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While ‘individuality’ is regarded as a cultural construct, this article argues that its trans-cultural investigation has hardly begun, both empirically and theoretically. Comparative work to date has been confined to euro-centric approaches. South Asian models of the individual, though amongst the earliest on record, have not been taken seriously as credible alternatives to European models, other than under the label of ‘ethnosociology’. The present article seeks to redress the balance, by offering a sociological reconstruction of the classical concept of the individual in Jaina philosophy and of its social implications. It argues that previously opaque aspects of the dualistic conception of individuality of the Jainas can be freshly understood, and analysed, with the help of the sociological concepts of G. Simmel and N. Luhmann, which in turn are interpreted as variations of broader transcultural themes.

This article gives an overview of recent findings on the thriving cult of bone relic stūpas in contemporary Jaina culture. Although Jaina doctrine rejects the worship of material objects, fieldwork in India on the hitherto unstudied current Jaina mortuary rituals furnished clear evidence for the ubiquity of bone relic stūpas and relic veneration across the Jaina sectarian spectrum. The article discusses a representative case and assesses the significance of the overall findings for the history of religions. It also offers a new theoretical explanation of the power of relics.

A review of John E. Cort: Jains in the World: Religious Values and Ideology in India. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.

The article investigates the relationship between canonical rules ( dharma) and customary rules ( maryādā) in contemporary Jain mendicant life. It focuses on an analysis of the Terāpanth śvetāmbara Jain mendicant order and presents translations and analyses of the rules and regulations and initiation rituals for a new category of Jain novices, the saman order, which was introduced by the Terāpanth in 1981. It is argued that variations and cumulative changes in post-canonical monastic law can be understood in terms of rule specification and secondary canonization and not only in terms of exceptions to the rule. The article contributes both to the anthropology of South Asian asceticism and monasticism and to the exploration of the maryādā and āvaśyaka literatures of the Jains.

Preface. Introduction. Orthodoxy and Heresy Adda or the Oldest Extant Dispute between Jains and Heretics (Suyagada 2,6). The Later Fortunes of Jamali. The Dating of the Jaina Councils: Do Scholarly Presentations Reflect the Traditional Sources? The Question of Omniscience and Jaina Logic The Jain-Mimamsa Debate on Omniscience. Why must there be an Omniscient in Jainism? Implications of the Buddhist-Jaina Dispute over the Fallacious Example in Nyaya-Bindu and Nyayavatara-Vivrti Role Models for Women and Female Identity Restrictions and Protection: Female Jain Renouncers. Thinking Collectively about Jain Satis: The Uses of Jain Sati Name Lists. Religious Practice and the Creation of Personhood among Svetambar Murtipujak Jain Women in Jaipur Sectarian Movements Rethinking Religious Authority: A Perspective on the Followers of Srimad Rajacandra. A Fifteenth Century Digambar Mystic and his Contemporary Followers: Taran Taran Svami and the Taran Svami Panth. Demographic Trends in Jaina Monasticism Property, Law and Ethics Architectural, Sculptural and Religious Change: A New Interpretation of the Jaina Temples at Khajuraho. Jaina Law as an Unofficial Legal System. Ahimsa and Compassion in Jainism

Purpose: To evaluate gadodiamide as an alternative contrast agent for peripheral and renal angioplasty in patients with contraindications to iodinated contrast media. Methods: Seventeen patients (10 men; mean age 74 years, range 68–83) with contraindication to iodinated contrast media were given gadodiamide as the contrast agent during peripheral and renal intra-arterial digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and subsequent percutaneous interventions (balloon angioplasty, stent placement). Results: The mean volume of gadodiamide used was 136 ± 46 mL (range 60–200). No serious side effects were observed, especially no change in renal or thyroid function; no exanthema or other allergic reactions were noted. In patients without renal artery intervention, serum creatinine at discharge remained unchanged (2.57 ± 1.43 mg/dL to 2.40 ± 1.28 mg/dL, p=NS). In patients undergoing angioplasty/stenting of renal artery stenoses, serum creatinine decreased significantly from 3.53 ± 1.75 mg/dL to 2.36 ± 1.15 mg/dL (pConclusions: For patients with contraindications to iodinated materials, gadodiamide may be a suitable alternative for renal or peripheral DSA followed by angioplasty.