Pearls are used as gems since ancient times. Jewelers make beautiful Jewelry from pearls all over the world. However, pearls are not for
Jain community. Most of the pearls are obtained through a
highly violent and
Cruel process. We know that Jainism is known for
Ahimsa, the non-violence.
Pearls were found naturally from both sea water and fresh water since time immemorial and people were using those in
strings and other varieties of Jewelry. However, Mikimoti in
Japan invented a method to
culture pearls artificially. As real pears were rare,
cultured pearls soon became very popular.
Later on many other varieties of artificial pearls came in the market such as
Bibaco pearls, fresh water pearls and finally the
Chinese pearls. Chinese pearls are also known as
Hyderabad pearls in India.
All these pearls are obtained by
killing oysters. Oysters are living beings, hence
it is not advisable for Jain community to use these pearls.Millions of oysters are nurtured and injected artificially to get pearls. Those are killed to obtain pearls. It is seen that some of the
Jain Jewelers are involved in this business. Though most of them do not farm oysters but they obtain pearls from fishermen who kill the oysters. Using pearls causes acute
Karma Vandh.Users have to face Karmic bondage in this life or another birth.
Ghor
Himsa also leads to
Narak gati according to the philosophy of
Jainism as preached by the Jain Tirthankar Mahavir.
I request these
Jewelers to leave the business and adopt some other business that is less violent.
Jain, Jainism, Jain Temples,
Karma Theory Part 1 Karma Theory Part 2
Thanks,
(Jyoti Kothari, proprietor, Vardhaman Gems, Jaipur represents centuries old tradition of excellence in Gems and Jewelry. He is also a Quality Management System, ISO 9000 Professional.)