refused to grant minority status to the Jaina community.

40. The message of ahimsa is a globally relevant principle that lends credibility to Jainism as a world religion.

Short Answer Questions

What is the role of the Jina in Jaina tradition?

What, according to the Jaina tradition, constitutes the true Self?

What is the Jaina position on the soul’s relationship to violence?

What are the main differences between the Svetambara and Digambara Jaina sects?

What characterized the shramana movement, of which Jainism emerged as a part?

What were the characteristics of the original Jaina sangha? What was the relationship of the various branches of the community?

What is the origin of Jaina sacred literature, according to tradition?

According to the Jaina tradition, what do the cosmos consist of and why is knowledge of these substances deemed important?

How do Jainas understand the concept of karma?

What is the most fundamental existential problem and what is the way out of it according to the Jaina tradition?

What was the main concern of Jaina reformers particularly between the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries? How is their impact visible today?

What are the five mahavratas of Jainism?

How are the anuvratas seen within the Jaina community? Provide 2–3 examples of how the householders practice the anuyratas.

Who was Chandabala and what does her life illustrate regarding the role and place of women as ascetics in the Jaina tradition?

How have Jainas traditionally adapted to the surrounding culture as a minority community in India?

Essay Questions

How can we make sense of the apparent paradox in Jainism between the other-worldly focus of its asceticism, on the one hand, and the this-worldly emphasis manifested in the business acumen, worldly success, and strong social identity of the lay community on the other? Explain with reference to key Jaina notions.

What is the name, origin and structure, of the sacred literature in the Jaina tradition? Also, how was this sacred literature transmitted?

Explain in detail the Jaina principle of ahimsa, and how it is broadly understood within the tradition.

How have women viewed in the early Jaina traditions, explicitly, make sure to focus on the teachings of Mahavira, scripture, and differences between the Digambaras and Svetambaras.

Explain the sallekhana ritual. How does this express the highest Jaina ideal? Why is it not considered suicide?

How would you characterize Jaina devotionalism in the absence of a creator God?