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Teerthankar
In line with the founder's austerity, the Jain is admonished to follow an ethical program of exacting discipline. The distinctive principle of Jainism is ahimsa, or nonviolence toward all living creatures, in both thought and action.
The two principal sects, Svetambara (white-clad) and Digambara (skyclad, or unclothed), diverged by about A.D. 82. The schism shook the main structure of Jainism. The split concerned the question of nudism. Living in the warmer zone of south India, the Digambara thought that to become a saint, a man should abstain from food and possessions, including clothing. They also denied that women are eligible for salvation. Living in a cooler region to the north, the Shvetambara sect wear white clothes and follow a less rigorous order.