Delhi's “plastic king” Bhanwarlal Doshi has given up his $ 600 million worth of business empire and embraced Jain monastic life in an extravagant ceremony in Ahmedabad. Doshi is now the 108th disciple of Surishwarji Maharaj and the 354th postulant to become a monk under him. The 3-day affair was conducted in Ahmedabad and hosted more than 150,000 people.
Doshi, 58, the son of a textile merchant of Rajasthan, started out selling paraffin from a street cart. He later built his own company, DR International, into one of India’s largest plastics manufacturers, earning him a fortune that until last week ranked him as one of nation’s richest 100 people. He was attracted to monastic living way back in 1982.
His diksha ceremony began with a procession of painted elephants, camels, horses, musicians, sword dancers and 1,000 Jain monks. Doshi's head was ritually shaved in a special hall, the mundan sthal and he was cheered by the crowd on his decision to give up his fortune to jain charities. The former business tycoon was greeted by spiritual leaders and Ahmedabad's top Jain industrialists such as Gautam Adani, a billionaire and a close friend of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Jainism concedes non-violence and the renunciation of worldly goods as the way to spiritual liberation. After his consecration, the father of 3 has now given up on his indulgent lifestyle that included multiple homes, cars and overseas vacations- he now looks forward to a life of asceticism. His phones, ornaments and colourful clothes are now exchanged for simple white robes. He is not allowed to cut his hair and will walk barefoot at all times to avoid the possibility of squashing insects.
Before he goes to bed, each night, he will undertake a Jain ritual known as “alochana,” or self-criticism, in which disciples consider their day’s activities and the times they may have hurt something or killed an insect, while atoning their daily sins.
“Taking diksha is not easy,” said Surishwarji Maharaj, a Jain guru from the order that Doshi has joined. “A Jain monk’s life is like that of conch shell that cannot be painted any other colour.”
Jains see renouncement as a way to attain moksha, the escaping of the continuous cycle of birth, death and rebirth. His son Rohit, 33, said that he was proud of his father’s decision. “He would have taken diksha three years ago but the family stopped him then. It is always tough when the head of the family wants to seek diksha,” he said. “It took three years for him to convince us. We are proud of him. The honour and respect that he got when he announced his decision is something that can only be seen to be believed.”
