- Santhara or sallekhana, is the Jain custom of embracing voluntary death at the end of one’s life.
- Those adopting Santhara are not people who are unhappy but those who are satisfied and have lived a full life.
- According to Jain religious text, ‘Santhara is permitted among the old and those afflicted with an incurable disease.’
Through the tiny crack in the door, he witnessed a scene that left an indelible imprint on his child mind. He was just seven years old. His 95-year-old great-grandmother lay on the bed. His parents and grandparents stood around her. They controlled their tears and chanted their prayers. He could hear the rustle of the hymn books. His great-grandmother had undertaken santhara — starvation until death. This was the road to spiritual salvation, according to the Jain faith.
Abhijay Sethia, a Wharton graduate, is now 26 years old. The Rajasthan High Court ruling banning the centuries-old Jain practice, has brought back a flood of memories. As a child he could not understand why his great-grandmother wanted to leave them. “My mother explained she was not leaving us. She was not killing herself. She wanted to embrace a new world. She waited for death to welcome her. The sounds reverberated for a long time in my ears as the singing and sobbing combined. There was silence, followed by a cry. Seventeen days later dadisa, as we called her, had fulfilled her mission,” he reminisces.
She had peacefully attained moksh or salvation.
Santhara or sallekhana, is the Jain custom of embracing voluntary death at the end of one’s life. Sallekhana is made up of two words sal which means ‘properly’ and lekhana, which means ‘to thin out’. Properly thinning out of the passions and the body is ‘sallekhana’. It is prescribed not just for ascetics but for householders too.
Abhijay says, “I don’t agree with the judgement. It works on the premise that santhara is a form of suicide. Santhara cannot be equated with suicide. Suicide is essentially an act of despair. Besides, the average age of those who embrace santhara is 90 plus, whereas the average age of suicides would be below 50.”
Those adopting Santhara are not people who are unhappy but those who are satisfied and have lived a full life. Santhara is not an easy practice. It requires tremendous fortitude.