Dr. M.C.Jain
NATIONAL PRESIDENT
Rashtriya Digamber Jain Parishad (Regd)
Every religion in the world has its own significance and importance for the individual, for the family and for the community as well. Parva or the festivals brings most of us together and a lot of happiness and joy in our life. Besides this it acts as unifying bond among people. They make us to forget sorrow and remind us to lead morally acceptable life so that we may grow to become good citizens. And above all,Parva or festivals strengthen our relations with our family members, friends,and neighbours and with our community.There are some other purposes also that a festival serves and usually we find that people meet each other along with their families and thus improve their social life.This reinforces the social bonds between the group who celebrate the festival and shows strength and solidarity to those outside this social group.In fact celebrating festivals is to share happiness with each other by forgetting our problems or differences. Daslakshanparva (दसलक्षणपर्व ), celebrated by Jain community,is also one of the glaring example of such type of ‘Parva’.
Daslakshanparva– दसलक्षणपर्वis celebrated every year by the Jain Community for self –purification, is meant to adhere to the ten universal virtues in practical life and leads us on the right path, far from the mad strife for material prosperity, which ultimately leads us to our destination i.e. salvation . This is the festival through which an attempt is made to put an end to all vices, passions and lustful desires in thought, speech and action. This is the festival in which ten universal virtues like forgiveness, contentment and self-restraint are venerated and worshipped for self -purification.
In this festival one mediates upon the inherent virtues of the soul in thought, speech and action or one attains peace of soul i.e. celestial peace .Besides this, in this festival an attempt is made to obtain peace discarding passions and lustful desires through various means and observe harmony in the soul through the study of scriptures. Jain community not only in India but in the whole world celebrates this पर्व annually to subdue all passion and lustful desires. It gives us an expression to the perfectly purified trait of the soul, through which one gets rid of worldly disorders and allurements and one gets fully absorbed in the eternal truth on experiencing and realizing the true nature of soul. In other words, we can say the natural realization of the trio ‘ सत्यम ,शिवम् , सुंदरम ‘ is fully possible only through Das lakshanparva. This festival puts an end to all evils gives us realization of the eternal bliss, and spiritualism becomes alive by the celebration of this festival.
Jain community observes Das LakshanParva, not only in India but also in the whole world. This parva purifies our soul and deeds. It has a great significance and importance in our life. The family members of the Jain community celebrate this parva for ten days. During these ten days from BhadrapadaShuklaPanchami to अनंतचतुर्दशी , Jains observe fast in various forms and give alms (Daan दान ). They leave certain things –Tyag- त्याग ) and observe strictly the principles of the parva. Each day of the parva has its own importance.
Dash LakshanParva is a festival of ten virtues observed by the Jains for 10 days. During these 10 days they strictly observe the ten dharma —
The ten universal virtues of the daslakshan parva – दसलक्षण पर्व — are
HEARTLY GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES ON“DASLAKSHAN PARVA”
| Ten Daslakshan Parva | Meaning |
| 1. Uttam Kshama Dharma उत्तम क्षमा धर्मं | Forgiveness |
| 2. Uttam Mardav Dharma उत्तम मार्दव धर्म | Tenderness or humility |
| 3. Uttam Arjava Dharma उत्तम आर्जव धर्म | Honesty |
| 4. Uttam Shauch Dharma उत्तम शौच धर्म | Contentment or purity |
| 5. Uttam Satya Dharma उत्तम सत्य धर्म | Truthfulness |
| 6. Uttam Sanyam Dharm उत्तम संयम धर्म | Self-restraint |
| 7. Uttam Tap Dharma उत्तम तप धर्म | Austerities or penance |
| 8. Uttam Tyag Dharma उत्तम त्याग धर्म | Renunciation |
| 9. Uttam Akinchan Dharm उत्तम अकिंचन धर्म | Non-Attachment |
| 10. Uttam Brahmachary Dharm उत्तम ब्रहमचर्य धर्म | Chastity |
- Uttam Kshama Dharma — उत्तम क्षमा धर्मं (Supreme Forgiveness) – To observe tolerance whole-heartedly, shunning anger.
- Uttam Mardava Dharma — उत्तम मार्दव धर्म (Tenderness or Humility) – To observe the virtue of humility subduing vanity and passions.
- Uttam Aarjava Dharma — उत्तम आर्जव धर्म (Straight-forwardness or Honesty) – To practice a deceit-free conduct in life by vanquishing the passion of deception.
- Uttam Shauch Dharma — उत्तम शौच धर्म (Contentment or Purity) – To keep the body, mind and speech pure by discarding greed.
- Uttam Satya Dharma — उत्तम सत्य धर्म (Truthfulness) – To speak affectionate and just words with a holy intention causing no injury to any living being.
- Uttam Sanyam Dharma — उत्तम संयम धर्म (Self-restraint) – To defend all living beings with utmost power in a cosmopolitan spirit abstaining from all the pleasures provided by the five senses – touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing; and the sixth – mind.
- Uttam Tap Dharma — उत्तम तप धर्म (Penance or Austerities) – To practice austerities putting a check on all worldly allurements.
- Uttam Tyag Dharma — उत्तम त्याग धर्म (Renunciation) – To give fourfold charities – Ahara (food), Abhaya (fearlessness), Aushadha (medicine), and Shastra Dana (distribution of Holy Scriptures), and to patronize social and religious institutions for self and other uplifts.
- Uttam Akinchan Dharma —- उत्तम अकिंचन धर्म (Non-attachment) – To enhance faith in the real self as against non-self i.e., material objects; and to discard internal परिग्रह viz. anger and pride; and external परिग्रह viz. accumulation of gold, diamonds, and royal treasures.
- Uttam Brahmachary Dharma उत्तम ब्रहमचर्य धर्म — (Chastity or celibacy) – To observe the great vow of celibacy; to have devotion for the inner soul and the omniscient Lord; to discard the carnal desires, vulgar fashions, child and old-age marriages, dowry dominated.
Jains salute and pray for these virtues. By saluting the virtues, we only receive inspiration for right path, true happiness and total freedom from worldly miseries of life.
The Jain community celebrates this festival with great zeal and joy and austerities viz.self-meditation, doing penance, fasting and study of Holy Scriptures are performed during the parva. The house holders purged their soul by keeping fast on the last day on the parva and celebrate the closing ceremony with great pump and show. When the ten day celebrations are over, this festival leaves behind its deep impression on the mind and heart of every Jain-young or old. ” क्षमावाणीदिवस ” -a special function –is organized on the tenth day .It carries a message to all living and non-living creatures in the world to ‘FORGIVE Ourselves or the ‘deeds we have done either knowingly or un-knowingly if such deeds have ever given you any pain or hurt the feelings.’
This is one of the most important festivals of Jain which is celebrated every year throughout the world with great pump and show and with immense devotion.
HEARTLY GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES ON“DASLAKSHAN PARVA”
