Panch Parameshthi
The five supreme beings, and the five colours of the Jain flag.
Foundations
3 min read
Wmpearl, Altarpiece with multiple Jinas, c. 1500, Norton Simon Museum, CC0 1.0. Resized and converted to WebP.
What the word means
Parameshthi means one established in the highest place. The five are not five gods and not five offices. They are five conditions a soul can be in, listed in descending order of spiritual attainment.
The distinction matters. A person is not an Acharya because a committee elected them; they are an Acharya because they keep the great vows in full and carry a particular responsibility within the order. Remove the conduct and the designation goes with it.
The two who have arrived
Arihant and Siddha are both liberated in the sense that matters, but they differ in one respect: the Arihant still has a body and the Siddha does not.
An Arihant has destroyed the four ghati karmas, the ones that obscure the soul itself. What remains are the four aghati karmas, which only determine how long the body lasts and what it is like. When those exhaust themselves at the end of that life, the soul becomes a Siddha and rises to the siddhashila at the very top of the universe, where it remains, unchanging, for ever.
The three still walking
Acharya, Upadhyaya and Sadhu are living ascetics. All three keep the same five great vows; what separates them is the responsibility each carries within the order.
- The Acharya leads. He initiates new ascetics, prescribes penance for lapses, and is answerable for the conduct of the whole order.
- The Upadhyaya teaches. His work is the transmission of scripture to ascetics who are still studying.
- The Sadhu practises. He holds no office and seeks none, and the fifth line of the Navkar Mantra salutes every one of them in the world without distinction of order or tradition.
The five colours
The Jain flag carries five horizontal bands, one for each Parameshthi. Each band also stands for one of the five great vows, so the flag states the ideal and the discipline that reaches it in the same object.
- White, for the Arihant
- The colour of ahimsa, non-violence. White because nothing has been added to it.
- Red, for the Siddha
- The colour of satya, truth.
- Yellow, for the Acharya
- The colour of achaurya, not taking what is not given.
- Green, for the Upadhyaya
- The colour of brahmacharya, celibacy and restraint of the senses.
- Dark blue, for the Sadhu
- The colour of aparigraha, non-possession.
Terms on this page
- Parameshthiपरमेष्ठी
- One established in the highest place. Not a title conferred by anyone, but a description of a soul's actual spiritual condition.
- Ghati karmaघाति कर्म
- The four destructive karmas that obscure the soul's knowledge, perception, energy and bliss. Destroying them produces omniscience; an Arihant has done so, and still has a body.
- Jain flag
- Five horizontal bands, one for each Parameshthi, each also standing for one of the five great vows.
Common questions
Do Jains worship the Panch Parameshthi as gods?
They are venerated, not petitioned. A Siddha has no connection with the world and grants nothing; an Arihant teaches but does not intervene. Veneration in Jain practice is a way of holding an ideal in view, not a transaction.