Assertion (A): The emphasis of Jainism on non-violence (ahimsa) prevented agriculturalists from…

Answer: (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A

Non-injury to all living beings, including insects, is central to Jaina philosophy. Farming cannot be carried on without harming insects and pests, so strict Jaina practice sat badly with cultivation. Both statements are true, and R explains A.

• ✓ A Ahimsa is at the core of Jaina philosophy and covers even insects. Farming households therefore found Jaina rules difficult to follow, and Jainism drew its lay support mainly from traders.
• ✓ R Ploughing and protecting crops kill insects and pests. That is the kind of harm Jaina non-injury forbids.
• ✓ (a) R is the direct reason for A. Cultivation unavoidably kills small creatures, and this is what kept agriculturalists away from the faith.
• ✗ (b) This would hold only if R were unrelated to A. Here the harm to insects in farming is the very reason farmers stayed away.

Remember · Jaina ahimsa extends to insects, so farming was hard to square with it. Jainism drew its lay support mainly from traders, not cultivators.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Ch 4 (practise this chapter)

Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2000, General Studies paper. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 25 Oct 2026 (how we verify). · Report an error