The Namaskara Mantra, a series of five salutations to beings honored in the Jain tradition, is offered at many religious occasions. It is repeated morning and night and remembered at the time of death.
From 1993 to 1995, 24 marble images of Jain tirthankaras made their way from Jaipur to a temple in Chicago. The images were consecrated, and the presence of the tirthankaras was formally installed in the temple.
The religious holiday of Mahavira Jayanti celebrates the birth of Mahavira and is marked by the ritual bathing of his image, and Divali celebrates his liberation with an array of lights.
The most important Jain religious observance of the year, Paryushana literally means “abiding” or “coming together.” Lasting either eight or ten days, it is a time of intensive study, reflection, and purification. It culiminates with a final day that involves confession and asking for forgiveness.
The Jain commitment to nonviolence manifests most concretely in their vegetarian diet. Laypeople also articulate their values of nonviolence in their personal conduct and in their professional lives.
Jainism appears in the American landscape in surprising ways. A teakwood replica of a Jain temple traveled from the St. Louis Fair of 1904–1905 to the Castaways Hotel in Las Vegas, and finally made its way to the Jain Center of Southern California in 1988.
