A visit to one of the very few Jain places of worship in Japan brought scholars studying Jainism into direct contact with families working to preserve the faith’s traditions, dietary practices and values within the country’s multicultural society.
Prof. Ashok Kumar Jetawat and Dr. Shrinetra Pande visited the Kobe Shwetambar Jain Temple in the Kitano area of Kobe on August 31, 2026, as part of a program following the International Symposium “Non-Violence–Ahiṃsā: Jain Studies and Beyond” at Kyoto University.
The temple visit brought together approximately 30 scholars and faculty members from Kyoto University, the University of Hamburg, the International School for Jain Studies and several other Japanese universities, according to Jetawat’s visit report.
The symposium organizers had identified the temple as a post-symposium program and described it as one of the very few Jain places of worship in Japan.
For the visiting scholars, the program offered an opportunity to examine Jain religious practice beyond academic settings and to understand how the principle of Ahiṃsā, or non-violence, is maintained by the Jain community in contemporary Japanese society.
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Connecting scholarship with the Jain community
Members of the Kobe Jain Sangh and Jain households living in Japan hosted the visiting scholars during the two-hour program, which included a question-and-answer and dialogue session followed by a Swamivatsalya lunch.
The interaction focused on how Jain families in Japan preserve their religious and cultural traditions while living in a multicultural environment.
Discussions covered the transmission of Jain values to younger generations, religious observances, vegetarian and Jain dietary practices, the preservation of traditions and the contemporary relevance of Ahiṃsā. Participants also discussed opportunities to strengthen engagement between academic Jain Studies and the Jain community.
The visit report described the interaction as an important link between the academic study of Jainism and the lived experience of the Jain diaspora in Japan.
That connection was significant because much of the broader symposium at Kyoto University focused on Jain philosophy, ethics, ascetic practices and Ahiṃsā through academic disciplines including philology, philosophy, anthropology, religious studies and the natural sciences.
Jainism, Ahiṃsā and international scholarship
The International Symposium “Non-Violence–Ahiṃsā: Jain Studies and Beyond” was held August 29 and 30 at Kyoto University and was organized by Indian Classical Studies at the university’s Graduate School of Letters, with Universität Hamburg as co-organizer.
The symposium examined Ahiṃsā as a major Jain philosophical and ethical principle while also exploring its relevance beyond Jainism. Sessions addressed subjects including Jain logic and ethics, lay vows, Buddhist-Jain dialogue, medieval Jain thought, Jain philosophy and contemporary interpretations of Ahiṃsā.
Jetawat presented research on Jain fasting on August 30 in a presentation titled “Jain Fasting and Autophagy: A Cross-Cultural Dialogue between Ascetic Traditions and Modern Biomedical Science.”
His presentation examined Jain fasting from an interdisciplinary perspective and explored possible connections between traditional Jain ascetic practices and modern biomedical science, particularly the concept of autophagy.
The symposium brought together scholars from institutions including Kyoto University, the University of Hamburg, Ghent University, the University of Tokyo, Komazawa University, Hokkaido University, Ryukoku University, Ritsumeikan University and the International School for Jain Studies.
Focus on preserving Jain traditions in Japan
The Kobe program highlighted the role of families and community institutions in maintaining Jain traditions outside India.
According to the report, conversations with Jain families provided insight into how religious values, dietary practices and observances are practiced in Japan and how families contribute to passing those traditions to younger generations.
The discussions also pointed toward stronger community-level and academic engagement in Jain Studies, including documentation and study of Jain diaspora communities.
The report identified several potential areas for future cooperation, including Jain Studies and Indology, Ahiṃsā and Peace Studies, Jain philosophy and ethics, Jain asceticism and fasting, interdisciplinary research linking Jainism with modern sciences, international teaching, scholar and student exchanges, and joint seminars and conferences.
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Kyoto University collaboration
The Kobe visit was part of a wider academic and institutional program that also included discussions about future collaboration with Kyoto University.
On September 1, an online meeting was held to discuss cooperation following the symposium and related Jain Week programs. A memorandum of understanding concerning a proposed donation to Kyoto University was also taken up for signing, with Jetawat participating alongside Dr. Jasvant Modi.
The report said the proposed donation and MoU could help strengthen Jain Studies at Kyoto University and provide a foundation for sustained academic collaboration.
The Japan visit, which ran from August 25 to September 3, brought together academic presentations, institutional networking and engagement with the Jain community in Japan.
For the participants, the Kobe temple visit added a community dimension to the international discussion of Jainism, showing how a small diaspora community is maintaining religious traditions and practices while also engaging with scholars interested in the global study of Jainism and Ahiṃsā.
The report concluded that the visit strengthened international academic links and could lead to long-term collaboration involving joint research, faculty and student exchanges and international programs in Jain Studies and Ahiṃsā studies.