Gendered Jain Strategies for Spiritual Advancement

Abstract

Whereas Jain laymen turn to the historic exemplars of kings and the gods to learn correct religious behavior, laywomen turn to tales of virtuous wives, mothers, and nuns.  As such, laymen largely achieve merit through religious gifting, while laywomen leverage spiritual behaviors such as singing, praying, and fasting. The split between male and female practice gestures to fundamental differences in both the foundation and the orientation of the laity in the Jain faith, where “foundation” refers to the ground of Jain religious practice and “orientation” to the direction of devotional energy. This essay argues that both foundation and orientation vary for Jains along gendered lines.