Jains object to contents of Social Science textbook

Jain associations in the City have expressed dissent over the contents of one of the chapters of the Class 8 Social Science textbook which mentions that Vardhamana Mahaveera, the founder of Jainism, was married to Yashodhara.

The associations demanded that the line be removed from the textbook, as a section of the community believes that Mahaveera  was a bachelor.

While the Shwetambara sect believes Mahaveera was married, the Digambaras do not.

The textbook also carries an image of the 23rd Tirthankara Parshwanath Bhagwan with Mahaveera’s name in the caption.

“This is not the first time. There have been factual errors in previous academic years as well.

We decided to take it up with the government this time,” said Shashi Kumar, secretary of Blossom School.

Shashi Kumar, Surendra Kumar, national working president of Jain Milan, and Jitender Kumar, president of Karnataka Jain Association, submitted a representation to Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Vishveshwara Hegde Kageri urging the government to delete the “marriage” line in the textbook.

“Since the textbooks have already been distributed this year, we have asked them to send stickers containing the correction to schools,” Shashi Kumar said.

Textbook Society co-ordinator Mudambadithaya told Deccan Herald that it was not a factual error, as beliefs differed between the two sects of Jainism.

“Nonetheless, we will remove the line for the following academic year, along with other corrections that have to be made,” he said.

The Textbook Society faced scathing criticisms earlier this year for errors in the Indian political map and for wrongly including ‘Right against morality’ in the list of child rights in the Class 8 Kannada textbook.