Wealthy Indian Becomes Humble Monk During $15,000,000 Ceremony

Among the many things I remember from my days in the Jain religion was its philosophy of non-possessiveness (Aparigraha). You’re not supposed to be materialistic. As much as possible, you should try to live a frugal life.

So when Bhanwarlal Raghunath Doshi (below), who oversaw a billion-dollar plastics company, said he was going to become a Jain monk, a quiet simple ceremony to mark the occasion should have done the trick.

Instead, he opted for a lavish party costing more than 100 crore (well over $15 million USD):

The diksha venue — the Ahmedabad Education Ground — was built on the theme of a ‘samyam jahaj’ (ship of restraint) that had cost Rs 100 crore. Apart from 1,000 sadhus and sadhvis, the event also had 1.5 lakh samayiks (spectators).

A large number of dignitaries, including Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani, honoured Doshi at the event. On Saturday, a 7km procession, ‘Varsi Daan’, was taken out with 1,000 Jain monks, 12 chariots, nine elephants, nine camel carts and traditional musicians.

He’s like a man pledging to be faithful in marriage… throwing himself a giant orgy the night before the wedding.

It’s his money. He can do whatever he wants with it. But if he plans to make the world a better place and renounce materialism, you’d think he would want to donate a lot of that cash to charity rather than spend it on a luxurious party.

Oh well. Religion has always been home to hypocrites. Even the benign ones.

(Thanks to Anu for the link)