According to the Jains, the earlier Hindu idea that you must learn how to shake off the repetition of reincarnation is true. You are born, live your life, die, and then are born again. But how does one get away from this endless wheel of life (samsara)? Despite its rebellion against Hinduism, a philosophy out of which it grew, the Jains agree with Hindus, and Buddhists, in embracing the law of karma. If people are stuck in the wheel of birth and rebirth, it is because of the karma they possess as a result of their last actions.

Karma in an individual was not only created by actions so good they were saintly on the one hand or so bad they were monstrous on the other. Mahavira taught that karma was built up as a result of even seemingly trivial action or inaction. So, the ideal existence was to live detached from life, thereby freeing oneself, as far as one could, from karma.

The Jains also accept the omnipresence of the soul. Soul inhabits even the lowest forms of life, no matter how weighed down with the weight of karma. As such, the soul can descend from the weight of karma and can rise from the release of karma.

In one sense, the term “karma” means the consequences of mental or physical actions. An individual accumulates bad karma as a result of his selfish desires. He sheds such karma by unselfish deeds. Karma has the greatest effect on an individual's recurring rebirth. The only way to obtain release from the human form that he might inhabit for eons of drudgery is to have the right thoughts and actions. Seeking glory and honor is not the right way to happiness and wisdom. In addition, a person who causes pain on Earth or who permits others to harm Earth is deprived of happiness and wisdom.

Salvation can only come about through individual effort. A person who follows the example of Mahavira and performs good works will achieve final liberation. In order to achieve liberation, Jain monks typically take five vows.