CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> <html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en-GB" lang="en-GB"><head profile="http://dublincore.org/documents/dcq-html/"><title>BBC - Religions - Jainism: God</title><style type="text/css"> #archive-mothballed-message a:hover span { text-decoration:underline; } #blq-container #archived-mothball-message a { padding-left:250px; padding-top:17px; background-position: 180px 10px; } #ttd-masthead #archived-mothball-message a { padding-left:250px; padding-top:17px; background-position: 180px 10px; } #k-masthead-container #archived-mothball-message a { padding-left:250px; padding-top:17px; background-position: 180px 10px; } #archived-mothball-message a { display:block; height:56px; background:url(/globalresources/mothball-images/i.gif) 100px 10px no-repeat; color:#666; text-decoration:none; padding-left:160px; padding-top:12px; font-size:20px; font-family: verdana,helvetica,arial,sans-serif; font-weight: normal; } </style><meta name="description" content="This article examines the Jain view of deities and divinity."><meta name="keywords" content="jainism,God, theistic, evil, atheistic side, jinas, judgement, devas"><link rel="schema.dcterms" href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"><meta name="DCTERMS.created" content="2003-10-22"><meta name="DCTERMS.updated" content="2009-09-10"><link rel="schema.dcterms" href="http://purl.org/dc/terms/"><link rel="index" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/a-z/" title="A to Z"><link rel="copyright" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/terms/" title="Terms of Use"><link rel="icon" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon"><meta name="viewport" content="width = 974"><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/staticarchive/c808749ad4d537416e40591def8e05c130d72722.css"><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ (function(undefined){if(!window.bbc){window.bbc={}}var ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS=30;window.bbc.Mandolin=function(id,segments,opts){var now=new Date().getTime(),storedItem,DEFAULT_START=now,DEFAULT_RATE=1,COOKIE_NAME="ckpf_mandolin";opts=opts||{};this._id=id;this._segmentSet=segments;this._store=new window.window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage(COOKIE_NAME);this._opts=opts;this._rate=(opts.rate!==undefined)?+opts.rate:DEFAULT_RATE;this._startTs=(opts.start!==undefined)?new Date(opts.start).getTime():new Date(DEFAULT_START).getTime();this._endTs=(opts.end!==undefined)?new Date(opts.end).getTime():daysFromNow(ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS);this._signupEndTs=(opts.signupEnd!==undefined)?new Date(opts.signupEnd).getTime():this._endTs;this._segment=null;if(typeof id!=="string"){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: id must be defined and be a string")}if(Object.prototype.toString.call(segments)!=="[object Array]"){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: Segments are required.")}if(opts.rate!==undefined&&(opts.rate<0||opts.rate>1)){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: Rate must be between 0 and 1.")}if(this._startTs>this._endTs){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: end date must occur after start date.")}if(!(this._startTs<this._signupEndTs&&this._signupEndTs<=this._endTs)){throw new Error("Invalid Argument: SignupEnd must be between start and end date")}removeExpired.call(this,now);var overrides=window.bbccookies.get().match(/ckns_mandolin_setSegments=([^;]+)/);if(overrides!==null){eval("overrides = "+decodeURIComponent(RegExp.$1)+";");if(overrides[this._id]&&this._segmentSet.indexOf(overrides[this._id])==-1){throw new Error("Invalid Override: overridden segment should exist in segments array")}}if(overrides!==null&&overrides[this._id]){this._segment=overrides[this._id]}else{if((storedItem=this._store.getItem(this._id))){this._segment=storedItem.segment}else{if(this._startTs<=now&&now<this._signupEndTs&&now<=this._endTs&&this._store.isEnabled()===true){this._segment=pick(segments,this._rate);if(opts.end===undefined){this._store.setItem(this._id,{segment:this._segment})}else{this._store.setItem(this._id,{segment:this._segment,end:this._endTs})}log.call(this,"mandolin_segment")}}}log.call(this,"mandolin_view")};window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.getSegment=function(){return this._segment};function log(actionType,params){var that=this;require(["istats-1"],function(istats){istats.log(actionType,that._id+":"+that._segment,params?params:{})})}function removeExpired(expires){var items=this._store.getItems(),expiresInt=+expires;for(var key in items){if(items[key].end!==undefined&&+items[key].end<expiresInt){this._store.removeItem(key)}}}function getLastExpirationDate(data){var winner=0,rollingExpire=daysFromNow(ROLLING_PERIOD_DAYS);for(var key in data){if(data[key].end===undefined&&rollingExpire>winner){winner=rollingExpire}else{if(+data[key].end>winner){winner=+data[key].end}}}return(winner)?new Date(winner):new Date(rollingExpire)}window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.log=function(params){log.call(this,"mandolin_log",params)};window.bbc.Mandolin.prototype.convert=function(params){log.call(this,"mandolin_convert",params);this.convert=function(){}};function daysFromNow(n){var endDate;endDate=new Date().getTime()+(n*60*60*24)*1000;return endDate}function pick(segments,rate){var picked,min=0,max=segments.length-1;if(typeof rate==="number"&&Math.random()>rate){return null}do{picked=Math.floor(Math.random()*(max-min+1))+min}while(picked>max);return segments[picked]}window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage=function(name){validateCookieName(name);this._cookieName=name;this._isEnabled=(bbccookies.isAllowed(this._cookieName)===true&&bbccookies.cookiesEnabled()===true)};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.setItem=function(key,value){var storeData=this.getItems();storeData[key]=value;this.save(storeData);return value};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.isEnabled=function(){return this._isEnabled};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.getItem=function(key){var storeData=this.getItems();return storeData[key]};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.removeItem=function(key){var storeData=this.getItems();delete storeData[key];this.save(storeData)};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.getItems=function(){return deserialise(this.readCookie(this._cookieName)||"")};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.save=function(data){window.bbccookies.set(this._cookieName+"="+encodeURIComponent(serialise(data))+"; expires="+getLastExpirationDate(data).toUTCString()+";")};window.bbc.Mandolin.Storage.prototype.readCookie=function(name){var nameEq=name+"=",ca=window.bbccookies.get().split("; "),i,c;validateCookieName(name);for(i=0;i<ca.length;i++){c=ca[i];if(c.indexOf(nameEq)===0){return decodeURIComponent(c.substring(nameEq.length,c.length))}}return null};function serialise(o){var str="";for(var p in o){if(o.hasOwnProperty(p)){str+='"'+p+'"'+":"+(typeof o[p]==="object"?(o[p]===null?"null":"{"+serialise(o[p])+"}"):'"'+o[p].toString()+'"')+","}}return str.replace(/,\}/g,"}").replace(/,$/g,"")}function deserialise(str){var o;str="{"+str+"}";if(!validateSerialisation(str)){throw"Invalid input provided for deserialisation."}eval("o = "+str);return o}var validateSerialisation=(function(){var OBJECT_TOKEN="<Object>",ESCAPED_CHAR='"\\n\\r\\u2028\\u2029\\u000A\\u000D\\u005C',ALLOWED_CHAR="([^"+ESCAPED_CHAR+"]|\\\\["+ESCAPED_CHAR+"])",KEY='"'+ALLOWED_CHAR+'+"',VALUE='(null|"'+ALLOWED_CHAR+'*"|'+OBJECT_TOKEN+")",KEY_VALUE=KEY+":"+VALUE,KEY_VALUE_SEQUENCE="("+KEY_VALUE+",)*"+KEY_VALUE,OBJECT_LITERAL="({}|{"+KEY_VALUE_SEQUENCE+"})",objectPattern=new RegExp(OBJECT_LITERAL,"g");return function(str){if(str.indexOf(OBJECT_TOKEN)!==-1){return false}while(str.match(objectPattern)){str=str.replace(objectPattern,OBJECT_TOKEN)}return str===OBJECT_TOKEN}})();function validateCookieName(name){if(name.match(/ ,;/)){throw"Illegal name provided, must be valid in browser cookie."}}})(); /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ if (typeof bbccookies_flag === 'undefined') { bbccookies_flag = 'ON'; } showCTA_flag = true; cta_enabled = (showCTA_flag && (bbccookies_flag === 'ON') ); (function(){var e="ckns_policy",m="Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 GMT",k={ads:true,personalisation:true,performance:true,necessary:true};function f(p){if(f.cache[p]){return f.cache[p]}var o=p.split("/"),q=[""];do{q.unshift((o.join("/")||"/"));o.pop()}while(q[0]!=="/");f.cache[p]=q;return q}f.cache={};function a(p){if(a.cache[p]){return a.cache[p]}var q=p.split("."),o=[];while(q.length&&"|co.uk|com|".indexOf("|"+q.join(".")+"|")===-1){if(q.length){o.push(q.join("."))}q.shift()}f.cache[p]=o;return o}a.cache={};function i(o,t,p){var z=[""].concat(a(window.location.hostname)),w=f(window.location.pathname),y="",r,x;for(var s=0,v=z.length;s<v;s++){r=z[s];for(var q=0,u=w.length;q<u;q++){x=w[q];y=o+"="+t+";"+(r?"domain="+r+";":"")+(x?"path="+x+";":"")+(p?"expires="+p+";":"");bbccookies.set(y,true)}}}window.bbccookies={_setEverywhere:i,cookiesEnabled:function(){var o="ckns_testcookie"+Math.floor(Math.random()*100000);this.set(o+"=1");if(this.get().indexOf(o)>-1){g(o);return true}return false},set:function(o){return document.cookie=o},get:function(){return document.cookie},_setPolicy:function(o){return h.apply(this,arguments)},readPolicy:function(o){return b.apply(this,arguments)},_deletePolicy:function(){i(e,"",m)},isAllowed:function(){return true},_isConfirmed:function(){return c()!==null},_acceptsAll:function(){var o=b();return o&&!(j(o).indexOf("0")>-1)},_getCookieName:function(){return d.apply(this,arguments)},_showPrompt:function(){var o=(!this._isConfirmed()&&window.cta_enabled&&this.cookiesEnabled()&&!window.bbccookies_disable);return(window.orb&&window.orb.fig)?o&&(window.orb.fig("no")||window.orb.fig("ck")):o}};bbccookies._getPolicy=bbccookies.readPolicy;function d(p){var o=(""+p).match(/^([^=]+)(?==)/);return(o&&o.length?o[0]:"")}function j(o){return""+(o.ads?1:0)+(o.personalisation?1:0)+(o.performance?1:0)}function h(r){if(typeof r==="undefined"){r=k}if(typeof arguments[0]==="string"){var o=arguments[0],q=arguments[1];if(o==="necessary"){q=true}r=b();r[o]=q}else{if(typeof arguments[0]==="object"){r.necessary=true}}var p=new Date();p.setYear(p.getFullYear()+1);p=p.toUTCString();bbccookies.set(e+"="+j(r)+";domain=bbc.co.uk;path=/;expires="+p+";");bbccookies.set(e+"="+j(r)+";domain=bbc.com;path=/;expires="+p+";");return r}function l(o){if(o===null){return null}var p=o.split("");return{ads:!!+p[0],personalisation:!!+p[1],performance:!!+p[2],necessary:true}}function c(){var o=new RegExp("(?:^|; ?)"+e+"=(\\d\\d\\d)($|;)"),p=document.cookie.match(o);if(!p){return null}return p[1]}function b(o){var p=l(c());if(!p){p=k}if(o){return p[o]}else{return p}}function g(o){return document.cookie=o+"=;expires="+m+";"}function n(){var o='<script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/bbccookies/0.6.6/script/bbccookies.js"><\/script>';if(window.bbccookies_flag==="ON"&&!bbccookies._acceptsAll()&&!window.bbccookies_disable){document.write(o)}}n()})(); /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript"> if (! window.gloader) { window.gloader = [ "glow", {map: "http://node1.bbcimg.co.uk/glow/glow/map.1.7.7.js"}]; } </script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://node1.bbcimg.co.uk/glow/gloader.0.1.6.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/21f604032d29edfa0a166f89bd41c95004718ed2.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> bbcRequireMap = {"jquery-1":"/staticarchive/6cabfa9be6f12b6fec5ddf61c2dca1dde868555e", "jquery-1.4":"/staticarchive/cce0a0919c693f9473535d6941613bad16a4b40f", "jquery-1.9":"/staticarchive/14a082a42c1074b40bedae2666d3204e142899f5", "swfobject-2":"/staticarchive/b02e05aa3b12cfe8510390c7eccecd0af315b0a6", "demi-1":"/staticarchive/a916559c328a465dafcc30056734651ac8fdbb4b", "gelui-1":"/staticarchive/0159feca9179b145c659298e302b55dc76dfa15d", "cssp!gelui-1/overlay":"/staticarchive/fee6b4a3b22c51a59dd3ddebfb1b765049c683f6.css", "istats-1":"/staticarchive/b2d7be33eb67fa4b938cfa94238f8af9e929e4ae", "relay-1":"/staticarchive/ab39b61cf0980994246594bebe70fe460df87a42", "clock-1":"/staticarchive/7b8bb05c3fa19067c2c4c99144d21702cc15704f", "canvas-clock-1":"/staticarchive/703fd8b8a1b4ecf9cf624195bfb9691c648d3919", "cssp!clock-1":"/staticarchive/85ca997ae2f6bd2990765422dcc5b1c386c9d0cb.css", "jssignals-1":"/staticarchive/238f1d675d1626860f85815b7ab638cd41811a06", "jcarousel-1":"/staticarchive/3b38690b91f14468826c5f05f6e3da9beb55f4b1", "bump-3":"//emp.bbci.co.uk/emp/bump-3/bump-3.js", "gelui-1/widget": "/staticarchive/fcf01fd866ac629bad5a92592c208c3b04184cd3", "gelui-1/carousel": "/staticarchive/562f83c33cfe04062d95de8024ba03636cd0af4c", "gelui-1/core": "/staticarchive/d69cc93987af4e17f910996164dc15516614353e", "gelui-1/overlay": "/staticarchive/84bd061f5e14f0728caa8c933fe6d758b54fec5a", "gelui-1/autosuggest": "/staticarchive/ca81d8400ee443b0c31a47f1eea1c6872091dd48"}; require({ baseUrl: 'http://'+location.host+'/', paths: bbcRequireMap, waitSeconds: 30 }); </script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/1b2549937977a29e048af5c307e7f73044570f03.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> blq.assetPath="http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/2.72.5/desktop/2.8/"; blqOnDomReady(function() { blq.suggest_short = false; blq.addAutoSuggest(); }); blq.setEnvironment('live'); if (! /bbc\.co\.uk$/i.test(window.location.hostname) ) { document.documentElement.className += ' blq-not-bbc-co-uk'; } </script><script type="text/javascript"> /*<![CDATA[*/ function oqsSurveyManager(w, flag) { var defaultThreshold = 0, usePulseThreshold = (flag === 'OFF')? 1 : defaultThreshold, activeThreshold; w.oqs = w.oqs || {}; /* we support cookie override for testing */ if ( w.document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; *)ckns_oqs_usePulseThreshold=([\d.]+)/) ) { activeThreshold = RegExp.$1; } /* we support clientside override */ else if (typeof w.oqs_usePulseThreshold !== 'undefined') { activeThreshold = w.oqs_usePulseThreshold; } else { activeThreshold = usePulseThreshold; } w.oqs.usePulse = (w.Math.random() < activeThreshold); if (!w.oqs.usePulse) { w.document.write('<script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/2.72.5/desktop/2.8/script/vendor/edr.js"><'+'/script>'); } } oqsSurveyManager(window, 'ON'); /*]]>*/ </script><script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ define('id-statusbar-config', { 'translation_signedout': "Sign in", 'translation_signedin': "Your account", 'use_overlay' : false, 'signin_url' : "https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/signin", 'locale' : "en-GB", 'policyname' : "", 'ptrt' : "http://www.bbc.co.uk/" }); /* ]]> */ </script><script type="text/javascript"> (function () { if (! window.require) { throw new Error('idcta: could not find require'); } var map = {}; map['idapp-1'] = 'http://static.bbci.co.uk/idapp/0.63.23/modules/idapp/idapp-1'; map['idcta/idcta-1'] = 'http://static.bbci.co.uk/id/0.23.4/modules/idcta/idcta-1'; require({paths: map}); define('id-config', {"idapp":{"version":"0.63.23","hostname":"ssl.bbc.co.uk","insecurehostname":"www.bbc.co.uk","tld":"bbc.co.uk"},"idtranslations":{"version":"0.29.1"},"identity":{"baseUrl":"https:\/\/talkback.live.bbc.co.uk\/identity"},"pathway":{"name":null,"staticAssetUrl":"http:\/\/static.bbci.co.uk\/idapp\/0.63.23\/modules\/idapp\/idapp-1\/View.css"}}); })(); </script><style type="text/css"> @import '/staticarchive/de138284d8eceb705f73af8711ffe078b1fe323f.css'; @import '/staticarchive/67f790428e1dc1baf083f87e41c9f6785a11c0fe.css'; @import '/staticarchive/3e670a904ae54eff0cac6844b0c25704a7f34bec.css'; </style><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="screen" href="/staticarchive/37d73d84c5b02cf7b2ea064a16e6c3936cdaa873.css"><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="print" href="/staticarchive/7e24410b9b1b41d15ef363a38479a8006b090ff6.css"><script type="text/javascript">  </script><script type="text/javascript"> gloader.load(["glow", "1", "glow.anim", "glow.net", "glow.dom", "glow.embed"]); </script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/296b7e9b01b56142aec1bfa4760e2eb86073b802.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/880927e055ea2d75cc32254b7274b0e4a04822c2.js"></script></head><body class="orange prg-content-lhn article religion"> <div><a name="top"> </a></div> <script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ bbcFlagpoles_istats = 'ON'; istatsTrackingUrl = '//sa.bbc.co.uk/bbc/bbc/s?name=SET-COUNTER&app_type=web&ml_name=SSI&ml_version=0.23.0&language=en-GB'; /*]]>*/</script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://static.bbci.co.uk/archive_stats/modules/stats-1.0.0.js"></script> <div id="blq-container" class="blq-lang-en-GB blq-gvl-2-8"> <div id="blq-pre-mast" lang="en-GB">  </div> <script type="text/html" id="blq-bbccookies-tmpl"><![CDATA[ <div id="bbccookies-prompt" class="bbccookies-d"> <h2> Cookies on the BBC website </h2> <p> We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website.<span class="bbccookies-international-message"> We also use cookies to ensure we show you advertising that is relevant to you.</span> If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the BBC website. However, if you would like to, you can <a href="/privacy/cookies/managing/cookie-settings.html">change your cookie settings</a> at any time. </p> <ul> <li id="bbccookies-continue"> <button type="button" id="bbccookies-continue-button">Continue</button> </li> <li id="bbccookies-more"><a href="/privacy/cookies/bbc">Find out more</a></li></ul> </div> ]]></script><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/ (function(){if(bbccookies._showPrompt()){var i=document,b=i.getElementById("blq-pre-mast"),f=i.getElementById("blq-global"),h=i.getElementById("blq-container"),c=i.getElementById("blq-bbccookies-tmpl"),a,g,e;if(b&&i.createElement){a=i.createElement("div");a.id="bbccookies";e=c.innerHTML;e=e.replace("<"+"![CDATA[","").replace("]]"+">","");a.innerHTML=e;if(f){f.insertBefore(a,b)}else{h.insertBefore(a,b)}g=i.getElementById("bbccookies-continue-button");g.onclick=function(){a.parentNode.removeChild(a);return false};bbccookies._setPolicy()}}})(); /*]]>*/</script><span id="blq-mast-background"></span> <div id="blq-container-inner" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-acc" class="blq-rst"> <p id="blq-mast-home" class="blq-no-images"><a href="/" hreflang="en-GB"> <span id="blq-blocks-wrapper"> <span class="blq-home">British Broadcasting Corporation</span><img src="/staticarchive/2e00d1d53e9c3bd91993196aa19a1d88589969f0.png" alt="BBC" id="blq-blocks" width="84" height="24"><span class="blq-span">Home</span> </span> </a></p> <p class="blq-hide"><strong><a id="page-top">Accessibility links</a></strong></p> <ul id="blq-acc-links"><li><a href="#blq-content">Skip to content</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-local-nav">Skip to local navigation</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-nav-main">Skip to bbc.co.uk navigation</a></li> <li><a href="#blq-search">Skip to bbc.co.uk search</a></li> <li><a href="/accessibility/">Accessibility Help</a></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-main" class="blq-clearfix"> <div id="archived-mothball-message" style=" background:url(/globalresources/mothball-images/bg.jpg) 0 0 repeat-x #fbfbfb; "> <a href="/globalresources/mothballing" style=" "> This page has been archived and is no longer updated. <span style=" display:block; font-size:0.5em; padding:10px 0 0 70px; font-weight:bold; "> <span style=" color:#1A75BB; margin-left:100px; ">Find out more about page archiving.</span> </span> </a> </div> <div id="prg-masthead"> <p><a href="/religion/religions/" title="Religions">Religions</a></p> </div> <div class="prg-wrapper" id="prg-wrapper-shell"> <div id="blq-content"> <div id="prg-wrapper-featured"> <div class="box top_promo"> <div class="header"><h1>God</h1> <p><em>Last updated 2009-09-10</em></p> </div> <div class="content"> <p>This article examines the Jain view of deities and divinity.</p> </div> <div class="footer"> </div> </div> <div class="p-grp p-grp-a p-grp-theme-n nth-row-n">  <div class="left-nav"> <h2>On this page</h2> <ul><li><a href="#findoutmore" title="See more related content">Find out more</a></li> </ul><h3>Page options</h3> <ul class="tools"><li class="print"><a href="#" onclick="window.print();return false;">Print this page</a></li> </ul></div> <div class="center"> <div class="content-main-header"> </div> <div class="p-mod nth-child-1 content-main"> <a name="section_1"> </a> <div class="promo"> <h3>Jainism and the divine</h3> <p>Jains do not believe in a God or gods in the way that many other religions do, but they do believe in divine (or at least perfect) beings who are worthy of devotion.</p> <p>This makes it difficult to give a straight answer to the question "is Jainism <a href="/religion/religions/atheism/">atheistic</a>?" The scholar Heinrich Zimmer suggested that a new word was needed: <em>transtheistic</em>, meaning "inaccessible by arguments as to whether or not a God exists".</p> <h3>God and the problem of evil</h3> <p>The Jain view of God enables Jainism to explain the evil and suffering that exists in the world without the intellectual difficulties faced by religions that have an omnipotent, wholly good, creator God at their heart.</p> <p>Where religions such as <a href="/religion/religions/christianity/">Christianity</a> find the problem of evil one of their toughest tests, Jains use the existence of evil as a reason for denying the existence of an omnipotent, wholly good, Creator.</p> <h3>Jainism and God - the theistic side</h3> <p>Some writers regard the <a href="/religion/religions/jainism/beliefs/soul.shtml">jinas</a> as 'gods' because the jinas are venerated by Jains in the way that other faiths worship gods or God.</p> <p>Jains venerate them because they have achieved perfection, and have become liberated from the cycle of birth and death.</p> <p>The jinas are the ideal state of an individual soul's existence, and are worshipped as a perfect example for Jains to aspire to. So the only 'gods' that exist for Jains are pure souls that are omniscient, perfectly happy and eternal.</p> <p>All of us could become such a 'god' because every being has the potential to become such a perfect soul.</p> <p>In many ways the Jain attitude to perfect beings is both intelligible and satisfying, and sufficient to demolish the claim that Jainism is an atheistic religion. If one wants to argue that Jainism is atheistic then one must do so from a specific, limited, idea of what it means to be divine.</p> <h3>Prayers</h3> <p>Jain prayers aren't like the God-focussed prayers found in Christianity. Instead Jain prayers tend to recall the great qualities of the tirthankaras and remind the individual of various teachings.</p> <h3>Jainism and God - the atheistic side</h3> <p>Jains do not believe that the <a href="/religion/religions/jainism/beliefs/universe_1.shtml">universe</a> was created by God or by any other creative spirit. Jain writings are scornful of the very idea:</p> <div class="promo_quote_box_top"> <blockquote> <p>If God created the world, where was he before creation? If you say he was transcendent then, and needed no support, where is he now?</p> </blockquote> </div> <div class="promo_quote_box_bottom"> </div> <div class="promo_quote_box_top"> <blockquote> <p>No single being had the skill to make this world -- For how can an immaterial god create that which is material?</p> </blockquote> </div> <div class="promo_quote_box_bottom"> </div> <div class="promo_quote_box_top"> <blockquote> <p>If God is ever perfect and complete, how could the will to create have arisen in him? If, on the other hand, he is not perfect, he could no more create the universe than a potter could.</p> </blockquote> </div> <div class="promo_quote_box_bottom"> </div> <h3>There is no God to maintain the universe</h3> <p>Jains do not believe that any form of god is necessary to keep the universe in existence, or that any form of god has any power over the universe.</p> <h3>There is no God of judgement</h3> <p>Jains do not believe in that sort of judgement. Jains believe that the goodness or quality of a being's life are determined by <a href="/religion/religions/jainism/beliefs/karma.shtml">karma</a>.</p> <p>Jains believe that karma is a physical process, and nothing to do with spiritual beings.</p> <h3>There is no God the ruler</h3> <p>Jains do not believe that there is a god who must be obeyed.</p> <h3>There is no God who helps people</h3> <p>Jains do not believe in any god who will respond to prayer or intervene in the world. The beings that Jains worship have no interest in human beings.</p> <p>The beings that Jains worship are beyond human contact and they cannot intervene in the world.</p> <h3>There is no God who demands worship</h3> <p>The perfect beings that Jains worship have no interest in human beings.</p> <p>Any being that desired anything would not be perfect and thus not a god.</p> <h3>There is no God compared to whom each of us will always be inferior</h3> <p>Every soul has the potential to become perfect. All perfect souls are equal.</p> <h3>The heavenly beings are not gods</h3> <p>The beings that live in the heavenly kingdoms are not gods since they are still subject to karma and reincarnation. These beings are called devas.</p> <div class="article_end"><a href="#top" title="go to the top"><span class="top_anchor">Top</span></a></div> </div> <div class="promo"> <h2 id="findoutmore">Find out more</h2> <ul><li><a href="/religion/religions/jainism/worship/worship_1.shtml" title="Read more on Jain worship">Jain worship</a></li> </ul><div class="article_end"><a href="#top" title="go to the top"><span class="top_anchor">Top</span></a></div> </div> </div> <div class="content_bottom"> </div> </div> </div> </div>  <div id="prg-wrapper-extra"> <div class="product_button">           <h2> <span class="arrow content">«</span> <a href="/religion/religions/jainism/" title="More Jainism">More <span>Jainism</span></a> </h2>             </div>  <div class="p-grp"> <div class="p-mod">  <div class="promo"> <div class="rhn_header"><h2>See also</h2></div> <div class="rhn_body"> <ul><li><a href="/religion/" title="Go to the Religion and Ethics homepage">Religion and Ethics home</a></li> <li><a href="/religion/tools/calendar/" title="Go to the Interfaith calendar">Interfaith calendar</a></li> <li><a href="/ethics/guide/" title="Go to Ethics Guides">Ethics guides</a></li> </ul></div> <div class="module_footer"></div> </div> <div class="promo"> <div class="rhn_header"><h2>Elsewhere on the web</h2></div> <div class="rhn_body"> <ul><li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_in_Jainism">Wikipedia - God in Jainism</a></li> </ul></div> <div class="module_footer"> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="clear_both"></div>  </div></div> </div> </div> <div id="blq-mast" class="blq-rst blq-default-domestic blq-new-nav" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-sign-in"> <div id="id-status" class="blq-id-v4"> <div class="id-out id-gel"> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC iD</h2> <a href="https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/status" id="blq-idstatus-link"> <span class="id-icon"> <span></span> </span> <span id="blq-idstatus-text"> BBC iD </span> <span class="id-spinner"></span> <span class="blq-dropdown-arrow"> <span></span> </span> </a> </div> <div id="id-status-nav"> <div class="id-in blq-rst"> <ul><li> <a name="idDash" class="blq-nogo has-ptrt idDash" href="https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/settings"> Settings </a> </li> <li> <a name="idSignout" class="blq-nogo has-ptrt idSignout" href="https://ssl.bbc.co.uk/id/signout"> Sign out </a> </li> </ul></div> </div> </div> </div> <form method="get" id="blq-search-form" action="http://search.bbc.co.uk/search" accept-charset="utf-8"> <p id="blq-nav-search"> <input type="hidden" name="go" value="toolbar"><input type="hidden" name="uri" value="/religion/religions/jainism/beliefs/god.shtml"><label for="blq-search" class="blq-hide">Search term:</label> <input id="blq-search" type="text" name="q" value="" maxlength="128"><input id="blq-search-btn" type="submit" value="Search"></p> </form> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC navigation</h2> <ul id="blq-nav-main" class="blq-not-uk"><li id="blq-nav-n"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/" hreflang="en-GB">News</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-s"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/" hreflang="en-GB">Sport</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-w"><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/" hreflang="en-GB">Weather</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-i"> <a href="/iplayer/" hreflang="en-GB">iPlayer</a> </li> <li id="blq-nav-t"><a href="/tv/" hreflang="en-GB">TV</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-r"><a href="/radio/" hreflang="en-GB">Radio</a></li> <li id="blq-nav-m"><a href="#blq-nav">More…</a></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-nav" class="blq-blue"> <div id="blq-nav-links" class="blq-clearfix" lang="en-GB"> <div id="blq-nav-links-inner"> <ul class="blq-nav-sub blq-first"><li><a href="/cbbc/">CBBC</a></li> <li><a href="/cbeebies/">CBeebies</a></li> <li><a href="/comedy/">Comedy</a></li> <li><a href="/food/">Food</a></li> <li><a href="/history/">History</a></li> </ul><ul class="blq-nav-sub"><li><a href="/learning/">Learning</a></li> <li><a href="/music/">Music</a></li> <li><a href="/science/">Science</a></li> <li><a href="/nature/">Nature</a></li> <li><a href="/local/">Local</a></li> </ul><ul class="blq-nav-sub blq-last"><li><a href="/northernireland/">Northern Ireland</a></li> <li><a href="/scotland/">Scotland</a></li> <li><a href="/wales/">Wales</a></li> <li id="blq-az"><a href="/a-z/">Full A-Z<span class="blq-hide"> of BBC sites</span></a></li> </ul></div> </div> </div>  <div id="blq-foot" lang="en-GB" class="blq-rst blq-clearfix blq-foot-grey"> <div id="blq-footlinks"> <h2 class="blq-hide">BBC links</h2> <ul><li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="http://m.bbc.co.uk/">Mobile site</a></li> <li><a href="/terms/">Terms of Use</a></li> <li><a href="/aboutthebbc/">About the BBC</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/privacy/">Privacy</a></li> <li><a href="/accessibility/">Accessibility Help</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/privacy/cookies/about">Cookies</a></li> <li><a href="/contact/">Contact the BBC</a></li> </ul></li> <li class="blq-footlinks-row"> <ul class="blq-footlinks-row-list"><li><a href="/guidance/">Parental Guidance</a></li> </ul></li> </ul></div> <div id="blq-foot-blocks" class="blq-footer-image-light"><img src="/staticarchive/a8e42f8fe987b7cc9bf2d43b74b2c74b2448d2e3.png" width="84" height="24" alt="BBC"></div> <p id="blq-disclaim"><span id="blq-copy">BBC © 2014</span> <a href="/help/web/links/">The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read more.</a></p> <div id="blq-obit"><p><strong>This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.</strong></p></div> </div> </div> </div> <script type="text/javascript"> if (typeof require !== 'undefined') { require(['istats-1'], function(istats){ istats.track('external', { region: document.getElementById('blq-main') }); istats.track('download', { region: document.getElementById('blq-main') }); }); } </script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/7e06d56c105e40ac2586df1fdee6dc2c4de3522b.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/9db0e83f69a5e9abafddc192847b0cfd316cb3da.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/c22b3ff9cd32a6a8c384665fef98785674d88408.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/290c74c7c0fce7cf3c54f4747d56712839f0da48.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="/staticarchive/159117ef9f66736fed7c12cf0096784ffa74c3d5.js"></script><div id="vision-prod-livestats-bug">  <div class="blq-hide"><img id="livestats" width="1" height="1" alt="" src="/staticarchive/56d45f8a17f5078a20af9962c992ca4678450765.gif"></div>  <script src="/staticarchive/e48c065d50111cc7095426d5ae5646c41b799914.js" type="text/javascript"></script></div> </body></html>