Indore:
The 2548th birth anniversary of Lord Mahavir, the 24th Tirthankara of Jainism, was celebrated on Sunday. This was the second year in running when the traditional procession was not taken out due to corona pandemic.
Mahavir Jayanti is considered to be one of the most auspicious events for Jain community and holds a lot of importance in their religious life. Only traditionally Jain temples had built the temporary decorative structure and organised worship of Lord Mahavir's idols.
Following the Covid-19 guideline, in the wake of the global corona crisis, various Jain community and various organisations called upon people to follow Lord Mahavir's principle of live and let live.
Since, Mahavira devoted his life to teach spiritual freedom, the followers of Jainism across the world celebrate this day to honour his philosophy.
To render the birth anniversary by serving humankind, the community stayed home and worshipped Lord Mahavir in a simplistic manner and pray for human welfare.
Usually, on this auspicious day, Jains carry out a procession with the idol of Lord Mahavir and they sing religious songs and celebrate this day with full fervour and enthusiasm.
However, this time the celebration of Mahavir Jayanti will look a little different due to the ongoing second wave of coronavirus.
Chairman of Digambar Jain Samaj Narendra Ved and spokesman Manish Ajmera said that following the corona guidelines, the worship of Lord Mahavira was done in the morning in the houses by the community members. Jain religious flag was hoisted at the houses.
On the eve of Mahavir Jayanti, a virtual meeting of the community was held. The meeting was attended by former president Kailash Ved, Surendra Bakaliwal, DK Jain, Janesh Jhanjhari, Sangeeta Vinayaka, Sadhana Dagade, Sadhana Madawat, Rajesh Gangwal, Chandresh Jain, Neeraj Jain, etc.
Food, too, plays an important role in the festival of Mahavir Jayanti as all devotees strictly adhere to satvik diet. Satvik diet restrains from onions and garlic, following the key idea of consuming fresh meals with minimum harm to the living creatures.
