What makes a young woman, age 24, say that before visiting India she
felt agnostic but after spending a year there, she identifies more with
Jains and would now like to pass aspects of Jain philosophy onto her
children? What makes a young woman, age 20, who grew up in Idaho and
was not surrounded by a strong Indian community decide to attend a
particular university because it has a strong, pro-active Indian
community? Why does attending a Jain convention make a young woman, age
20, begin to consider herself Jain because that's when she begins to
understand and believe in the religion?
For Jains, the answers to the questions above lie in the formation of
the Jain ethnoscape, the landscape of group identity whose place exists
within the imaginations of Jains in India and abroad. In a world of
increasing globalization and the migration that results, many people,
including Asian Indian Jains move from one country to another. Their
identity is no longer tied to one place or country but begins to exist
within the imagination, or in the "new world," because of the ability
for groups of people to settle and raise future generations in a
country other than that of their ethnic origin.
Regardless of where they live, Asian Indian Jains are inextricably part
of this "new world" and always have access to it because of their
religious faith and ethnicity. The curiosity of Jains who live outside
of India to learn about their ethnic and religious heritage allows for
the maintenance of those traditions in their lives and reinforces the
existence of this "new world."
The "new world" concept expands through the development of a Jain group
identity whose place is in the imaginations of Jain immigrants and
their children. When immigrants pass to their children aspects of
Indian heritage or the Jain religion, they draw from memory their
experiences in India. Thus, the imagined community of the Jain
ethnnoscape, or the "new world" forms. Jain practice and social
organization ensure the existence of the "new world." Vegetarianism and
incorporating ahimsa in their lives are common practices that many
Jains follow, creating a sense of solidarity through action.
The Jain religion continues to exist outside of India in the US through
the
institutional life of strong social organization and modified practice.
Jains
negotiate their type of practice to fit their social context. Growing
up in a
rural village in India, one may easily follow the practices of a strict
Jain.
After migrating to a city like Mumbai, the same kind of practice
becomes more difficult as one's lifestyle changes and one feels the
effects of
westernization. Similarly, migrating from India to the US also forces
immigrant Jains and their children to renegotiate their traditional
practices to fit within the American milieu. After migration, Jains
organize communities in US cities and practice a "stripped down"
version of the religion with an emphasis on main principles which
allows for the religion to take root in the US.
Identification with the religion by young Jains living in both India
and the US also reassures the existence of the "new world." Within
India, being Jain is assumed. People consider themselves Jain and
follow the religion because they are born into it, yet they do not
regularly follow time-intensive traditional practices such as
pratikramana, or samayika. From childhood, young Jains have been
practicing the religion, so they do not have a need to access the
meaning.
It is easy for them to be vegetarian in India and they eat vegetarian
food at home; thus, they continue with the practice as they grow older.
If their
parents are strict, then they practice strictly. In contrast, in the
US, the
younger generation has less access to the history, tradition,
scriptures, and teachers of the religion. As followers of the Jain
religion, their lack of
exposure forces them to focus on main aspects of the religion that they
may practice within the American milieu. For some, the practice of the
religion and their interactions with the Jain community act as a
substitute for Indian ethnicity in the US which further reinforces the
existence of the Jain ethnoscape because the religion truly becomes the
landscape for group identity of young Jains in the US.
The US represents a cultural mix of many immigrant communities and
their cultures. The status of minorities and minority issues oftentimes
causes conflict within the racialized social context of the US, and
Asian Indians occupy an ambiguous position making a Jain identity
difficult to create. Asian Indian Jains have, however, created a place
for themselves within the American milieu. As Western culture
increasingly effects Indian society, Jains face the challenge of
maintaining their way of life, yet the Jain community remains strong in
both India and the US because of religious and social organization and
a modification of traditional practices. As globalization effects India
and future generations of Jains assimilate into American society, the
culture of the "new world" will continue to alter based on the
experiences and memories of its inhabitants.
Neelu Jain is a 20 year old senior honours student at Dartmouth. This
article is summarized from "The Jain Diaspora: Religious Identity and
Practice by Young Adults in the US and India" her Undergraduate senior
honors thesis.
Email:neelu.jain@dartmouth.edu
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