Jainism is not well known in the West, but it is one of the world’s oldest religions. It is also perhaps the most demanding, rational and radical of all of them, attaching great importance to individual responsibility. It embodies many of the ideas underlying  current thinking on the interconnectedness of all living systems, the principle of nonviolence and the need to live simply. Based around the individual’s own spiritual journey and the choices he or she makes, Jainism, more than other spiritual tradition alive today, can bridge the gap between eastern and western patterns of thought.