Episode 149, 'The Philosophy of Jainism' with Marie-Hélène Gorisse (Part I - Liberation)
The Panpsycast Philosophy Podcast
Jack Symes | Andrew Horton, Oliver Marley, and Rose de Castellane
4.8 • 612 Ratings
🗓️ 16 November 2025
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Jainism, along with Buddhism and Hinduism, is one of India's great dharmic traditions – though far less well known than its siblings. Emerging around the second century BCE, it is best-known for valuing ahimsa in pursuit of liberation – a devout practice of non-violence. Yet there is far more to Jain philosophy than liberation and ahimsa. Jainism offers a rich way of understanding the self, the cosmos, and the divine. It's a philosophy with a vision of reality that continues to challenge Western preconceptions on, well, just about everything: from the nature of souls and knowledge to the meaning of life and the origin of the universe.
Today, we'll be exploring Jainism with Dr Marie-Hélène Gorisse. Dr Gorisse is currently Dharmanath Assistant Professor in Jain Studies at the University of Birmingham, where she's co-project lead of the Global Philosophy of Religion Project 2. Marie-Hélène's work explores South Asian philosophy of religion and, most specifically, she is a world-leading expert on Jaina philosophy.
In this episode, we'll trace how Jainism arose, how its sages taught that the self can escape the cycle of rebirth, and the purpose of the universe. And perhaps more importantly, we'll explore how Jainism can help us all live better lives for the sake of ourselves, and the world around us.
This episode is produced in partnership with The Global Philosophy of Religion Project at University of Birmingham, funded by the John Templeton Foundation.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Jainism, along with Buddhism and Hinduism is one of India's great |
| 0:11.6 | Darmic traditions, though far less well known than its siblings. Emerging around the |
| 0:16.3 | second century BC is best known for valuing Ahimsa in pursuit of liberation, a devout practice of non-violence. |
| 0:23.6 | Yet there is far more to Jain philosophy than liberation and Ahimsa. |
| 0:27.6 | Jainism offers a rich way of understanding the self, the cosmos and the divine. |
| 0:31.6 | It's a philosophy with a vision of reality that continues to challenge Western preconceptions on, or just about |
| 0:38.2 | everything, from the nature of souls and knowledge to the meaning of life and the origin of the |
| 0:43.0 | universe. Today we'll be exploring Jainism with Dr. Marie-Helen Goyce. Currently, Dharmanat, |
| 0:49.0 | assistant professor in Jain Studies at the University of Birmingham, where she's co-project |
| 0:53.3 | lead at the Global Philosophy of Religion Project 2. |
| 0:56.4 | Marie Helen's work explores South Asian philosophy of religion, and most specifically, she is a world-leading expert on Jane philosophy. |
| 1:03.2 | In this episode, we'll trace how Janeism arose, how its sages taught that the self can escape the cycle of rebirth and the purpose of the universe. And perhaps more importantly, we'll explore how Jainism can help us all live better lives for the sakeseye cast, sweeping my way to liberation. |
| 1:40.7 | I'm Jack Symes, and I'm joined once again by the meditating monk that is Mr. Oli-Mali. |
| 1:45.6 | Hello. |
| 1:46.4 | And our sage for shredding karma is Dr. Marie-Helene Garose. |
| 1:51.3 | Hi. |
| 1:52.5 | Before we begin, we'd like to say a huge thank you to the Global Philosophy of Religion Project 2, |
| 1:57.4 | generously supported by the John Templeton Foundation for making this episode possible. |
| 2:02.0 | This is the first of five very special episodes we're producing in partnership with the project, |
| 2:07.0 | exploring underrepresented worldviews on under-explored topics, such as spiritual reality, |
| 2:12.8 | human purpose and living well. So if you enjoy this episode, make sure you subscribe and keep an eye |
| 2:17.1 | out for the next one. And for more information on the project, head over to global philosophy of religion.com |
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