PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Jai Jinendra!

Wishing you and your family Happy Holidays! As we close out 2018, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers across 68 Jain Centers in the USA and Canada, including the JAINA Executive Committee, BOD, and JAINA Committees for all your efforts in serving the Jain Community while continually promoting and keeping alive Jain values through our next generation.

Please send in your valuable tax deductible contributions to make your organization stronger.

Enjoy a spectacular 2019 JAINA Calendar you will be receiving over the Holidays. Kindly provide your valuable feedback at jainahq@jaina.org.

Warm Regards,
Gunvant Shah
JAINA President
12-29-2018

QUOTE

Other beings perceive through their senses whereas the sramana perceives through the Agama.

- Bhagwan Mahavir

QUIZ TIME

Q 1: What is the Navapad Oli?

Q 2: What are the Karmas?

DONATE TODAY

JAINA team wishes your family the Happiest of Holidays during this Holiday Season. Best Wishes for the upcoming New Year.

As the Holiday season approaches each year, there come many opportunities arise for Charitable giving. Are you passionate about helping our community? We humbly appeal to you to consider giving your contributions to JAINA. Every dollar you contribute gets used in the advancement of both youth and adult programs, as well as to promote the learning and cherishment of our culture in so many ways. The attached link gives you an idea as to how many different ways you can contribute to JAINA programs.

Please click here to read more.

JAIN CENTER NEWS

Jain Study Center of North Carolina(JSCNC) is a proud participant of Greater Triangle Area Crop Hunger Walk 2018. They had a great turnout this year with 49 JSCNC members participating in the walk. Donations from JSCNC community was $2,833 which far exceeded their initial goal of $2000.

GIRNAR SERIES

STORY #9: BAPPBHATSURI

A series of historical events have unfolded on the gracious land of Girnar, making it glorious for withstanding numerous storms of arguments and controversies. With the passage of time, there have been pages after pages in History, documenting many instances of dissention on the ownership of Girnar.

Documented in letters of gold in the history of Jainism, this is one such instance of five sons of trader Dhar, who sacrificed their lives for the cause of devotion to this shrine. As he watched the holy land that had turned into a battlefield and the five bloodied dead bodies of his brave sons, trader Dhar’s deepest desire was still unfulfilled. As he took the steps backwards to his home, he was actually determining to leap forward. Despite having sacrificed five sons at the altar of Jainism, trader Dhar was still not at peace. Every passing day further sharpened his pangs to ensure Shwetambar ownership of Girnar.

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JAIN STORY

UPADHYAY SHRI YASHOVIJAYJI

If someone utters the word upadhyayji it would mean Shrimad Yashovijayji Upadhyay. ‘So says Upadhyayji’ is regarded as the final word and ultimate authority in scriptural matters. His contemporary monks regarded him as the Sarvajna (omniscient) in matters of the scriptures and also as shrutkevali (scripture – omniscient). Author of more than 100 books in Sanskrit, Prakrit, and Gujarati, he also earned the titles of Tattvavisharad and Kurchatsharda.

Besides writing the books that were theoretical and academic, he composed poems that were immensely popular. As Shri Bhadrabahuswami was known as antim shrutkevali, Upadhyayji can be regarded as antim shrutpargami (last knower of all Jain canonical scriptures). Since his time, there has been no other scholar as learned and competent as him.