Jain flag

Jainism
Use	Jain symbol
Proportion	2:3

Overview

Theflag ofJainismhas five colours: White, Red, Yellow, Green and Black. These five colours represent thePañca-Parameṣṭhi(five supreme beings). It also represents thefive main vowsof Jainism.

Colours

These five colours represent the "Pañca-Parameṣṭhi"and the five vows, small as well as great:^[1]

White – represents thearihants,souls who have conquered all passions (anger, attachments, aversion) and have attained omniscience and eternal bliss through self-realization. It also denotes peace orahimsa(non-violence).
Red – represents thesiddha,souls that have attained salvation and truth. It also denotes truthfulness (satya).
Yellow – represents theacharyathe Masters of Adepts. The colour also stands for non-stealing (achaurya).^[1]
Green – represents theupadhyaya(adepts), those who teach scriptures to monks. It also signifies chastity (brahmacharya).^[1]
Black – represents thesadhus and sadhvisor monks and nuns. It also signifiesnon-possession(aparigraha).

It is also believed that the complexion of all the 24Tirthankaraswas of one of these five colours. For instance,ChandraprabhaandPushpadantawere white,MunisuvrataandNeminathawere dark colour,PadmaprabhaandVasupujyawere red,SuparshvanathaandParshvanathawere green, while the remaining were golden or yellowish.

Swastika

Theswastikain the centre of the flag represents the four states of existence of soul. The four stages may be:

heaven-beings or deities
human beings
animal/birds/insects/plants
hell beings

It represents that the soul can embody any of these forms, owing to karma, which may escalate it to higher-level forms such as heavenly beings, or degrade it to lower-level forms such as lesser animals or hell beings.
The purpose of soul is to liberate itself from these four stages and bearihantsorSiddhaeventually.

Three Dots

The three dots above theswastikarepresent theRatnatraya(three jewels) ofJainism:

Samyak Darshana– "Right Faith" or "Right Vision"
Samyak Gyana– "Right Knowledge"
Samyak Charitra– "Right Conduct"

These are part of the Jainist paradigm by whichjīva(living souls) seek to rid themselves ofkarmaand the cycle of rebirth,saṃsāra,which it develops.^{[citation needed]}

Siddhashila

The curve above the three dots denotesSiddhashila,a place in the highest realms of Universe, composed of pure energy. It is above hell, earth, or heaven. It is the place where souls that have attained salvation, for instance,ArihantsandSiddhasreside eternally with supreme bliss.

Respect for Jain Flag is respect forPañca-Parameṣṭhi(Supreme Five). According to Jainism, respect forPañca-Parameṣṭhiabiding theRatnatraya(Three Jewels) destroys the sorrow of the four states of existence and finally guides one to the sweet home of infinite bliss (Siddhashila).

Photo gallery

Flag atop the Gingee Jain temple,Gingee,Villupuram district,Tamil Nadu, India
Flag atop theShri Mahavirji temple,Rajasthan, India
Flag in front of theMel Sithamur Jain Muth,Gingee,Villupuram district,Tamil Nadu, India

References

^^a ^b ^cJain, Vijay K. (2012).Acharya Amritchandra's Purushartha Siddhyupaya.Vikalp Printers. p. iv.ISBN 978-81-903639-4-5.This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.

[Jain-1] Jain, Vijay K. (2012).Acharya Amritchandra's Purushartha Siddhyupaya.Vikalp Printers. p. iv.ISBN 978-81-903639-4-5.This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.

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