How do Jain monks practice the six obligatory actions?

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Jain monks perform six obligatory actions, known as avashyaka, which are practiced daily and during significant times in the religious calendar to support their spiritual progress. These actions are:1

  • Equanimity (samayika): A form of contemplative activity that, in theory, should be maintained throughout a monk's entire career.1
  • Praise of the Tirthankaras: Offering veneration to the spiritual teachers of the faith.1
  • Obeisance: Showing respect and devotion to the Tirthankaras, their teachers, and the sacred scriptures.1
  • Confession: Acknowledging faults and transgressions to purify the self.1
  • Resolution: Making a firm commitment to avoid sinful activities in the future.1
  • Abandonment of the body (kayotsarga): Engaging in a meditative posture, either standing or sitting, to detach from the physical form.1

These rituals are essential to monastic life and are performed alongside the exercise of the three guptis (care in thought, speech, and action) and the five samitis (vigilance over conduct) to ensure the monk adheres to the vow of nonviolence and maintains spiritual discipline.1