Online Zoom Forum: Jain Spirituality: Values, Principles, and Practices.
Date: Wednesday 8 July 2026.
Time: 7pm-9pm (UK time).
Event Description:
Format: There will be five talks, each of 15 minutes, followed by discussion among the speakers and the chair, followed by Q & A.
Chair:
Dr Thomas Daffern:
Bio: REVIEW OF IIPSGP DIRECTOR’S ACADEMIC KNOWLEDGE, TEACHING AND RESEARCH EXPERIENCE IN JAIN RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS
STUDY AND WRITING: Commenced study of Jain philosophy whilst an undergraduate philosophy student at Bristol University (1976/7); detailed study of Jain scriptures, texts, philosophy (all schools) in Canada 1977-1981; continued study of contribution of Jain thought to history of global philosophy (especially through the transmission of idea of epoche and suspension of judgement to core Western academic tradition via Pyrhho of Elis, Carneades, Cicero etc. Continuing study of Jain philosophy as part of teaching work in religious studies 1993-2001. Published several essays in Jain journals on ahimsa and philosophy. Authored the final Declarations of 5 meetings of the International Conferences of Peace and Nonviolent Action in India from 1993-2023
TEACHING: Teaching classes on Jainism on panel of London region WEA from 1992-2000 Teaching classes on Jainism for Birkbeck College, University of London 1993-1999 Teaching classes on Jainism for University of Oxford 1997-2000
RECENT EXPERIENCE: Contributed paper in absentia to Jain Conference on Ecology and Peace and non-violence in Delhi December 2005 on The Economics of Peace (publication 2006); have taught aspects of Jain philosophy, especially non-violence in secondary schools in Powys, Shropshire, Coventry, Nottinghamshire and Dorset and Wiltshire.
VISITS: Visited Jain temples in Rajasthan and campus of Jain University of Ladnun, only formally accredited Jain University in the world, where I was invited to address a large international conference of peace educators in 1995; and subsequently invited to write up the document which became the Conference Manifesto comprising “Ladnun Declaration on a Peaceful World Living in harmony with the environment”; visited Jain Exhibition at Victoria and Albert Museum. Returned to revisit Jain educational centres in Rajasthan in 1998, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2015, 2019
ACQUAINTANCE WITH THE LITERATURE: Accrued library of Jain texts, translations, scholarly works, covering all schools; User of libraries with Jain collections including SOAS, India Office, Theosophical Society, British Library etc. As Trustee, International Sacred Literature Trust, helped publish class Jain text, Tattvartha Sutra: That Which Is.
COMMUNITY AND FAITH PARTICIPATION AND ACTIVITY Participated in several Jain religious rituals and ceremonies in India and the UK. Attended as a guest the All Party Parliamentary Jainism Group in 2026 on the occasion of the presentation of the Jain Award to Dr S.J. Gandhi. Helped organise the academic input to 5 meetings of the International Conferences of Peace and Nonviolent Action in India, and in 2023 online.
COLLEAGUES, CONTACTS, FRIENDS: Numerous colleagues and friends from the Jain community including: especially Acharya Tulsi, Bawa Jain, the monks and nuns (samanis) of Ladnun and the former Jain monk, Salish Kumar; Dr. L Gandhi of Jaipur (serving as Indian coordinator for the Institute of Peace Studies and Global Philosophy)
Speakers:
Prof Jeffery D. Long:
Title: Anekantavada: The Metaphysics of Nonviolent Speech.
Description: The central pillar of Jain practice is ahimsa, or nonviolence in thought, speech, and action. A related pillar of Jain thought is anekantavada, the doctrine of the complexity of existence, which affirms that we should speak in a non-one-sided way when we are engaged in philosophical discussion. This approach to philosophy steers a middle path between the extremes of absolutism and relativism and points toward a form of discourse that is simultaneously respectful and illuminating with regard to the ultimate nature of reality. This presentation will outline the main features of anekantavada as well as its potential benefits for the practice of philosophy.
Bio: Dr Jeffery D. Long, the Carl W. Zeigler Professor of Religion, Philosophy, and Asian Studies at Elizabethtown College, specializes in the religions and philosophies of India. He is the author of several books and numerous articles, as well as the editor of the series Explorations in Indic Traditions for Lexington Books. In 2020, he received Elizabethtown College’s Ranck Award for Excellence in Research, and in 2022, his book, Hinduism in America: A Convergence of Worlds, received the Rajinder and Jyoti Gandhi Book Award for Excellence in Theology, Philosophy, and Critical Reflection from the Dharma Academy of North America. He has spoken in numerous venues, both national and international, including Princeton University, Yale University, the University of Chicago, Jawaharlal Nehru University, and Delhi University, and has also given three talks at the United Nations. He has appeared in television documentaries for both the History Channel and the Public Broadcasting Corporation.
Dr Bindi Shah:
Title: Community, Compassion and Conservation: Political Values, Civic Engagement and Citizenship among young Jains in UK and USA.
Description: In this presentation I consider the role of Jain dharma in influencing political values and citizenship among young Jains. The ethic of ahimsa or non-violence is a fundamental principle of Jain dharma, and all Jain beliefs, practices, rituals and traditions emanate from this central principle. Utilizing interviews with young Jains who self-identify as practicing Jains, I examine whether and in what ways the ethic of non-violence influences political commitments and political values among young Jains in the UK and USA. In particular, I ask whether Jain dharma encourages or discourages interest in or indifference to politics? Does it shape a commitment to formal institutional politics and/or civic engagement broadly? What role does it play in understandings of the ‘good’ citizen? My findings demonstrate that young Jains’ political commitments, values and engagement have a strong spiritual foundation in Jain ethics and values. They are challenging dominant values of individualism and citizenship measured in terms of material achievement and consumption by interjecting alternative values of community, compassion and conservation.
Bio: Bindi Shah is Associate Professor in Sociology at the University of Southampton, UK.
She is a specialist in migration and religion, and has written and published extensively on Asian immigrants in UK and USA, and on the second-generation. Her research has addressed the ways in which ethnicity, religion, class, and gender shape identity, belonging, and citizenship among the second-generation.
In the 1990s she began to notice that Jain children who were born and or brought up in the UK or USA were going to pathshala (Jain religious school), fasting for paryushan (a key religious event when Jain express higher levels of spiritual intensity through fasting, prayers and mediation), and enthusiastic about participating in Jain academic quizzes and plays. This interest in Jain dharma amongst children and teenagers was very different to that expressed by Jain children growing up in the UK in the 1970s and 1980s. Between 2008-10 she had an opportunity to carry out a research study on Jain young adults in the UK and USA to understand the significance of Jain dharma among young Jains in the West. In this presentation, she draws on that study. Since then, she has conducted research on a Jain Temple on the outskirts of London, and on philanthropic donations from Jains in the West to a Jain faith -based organisation in India.
Prof Veena R. Howard:
Title: Jain Women and Liberation: From Householders and Ascetics to Activists.
Description: Jainism is often characterized as a renunciatory tradition, grounded in its emphasis on comprehensive nonviolence, ascetic discipline, and longstanding communities of monks and nuns. The requirements for severe ascetic disciplines in certain Jain texts has also raised questions about women’s capacity for attaining liberation. The issue of women’s equality becomes even more complicated in Jainism, however, because one of its sects, the Digambara (literally “Sky-clad”), has espoused the impossibility of women’s attainment of the religious goal of liberation in the female body. Intriguingly, Jain thinkers and lay scholars have also engaged questions about women’s place, agency, and right to liberation within the ostensibly male-centered spiritual path. After providing a brief analysis of these debates, this presentation will focus selected Jain women—householders, social activists, and ascetics—who forged new paths to resist misogyny, expand women’s agency, and uplift marginalized communities. Their efforts give new meaning to spiritual liberation in today’s world and offer fresh insight into contemporary questions of women’s equality and religious authority.
Bio: Veena R. Howard, Ph.D., is Professor of Asian Religious Traditions in the Department of Philosophy at California State University, Fresno She also holds the Endowed Chair in Jain and Hindu Dharma. She was recently appointed as the director of the M.K. Gandhi Center: Inner Peace and Sarvodaya. She is a recipient of the Fulbright-Nehru Fellowship (2024-2025) and Fresno State's 2025-2026 Provost's ward in distningushied research, scholarship, adn creative activities award. Howard is a distinguished scholar, author, and speaker, specializing in nonviolence, Gandhian philosophy, and Indian religious traditions.She has authored and edited four books. She has published over two dozen articles in scholarly journals and anthologies. She is She has served on various communities boards including as the Board of Trustees of the Parliament of the World’s Religions.
Dr Shivani Bothra:
Title: Yoga and Meditation in Everyday Jain Spiritual Life.
Description: In Jainism, yoga and meditation are not limited to monastic practice or occasional spiritual retreats; they are integral disciplines that guide daily life toward self-awareness, ethical conduct, and spiritual growth. This presentation explores the role of yoga and meditation in everyday Jain spiritual practice, focusing on Samayika, one of the essential observances of Jain lay followers. Samayika is a structured period of meditation, reflection, equanimity, and self-discipline during which practitioners temporarily transcend worldly identities and cultivate a state of inner balance and nonviolence.
The discussion will examine how Samayika embodies key Jain principles of ahimsa (nonviolence) and samyak darshana (right perception), transforming meditation from a purely contemplative exercise into a way of living. By encouraging mindfulness of thoughts, words, and actions, Samayika serves as a practical form of Jain yoga that connects spiritual ideals with everyday responsibilities. Through the lens of Samayika, this talk demonstrates how Jain yoga and meditation function not merely as techniques for personal well-being but as pathways toward self-transformation and liberation, while remaining deeply rooted in the realities of daily life.
Bio: Shivani Bothra is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at California State University, Long Beach. Before this, she worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Rice University in Houston, USA, and taught as a lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She earned her doctorate from the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. Her focus is South Asian traditions, Jainism, and Nonviolence. Shivani's primary research areas are transnational Jainism, emphasizing Contemporary Jains.
Prof Atul K. Shah:
Title: The Moral Canvas for Sustainable Business - A Case Study of the Jains.
Description: Modernity and the Anthropocene have done irreversible damage, and most economic and business 'solutions' avoid moral reflexivity and the perils of human arrogance and dominion. Given the strong Ahimsa (Reverence for all living beings) philosophy and culture of the Jains, we have a unique opportunity to analyse their approach to sustainable enterprise, and learn from their track record of sustained growth and the active nourishment of social, ecological and spiritual capital. In this presentation, Prof Shah will elaborate on the unique Jain civilisational heritage, and how a combination of rituals, art, community engagement, and self-discipline especially around finance can help the world build a sustainable commerce ecosystem.
Bio: Prof Atul K. Shah is the author of a number of research papers and monographs on Business Ethics, founder of the Young Jains global movement, a professional Chartered Accountant, founding editor of Jain Spirit global magazine, and an active cultural ambassador for the Jains - BBC Broadcasts, FT articles and comments, active LinkedIn presence, and an expert witness in Parliament. 'Organic Finance' was launched in 2025 and is a multi-cultural theory of ethical economics. He is at Bayes Business School, City StGeorges, University of London and his articles and books can be found at www.atulkshah.co.uk
An archive recording will be made for the EICSP archive.
NB: There will be no refund if you cancel your booking.
Cost: By Paypal:
Contact: Neill Walker, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
If you are having a difficulty paying by Paypal, then you can pay by bank transfer instead.
NB: you must also email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. so we can send you the Zoom sign-in details.
Here are the bank transfer details:
Account Name: Edinburgh International Centre for Spirituality and Peace
Bank: Bank of Scotland
Bank Address: Edinburgh Royal Mile Branch
Account Number: 06131159
Sort Code: 802000
Some international transfers also ask for an IBAN number:
The IBAN number:
GB70 BOFS 8020 0006 1311 59
BIC:
BOFSGB21168