20-year-old student among 16 who took 'diksha' in one day

Third-year law student Drashti Dedhia, 20, has started a new life. After taking diksha, at a grand ceremony in Borivali on Sunday, Drashti called it her new birth and said she would be leading an eco-friendly lifestyle.

Just like Drashti, 15 more members of the Jain community took diksha on Sunday to begin a new life, one that abstains from any luxury.

Drashti, a daughter of the solicitor, is not the first from her family to trudge the unusual path. In fact, her aunt and another cousin also took diksha in the same ceremony as her.

Speaking about her inspiration, Drashti said, "I used to listen to the talks of Jain Acharya Shree Yugbhushan Suriji Pandit Maharaj Saheb about the logic of living life. As human beings, we study, earn money to fulfill our needs and choices. This new life will improve my life. After taking diksha, I won't hurt any living being, live life in an eco-friendly way and use least resources to stay alive."

All the 16 persons, nine of whom women, who took diksha will get new names and costumes.

Viral Dedhia, 32, is an MSc graduate, a researcher and a scientist who loves to dance. According to Viral, who took diksha with Drashti, she wasn't spiritual but after listening to Maharaj Saheb on 18 logical steps to live a simple life, she was inspired to live a simple life. "His talk revealed how much we are dependent on luxury when we can enjoy a simple lifestyle. I truly started understanding the philosophy of Jainism."