INS Arihant - an opposition from Jain Community

Recently Indian government introduced nuclear submarine, INS Arihant, to the navy. This received mixed response from the Jain Community. ARIHANT is a sacred word for Jains and Jain religion is based on non-violence.

How can a weapon with the mass destruction capacity can be named as ARIHANT!!! This was the question raised by the part of community opposing naming ARIHANT to the submarine. The opposition was not a unanimous from the whole Jain Community. As others which were not opposing were having a different thought in their mind. They believe India is never known to be an attacker. But for self-defence, we always have to be well prepared and along with the time and technology. We can not just stay straight and watch someone come and destroy us. We need to be well prepared in our defence. And again naming on Arihant, did not mean insulting our religion. Why don’t we take it in another way?

Arihant, symbolic to non-violence. Then doesn’t a weapon named Arihant spread the message of self defence? It means, we will never attack unless and until we have to do it for our own defence. This is a good sign, so why to oppose?

I recently came to know an incident with Gandhiji. Here it is

Once GandhiJi was asked, "You preach non-violence, yet you carry a stick around with you - why so? GhandhiJi said, this stick keeps away the miscreants around me for as they know that this person can defend himself by the stick he carries."

This answer from a person who sticked to non-violence for whole of his life says something. May be an answer to those who are opposing.

I am not against non-violence. Even I am a follower of Ahimsa and Jain religion but opposition to something which has very less significance, does not make sense.