Yoga and Meditation in the Jaina Tradition

Key information

Start date: 6 January 2025
End date: 21 March 2025
Year of study: Any
Duration: Term 2
Module code: 15PSRH060
FHEQ Level: 7
Credits: 15
Department: Department of Religions and Philosophies

Module overview

The course offers an introduction to yoga and meditation in the the context of the Jaina path of liberation. The historical roots of contemporary Jaina practices of asceticism and meditation will be explored with refenrence to their metaphysical and soteriological rational and institutionalisation in Jaina mendicant and lay traditions in India and the UK. The later influence of Patañjali and later Hindu philosophy and yoga practices on medieval Jaina philosophers writing on Jaina-Yoga will be demonstrated. The course concludes with a survey of the new teachings and techniques of competing modern schools of yoga and meditation.

Objectives and learning outcomes of the module

LO1. to account for the history and principal doctrines of the Jaina traditions
LO2. to discuss the differences between different schools of Jaina yoga and meditation
LO3. to analyze the distinctive contribution and influence of the Jaina tradition on contemporary yoga philosophy and practic

Workload

10 lectures, of one hour's duration each per week; as well as 10 seminars, of one hour's duration each per week.

Scope and syllabus

Lecture 1: Roots of Jaina Yoga and Meditation
Lecture 2: Film: The Frontiers of Peace
Lecture 3: Pārśva, Mahāvīra, and Gośāla
Lecture 4: Body and Soul: Karma, Bondage and Liberation in Early Jainism
Lecture 5: The Jaina Cosmos and its Inhabitants
Lecture 6: The Jaina Path of Liberation
Lecture 7: Sallekhanā: The Religious Practice of Voluntary Death
Lecture 8: Asceticism and Meditation
Lecture 9: The Influence of Patañjali on Jaina-Yoga: Haribhadra, Śubhacandra and Hemacandra
Lecture 10: Modern Forms of Jaina Meditation