Santhara is a ritual in Jainism where a person voluntary fasts to death. It is a procedure in which a Jain completely stops eating or drinking with the intention of preparing for death. It is also known by the names of Sallekhana, Samnyasa marana and Samadhi marana.
Philosophy Behind Santhara:
Jainism believes in the law of karma. Jains are strict vegetarians. But they believe that taking fruits, vegetables and leaves can hurt trees. Everyday and every second human being is killing so many living organisms and all this adds to his negative karma.
The idea behind fasting in Jainism is to acquire minimum possible negative karma and thus purify oneself of all the previous karmas. Jains claim that Santhara is the highest form of purification of all the karmas. They say this is the most ideal, satisfying and peaceful form of death. Jains consider the earthly existence as a painful and flawed existence of the soul. Santhara is the form of realizing this by suffering and starving with the intent of a higher goal.
Jainism explains that every living entity has an immortal soul called jiva. Jiva is the source of consciousness and intelligence. Ideally, the jiva should be ascend to the spiritual universe and achieve omniscience. However, it is the negative karma of the jiva that prevents the soul from achieving liberation or moksha, which is its eternal quality. It is important to observe that this theology is a little different from Hinduism in which karma is literally translated as actions of the person executed with free will.
Jainism has a different understanding of the physical body. The physical body is explained as a prison for the soul and it is said that it is karma which is responsible for keeping the soul trapped within the body. This karma can be annihilated and the deliverance of the soul can be achieved by observing strict asceticism. Santhara is the practice of strict asceticism. It is believed that by doing this the soul achieves omniscience surpassing birth, death and rebirth.
Debates and Views on Santhara:
Santhara was a legal issue recently. Several human rights activists called it a type of suicide. But Jain scholars and supporters believe that this cannot be termed as suicide because suicide is a hasty thing motivated by emotional trauma. Unlike suicide, Santhara is done with full knowledge and intent with the higher purpose of liberation of soul.
Viewed in several perspectives and the topic of numerous debates, Santhara continues to be in practice in India. About 200 Jains observe Santhara every year. However, the courts need better sources and understanding before they can come to a justified decision.
