Jain Dharma and Animal Advocacy
Course Number: 1006
According to Jain dharma, we live in an interconnected web of life in which no creature, human or non-human, wants to be harmed. For this reason, the Jain tradition has taught ahiṃsā, or non-violence, to all forms of life for thousands of years. Learn why the Jain tradition places particular emphasis on non-violence toward non-human animals, and how these Jain perspectives can be brought into conversation with contemporary animal advocacy concerns. Leave the course inspired to advocate for the well-being of all forms of life.
Learning Area
Animal Advocacy and Biodiversity Instructor
Christopher Miller, PhD
Christopher Jain Miller is the co-founder, Vice President of Academic Affairs, and Professor of Jain and Yoga Studies at Arihanta Institute. He completed his PhD in the study of Religion at the University of California, Davis and is also a Visiting Researcher at the University of Zürich's Asien-Orient-Institut and Visiting Professor at Claremont School of Theology where he co-developed and co-runs a remotely available Masters Degree Program focusing on Engaged Jain Studies. His current research focuses on Engaged Jainism and Modern Yoga, and he is the author of a number of articles and book chapters concerned with Jainism and the practice of modern yoga. Christopher is the author of Embodying Transnational Yoga: Eating, Singing, and Breathing in Transformation (Routledge 2024), as well as co-editor of the volumes Engaged Jainism: Critical and Constructive Approaches to the Study of Jain Social Engagement (SUNY 2025) and Beacons of Dharma: Spiritual Exemplars for the Modern Age (Lexington 2020).