UNKNOWN to many, the small religious community of the Jains recently observed an extraordinary fasting period. HIMANSHU BHATT discovers how the profound tradition is being kept alive in modern Malaysia.

Everyone is aware of the ongoing Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, but one religious community - much smaller in size - recently observed its own fasting period that went largely unnoticed.
Every year in September, followers of the Jain religion, numbering about a thousand in Malaysia, engage in a profound discipline of complete dietary abstention.
The occasion, called 'paryushan', is commonly practised by young and old alike to facilitate a process of personal introspection, and as a testament of faith and devotion.
Some give up food for just a day, while many choose to fast for eight sacred days or longer.
In fact, the longest fasting period ever recorded in Malaysia by an individual is attributed to a Jain elder who lives in Kuala Lumpur.
In 1995, Pravin Damani went 55 straight days without taking a single morsel as a personal observance for 'paryushan'.
The concept behind 'paryushan' is actually deeply spiritual.
"It is a process of spiritual cleansing which serves to strengthen your human principles," explains businessman Bhashkar Chitalia.
Chitalia, 49, is the vice-president of the Gujarati Association of Wilayah Persekutuan and Selangor, and heads its religious committee.
He stresses that fasting during 'paryushan' is not compulsory but is encouraged. The process involves consuming only boiled water between sunrise and sunset.
The Jain community, consisting mostly of ethnic Gujaratis, is concentrated mainly in Penang, Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur and Malacca.
Ipoh, in fact, is home to the largest Jain temple in South-East Asia - a majestic ornate-domed building located in First Garden, built by the family of local philanthropist Bharat Jasani.
Jains in Kuala Lumpur recently celebrated 'paryushan' at a temple in Bangsar.
Among the many who fasted was a 15-year-old boy, Darshan Shah, who abstained from eating for eight days.
The Form Four student insists he came out of the experience refreshed and invigorated.
"I feel I can concentrate much better now," he says. "I find that I am able to focus more easily."
Shah, who had the support of his parents, was inspired after watching others undergo fasting in previous years.
"I will do it again next year," he says. "And my friends also want to do it."
Seeing someone like Shah must be reassuring for older members like Chitalia and his friend Rajesh Doshi, 50, who are part of a movement to encourage Jain understanding and awareness among youths.
"Youths today ask the most important question: Why?" says Doshi.
"We need to help them understand that our traditions are actually quite scientific. The fasting gives our body rest.
Encouraging and educating youths is a challenge in Malacca, which has the oldest Jain community in the region.
It is believed that Jains lived here during Portuguese rule in the 16th century and even earlier when traders from Gujarat flocked to the bustling port city.
Today, the community in Malacca has shrunk significantly as many Gujaratis have moved to Kuala Lumpur.
For Ishwarlal Dungarshi Mavani, 74, president of the Gujarati Vanik Sangh Melaka, education is a key to ensuring that ceremonies such as the 'paryushan' are kept alive by future generations.
Malacca's Jain school for children, or a 'jainshala', was set up in the fifties. Today, the school, run by volunteers, remains instrumental in passing down the values and beliefs of Jain culture to children and youths.
"There are about 300 Jains in Malacca today," says Mavani.
A volunteer at another 'jainshala' in KL, Indiraben Kothari, vividly remembers the 'paryushan' gatherings during the 60s and 70s.
Her late father-in-law, Fulchandbhai Kothari, a respected benefactor of the community, and his brother Lalchand Bhai, would host prayers at their house at 91 Batu Road - right opposite the Coliseum Theatre - and Jains from across the Klang Valley would gather there every year.
Indiraben today helps to teach some 50 children at the 'jainshala'.
"We must instil the importance of our culture in our children. They need to understand how our traditions and beliefs are relevant today," she says.

(published: 8/10/2006)