Chapter
iv
Teachings
of MahÄvīRa
Mähävīra was not the
founder but the 24th Tirthankara of the existing faith
of Jainism. His teachings are partly based on the religion of his predecessors
and partly independent. He was responsible for the codification of unystematic
mass of beliefs inhering the earlier religion of his predecessor into a set of
rules of conduct for monks and laymen. Besides, he had to introduce changes in
the existing religion in order to meet the needs of the time. There were
several orthodox and heretical sects with their well-known teachers going
strong during his time. He understood and mastered the doctrines of the current
philosophical systems such as the Kriyävädins, the Akriyävädins, the
Vinayavädins and the Ajņänavädins. He also formulated his own doctrines and
solved the controversies endlessly going on with his religious contemporaries.
Some of his teachings also arose in order to remove corrupt practices current
in the society of this period.
The teachings of
Mahävīra are supposed to have been embodied in the twelve Aõgas. These original
texts are, however according to the Digambaras lost except some portion of the
Pürvas forming part of the twelfth Anga (Dô˙ûiväda) under the name of
aûkhaõdägama and Kasäyapähuâa. According to the Svetämbaras only the Twelfth
Aõga known as Dô˙ûiväda has been completely lost and for the rest of the eleven
Aõgas an attempt was made for their compilitation at the council of Patliputra
after a famine of twelve years duration in about the 3rd century B.C. This tipe
of Ägama literature grew up by stages during the ten centuries following the
Nirväîa of Mahävīra. The final redaction of this Ägamika literature with
several alterations took place at the council of Valabhi under the presidency
of Ärya Devarddhi in 454 (or 467 A.D.)
It seems that the text of
teachings of Jainism underwent some changes in the interval between the time of
Mahävīra and the final composition of the Jaina canon. Older parts of the
Acäräõga and the Sutrakôtäõga may well claim to preserve much original matter,
and the same may be true to some extent of some portion of the Bhagavatī Sütra
and the Uttarädhyayana Sütra. The aûkhaîâägama and Kasäyapähuâa also claim to
preserve much original matter. The earliest Buddhist texts, known as the Palī
Nikäyas, also refer to the beliefs and teachings of Mahävīra. Though we cannot
expect them to give a fair and honest exposition of the tenets of their
opponents, they somehow corroborate the evidence of the Jaina texts. In the
light of both these evidences, an estimate of the teachings of Mahavira should
be made.
The teachings of
Mahävīra were simple, practical ethical and spiritual but gradually they
developed into a complicated system with considerable emphasis on details.
Mahävīra and his disciples propounded not only the doctrinal side of Jainism
relating to the nature of the truth and the ideal but also mapped out the
practical and disciplinary path leading to the realization of truth. It was
chiefly in and through the life of monks or mendicants that the ideal of
conduct was sought to be fulfilled.
NIRVÄÎA
The ultimate object of Jainism as
taught by Mahävīra is Nirväîa which consists in the attainment of peace
and infinite bliss.1 Nirväîa is just another name
for Mok˙a or liberation, Mukti or deliverance, salvation or
beatitude. Gautama, a disciple of Mahävīra, explained Nirväîa to Keáī, a
disciple of Päráva : "It is a safe, happy, quiet and eternal place in view
of all but difficult of approach where there is no old age, nor death, nor
sorrow, nor pain, nor disease, It is a state of perfection which is obtained by
putting an end to the stream of existence."1 It is liberation from a state of
bondage brought on by karma. It is deliverance from old age, disease,
death, and all that constitutes sufferings.
This highest goal is to
be attained through annihilating the old karmas (Nirjarä) lying heavy on
the soul by the practice of austerities (Tapas), and to stop the influx (Äárava)
of new Karmas by the practice of self-restraint, called Saãvara, with
regard to the body, speech and mind.
Even in a Päli Sutta,2 the main aim of Mahävīra's teaching
has been mentioned as Sukha or infinite bliss which is not attainable
through the finite happiness of even so fortunate among men as the reigning monarchs;
it is attainable only by forsaking all finite happiness. Had it been possible
to attain beatitude through mundane happiness, king Áreîika Bimbisära of
Magadha could certainly have attained it. It was to be achieved by means of
wearing out and ultimately destroying the effects of sinful deeds (Päbakamma)
committed in this and a former existence. The paractice of the threefold
self-restraint was to be taken recourse to by the aspirant as a means of not
giving effect to a new karma.
Right Faith
Samyagdarsana Right Knowledge (Samyagjnane And Right conduct Samyakcaritra
Right Faith, Right Knowledge, and
Right Conduct are the three essential points in Mahävīra's teachings which lead
to perfection by the destruction of Karmas. Without Right Faith, there is
no Right Knowledge; without Right Knowledge there is no Virtuous Conduct;
without virtues, there is no deliverance and without deliverance (Moksa)
there is no perfection.3
Belief in the nine
Padarthas after comprehending them properly is Samyagdarsana4 (right belief). Because of self as
the basic principle in nine Padarthas, faith in the pure self constitutes what
is called Samyagdarsana (right belief)5. Right belief gives rise to right
knowledge (Samyagjnana) by virtue of which right path is comprehended and
consequently right conduct (Samyakcaritra) is pursued. This in turn results in
emancipation6. If the person is devoid of the
Jewel of right belief comprehends the scriptures, even then he remains in the
worldly process7.
The excellence of ones
right-faith depends on the following conduct: (1) Nihsankita : The right
believer had no doubts in the tenets of the Tirthankara (2) Nihkankaita:
He has not preference for the tenets of others or he does not hanker after the
worldly pleasures. (3) Nirvicikitsa: He does not doubt the efficacy of
austerities and self-control or he has no feeling of disgust at the various
bodily conditions caused by disease, hunger, thirst etc. (4) Amudhadrsti:
he is not shaken in the adopted right faith or he dissociates himself from the
person pursuing wrong path. (5) Upabrmha: he enhances his own faith by
admiring the right believers, (6) Sthitikarana: he re-establishes those
who have deviated from the path of rightousness (Dharma) (7) Vatsalya : he
has deep affection for those who are spiritual brethern and
(8) Prabhävanä:
He endeavours to exalt
the religion of the Tirthankaras.
The right faith is of
ten kinds. (1) Nisarga : (self-occasioned right faith), (2) Upadesa: (right
faith through the instructions of Guru etc., (3) Äjņä : (right faith in the
truthfulness of Jivas, Ajivas etc. through the omniscient), (4) Sütra : (right
faith through the study of Ägamas), Bīja: (right faith through knowing any one
of the Padärthas), (6) Abhigama : (right faith through the attainment of
knowledge of Ägamas), (7) Vistära : (right faith through the detailed knowledge
of Dravyas), (8) Kriya: (right faith through religious exercise),
(9) Saãk˙epa: (right faith through the brief knowledge of Jiva etc.), (10)
Dharma: (right faith in the Ägamas and conduct.
The Uttarädhyayana Sütra
speaks of five kinds of knowledge: (1) Áruta or knowledge derived from the
study of sacred books, (2) Abinibodhika or Matijnana: knowledge derived
through mind and senses (3) Avadhi: Knowledge of the material object through self
without mind and senses, (4) Manahparyaya: knowledge of the thoughts of people
through self without mind and the senses, and (5) Kelvalajņäna: knowledge
of the all the substances and their infinite modification through self.
The Avadhi-Jņäna
is also employed in the sense of knowledge co-extensive with the object. The Kalpa
Sütra,3 for instance, says: "He viewed
the whole Jambudvīpa with his knowledge called Avadhi". Here Avadhi
means that which is limited by the object, that which is just sufficient to
survey the field of observation.
The Manaęparyäya-jņäna
is defined in the Äcäräõga Sütra as a knowledge of the thoughts of all
sentient beings.4 The Kevala-jņäna according
to the same text, is omniscience enabling a person to comprehend all objects,
to know all conditions of the world of gods, men and demons: whence they come,
where they go, where they are born, etc.5
Six kinds of substances
have been recognised namely Jīva (soul), Pudgala (Matter), Dharma (Principle of
motion) Adharma (Principle of rest), Äkäáa (space) and Käla (Time). All the
substances except Pudgala are regarded as bereft of material qualities of touch
taste smell and colour and only Jiva is said to possess consciousness. Äkäáa
provides accommodation to Jīvas, Pudgala etc. Dharma and Adharma are the
indifferent condition of movement and rest respectively.
Substance is the
substratum of qualities and modifications. It is characterised by simultaneous
origination (Utpäda), destruction (Vyaya) and persistence (Dhrauvya).
Origination and destruction are applicable to modifications and persistence to
qualities along with substance.
Virtue consists in right
conduct. But there is no right conduct without right belief, and no right
belief without the right perception of truth.3 Right conduct is achieved by
threefold restraint, the restraint of the body, the restraint of speech and the
restraint of mind.4 The first step towards virtue lies
in the avoidance of sins. There are various ways of committing sins, directly
and indirectly, through physical acts or through spoken words or even
through thoughts.5 Thus to avoid sins one must guard
oneself by the samitis and Guptis.
Not to kill any being,
to live according to the rules of cunduct and without greed, to take care of the
highest good to control oneself always while walking, sitting and lying down,
and in the matter of food and drink, to shake off pride wrath, deceit and
greed, to possess the Samitis, these in short, are the cardinal
principles of Cäritra as taught by Mahävīra.6
Austerities (Tapas)
The roal to final deliverance
depends on the performance of austerities which destroy the Karmas. Tapa
implies the extirpation of desire. Austerities are of two kinds external and
internal. The external austerities are of six kinds. (1) Anasana: It implies
fasting either for a limited period of time or till the separation of the soul
from the body. (2) Avamaudarya or Unodari: It means not to take full meals. (3)
Bhiksacari or Vrttiparisamkhyana: It consists of imposing certain restrictions
upon one-self regarding the mode of begging or the nature of the domor, or the
quantity of food or the way in which food is offered. (4) Rasaparityaga: It
means abstinence from dainty food. (5) Kayaklesa: It means the mortification of
the flesh. (6) Samlinata or Viviktasayyasana: It implies the choice of lonely
place of stay devoid of women, eunuchs and animals. This is to be remembered
that the external austerties should not engender mental disquietude and avate
the zeal for the performance and disciplinary practices.
Internal austerities are
also of six types: (1) Prayascitta: It means repentance for seeking freedom
from the sins. (2) Vinaya: It is humbleness towards the pious personalities.
(3) Vaiyavrttya: It means the rendering of service to saints in various ways.
(4) Svadhyaya: It means ethico-spiritual study which includes (i) learning
(ii) questioning (iii) pondering (iv) repetion and (v) religious
discourse or preaching. (5) Vyutsarga: implies bodily detachment. (6) Dhyana: It
means the concentration of mind on a particular object. It is directly related
to the actualisation of infinite knowledge and bliss.
Five vows (Vratas) for the ascetics
Mahavira has prescribed five vows in
all. These five vows are: (1) Ahimsa (not to killed), (2) Satya (not to
lie), (3) Asteya (not to steal), (4) Brahmacarya (celibacy) and (5) Aparigraha
(to renounce the possession of worldly things along with passions).
(1) The first great
vow is Ahimsa (abstinence of killing living beings). It is the vow of non-injury
to all living beings, mobile and immobile, gross and subtle in thought word and
deed. The observer of this vow should neither deprive any living being of life,
nor rule over him, nor torment him nor excite him. This vow of Ahimsa is
the central doctrine of Jainism taught by Mahavira.
The visible effect of Ahiãsä
was sought to be proved by a practical
demonstration. Already in Mahävīrä's time, the righteous kings of India made it
a point of duty to vouchsafe lawful protection to all forms of life within the
sacred precincts of a religious establishment2. This principle of causing no harm
to any being had a salutary effect on man's habitual diet. Those who came under
the influence of Mahävīra's personality and teaching gave up the eating of meat
and fish for good, and adhered to a strictly vegetarian diet.
(2) The second great vow
of Satya means the avoidance of falsehood. For the observance of this vow, the
false and oppressing words likely to be uttered under the constraint of
attachment, aversion jest, fear, anger
and greed should be renounced. (3) The third great vow of Asteya means the
avoidance of theft. It consists in renouncing the possession of all things
lying either in a village or in a town or in a wood without their being
offered. The observer of this vow seeks the permission for certain necessary
things from the possessor. (4) The fourth great vow speaks of the
avoidance of the following: Bodily make-up, sense indulgence, taking of
excessive food, passionate thinking about a woman, reviving the past sexual
enjoyments planning for future sexual enjoyment etc.
(5) The fifth great
vow is freedom from possessions. If a living being with his ears open hears
agreeable or disagreeable sounds, he should not be attached to them. If he with
his eyes sees agreeable or disagreeable forms, he should not be attached to
them. If he with his nose smells agreeable or disagreeable smells, he should
not be attached to them. If he with his tongue tastes areeable or disagreeable
things, he should not be attached to them.1
The explanation offered
by the Svetambara Jaina texts in support of the addition of the vow of celibacy
is as follows. The Uttarädhyayana2 says that "the first saints
were simple but slow of understanding, the last saints prevaricating and slow of
understanding, those between the two, simple and wise: hence there are two
forms of the Law. The first could but with difficulty understand the precepts
of the Law, and the last could only with difficulty observe them, but those
between them easily understood and observed them."
It is however wrong to
suppose that Päráva did not advocate celibacy. What he did was that in the vow
of Aparigraha (non-possession) he included the vow of celibacy. This
indirect implication of non-possession could easily be understood by the
followers of Päráva who were 'simple and wise'. Mahävīra's disciples, on the
other hand, being prevaricating and slow of understanding could only with
difficulty observe 'the vow of non-possession'. He had therefore to add the
fifth vow of abstinence from all sexual acts in clear terms.
On this H. Jacobi remarks, "As the vow of
chastity is not explicitly mentioned among Päráva's four vows, but was
understood to be implicitly enjoined by them (i.e, Päráva's followers), it
follows that only such men as were of an upright disposition and quick
understanding would not go astray by observing the four vows literally, i.e.,
by not abstaining from sexual intercourse, as it was not expressly, forbidden.
The argumentation in the text presupposes a decasy of morals of the monastic
order to have occurred between Päráva and Mahävīra, and this is possible only
on the assumption of a sufficient interval of time having elapsed between the
last two Tirthaõkaras. And this perfectly agrees with the common tradition that
Mahävīra came 250 years after Päráva."1
It is on the basis of
the number of vows observed that the sect of Päráva was known as Cäturyäma2 and that of Mahävīra as Paņchayäma.
These vows were strictly observed by monks who took them on entering the order.
In their case, the vows were called the five great vows (Mahävīrata). Lay
people, however, observed these vows as far as their worldly situation
permitted. The five vows of the lay people were, of course, Aîuvrata or
small vows.
A correct representation
of the 'fourfold self-restraint', even in the sense of which the followers of
Päráva understood it, is not wanting in Buddhist literature. Just then a
separate vow of chastity was added to the 'fourfold self-restraint' to complete
the list of five great vows (Paņcamahävratas) promulgated by Mahävīra.
These have been enumerated as abstinence from the idea of killing, the idea of
theft, the idea of unchastity, the idea of lying, and some such tapoguîa
or virtue of an ascetic3. It is interesting indeed to note
that even some of the Jaina phrases have been reproduced in the Buddhist text.
Doctrine of
the nine categories or truths (nava tattva)
Mahävīra formulated his theory of
the nine categories as well as his theory of Karma. His doctrine of the
nine categories was meant to explain how the bondage of the soul arises by way
of karmic effects upon it and how the defects are got rid off and the
liberation of the soul is obtained. The categories are as follows:
(1) Jiva (soul), (2) Ajiva (non-soul) (3) Bandha (bondage of karma),
(4) Punya (merit), (5) Papa (demerit), (6) Asrava (influx) of
karma) (7) Samvara (the prevention of influx of karma), (8) Nirjara
(partial annihilation of karma) and (9) Moksa (total ainnihilation of
karma). He who verily believes in the fundamental categories possesses right
belief.
The first pair of terms,
Jiva, and Ajiva, comprehends the world of existence as known and experienced.
The Jiva sighnifies all that has life while Ajiva indicates those that are
without life. The world of life is represented by six classes of living beings,
six classes of beings are: Earth-bodied, water-bodied, fire-bodied, air-bodied
and vegetable-bodied one-sensed jivas along with two sensed to five sensed
jivas. Living things are either subtle or gross, and living beings are either
those still belonging to Samsara or those whose souls are perfected. Through
the gradation of living beings, one can trace the evolution of the senses. The
lowest form of being is provided with only one sense, the sense of touch.
It is only in relation
to the six classes of beings that the process of Karma sets in and the
nature of man's conduct is determined. "Know and understand," taught
Mahavira, "that they all desire happiness; by hurting these beings, men do
harm to their own souls, and will again and again he born as one of them.
The category of Jiva and
Ajiva helps us in knowing the world of life and non-life. The third term or
category is Bandha or bondage of the soul which is due to passions. Bandha is
the subjection of the soul to the laws of the birth and death, of youth and
age, of pleasure and pain, and other vicissitudes of life brought about by the
effect of Karma.
The soul, represents the
principle of knowledge, the characteristic of which is consciousness.
Buddhaghosha in his commentary on the Brahmajala sutta, Digha Nikaya 1,2,381,
mentions the Niganthas as holding the opinion that the soul has no colour, and
it continues to exist after death and is free from ailments. This description
is consonant with the opinions of the Jainas about the nature of the soul.
The categories of Merit
(Punya) and Demerit (Papa) comprehend all acts or deeds, pious and sinful,
which keep the soul bound to the circle of the births and deaths.
Asrava is responsible
for the attraction of Karmic particles towards the soul because of the
operations of mind, body and speech. And Samvara is the principle of
self-control by which the influx of Karmas is checked or stopped. The
category of Samvara comprehends the whole sphere of right conduct.
Nirjara or Karmakshaya
consists in the wearing out of the accumulated effects of Karma on the
soul by the practice of austerities, and Moksha, which logically follows from
Nirjara, signifies the final deliverance of the soul from the bondage of Karma.
Theory of
Karma
Mahavira's great message to mankind
is that on the destruction of karma, all future happiness depends. Mahavira
does not mean by Karma 'work or deed'. It is an aggregate of material,
fine particles which are inperceptible and which enter into the soul and
produce changes in it. Through the actions of mind, body and speech Karmic
matter gets into the soul and is tied to it through Kasayas (passions)
namely anger, pride, deceit and greed. This theory of Karma represents
the most ancient and original feature of Jaina thought. According to H. Jacobi,
"This Karma, theory, if not in all details, certainly in the main
outlines, is acknowledged in the oldest parts of the canon". It has been
dealt in great detail in the Satkhandajama. Some of the passages
concerning the theory of Karma found the old texts of Jainism are as
follows:
"The painful
condition of the self is brought about by one's own action, it is not brought
about by any other cause (fate, creator, chance or the like).
"Individually a man
is born, individually he dies, individually he falls (from this state of
existence), individually he rises (to another). His passions, consciounsness,
intellect, perceptions and impressions belong to the individual exclusively.
Here, indeed the bonds of relationship are not able to help nor save one."
"All living beings
own their present form of existence to their own Karma.
"The sinners cannot
annihilate works by new works; the pious annihilate their works by abstention
from works; the wise and happy men, who got rid of the effects of greed, do not
commit sins."
"He who intends (to
kill) a living being but does not do it by his body, and he who unknowingly
kills one, both are affected by that.
"He who knows the
tortures of beings below (in hell); who knows the influx of sin and its
stoppage; who knows misery and its annihilation,he is entitled to expound the Kriyavada."
The passages cited above
are sufficient to prove that kriyavada expounded by Mahavira is in its
essential feature only a theory of soul and Karma. According to this
theory, there are as many souls as living individuals, and karma is produced
through acts, intentional and unintentional, that produce affects. On the
future of the soul. Thus the soul is not passive in the sense that it remains
untouched or unaffected by what a person does, but is susceptible to the
influences of Karma.
Even in some early
Buddhist texts, we find the traces of Kriyäväda as expounded in Jainism.
In Aõguttara Nikäya, III, 74, for instance, a learned Lichchavi prince of
Vaiáälī, Abhaya gives the following account of some Nigantha doctrines:
"The Nigantha Nätaputta teaches the annihilation by austerities of the old
Karma, and the prevention by inactivity of new Karma. When Karma
ceases, misery ceases; when misery ceases, perception ceases; when perception
ceases, every misery will come to an end. In this way, a man is saved by pure
annihilation of sin (nijjarä) which is really effective."
Another piece of
infomation about Nigantha doctrines may be gathered from the Mahävagga1. There a story is told of Sīha who
wanted to pay the Buddha a visit, but Nätaputta tried to dissuade him from it
simply because the Niganthas held to Kriyäväda while the Buddha's
beliefs were grounded in Akriyäväda.
These passages throw
light on the doctrine of Karma expounded by Mahävīra. The theory of Karma
has specieal significance if we consider it along with the views of Mahävīra's
contemporary religious thinkers. The Vedic thinkers thought that the world has
been created and is governed by the gods. Püraîa Kassapa maintained that when a
man acts or causes others to act, it is not his soul which acts or causes to
act.2 Kätyayäna advocated that whether a
man buys or causes to buy, kills or causes to kill, he does not thereby commit
any sin.3 Keáakambain explained that life
ends here, and there is no world beyond. Denying the hereafter and the efficacy
of all social institutions founded upon beliefs in the future existence of man,
he cannon inform us whether and action is good or bad, virtuous or vicious,
well done or otherwise, whether it is in man's power to reach perfection or
not, of whether there is a heaven and a hell.4 Goáäla denies that our happiness
and misery, weal and ill, are caused by us individually or determined by any
other cause than what we term fate or necessity.1
Karma is believed, according to Mahävīra,
to be the result of actions arising out of four sources: (1) the first source
of Karma is attachment to worldly things such as food, dwelling place
etc.; (2) it is produced by uniting one's body, mind, and speech to worldly
things; (3) it is also engendered by giving the reins to anger, pride, deceit
or greed; and (4) lastly by false belief which is a powerful source of it. Karma
accumulates energy and automatically works it off without any outside
intervention.
Karma are of eight
kinds: 1. Knowledge-obscuring (Jnanavarniya) 2. Intuition-obscuring
(Darsanavaraniya) 3. Feeling-producing (Vedaniya): It produces pleasure and
pain. 4 Delusion-producing (Mohaniya): It obstructs right belief and right
conduct. 5. Longvity-determining (Ayu): It determines the period of stay of
self in a particular body. 6. Body-making (Nama): It makes different bodies;
7. Status-determining (gotra): It determines status in society;
8. Obstruction-generating (antaraya); It causes handicaps in the enjoyment
of wealth and power. To explain it further: 1. Just as the curtain obstructs
the knowledge of things inside the room, so also the knowledge-obscuring Karma
obstructs the expression of knowledge. 2. Just as a door-keeper does not allow
persons to meet the king. etc. so also the intuition obscuring Karma
does not allow apprehension of things. 3. Just as on licking honey from the
sharp edge of a sword, the person enjoys honey as well as suffers pain, so also
the feeling-producing Karma produces pleasure and pain in man. 4. Just
as wine stupefies a person, so also the delusion-producing Karma
perverts the person. 5. Just as wooden fetters stop the movement of a person,
so also the longevity-determining Karma obliges the soul to stay in a
particular body. 6. Just as the painter produces different pictures, so also
the body-making Karma makes different bodies. 7. Just as a potter makes
earthen pots of different sizes, so also the status-determining Karma
determines status in society. 8. Just as a treasurer generates obstructions in
giving money, etc. to others, so also the obstruction-generating Karma
causes handicaps in charity, in gains and in self-power. Mahavira teaches us to
purge ourselves of impurities arising from Karmas.
The Sah Khandagama1 speaks of fourteen Gunasthanasd
(stages of spiritual evolution). When the soul is on the first stage
(Mithyatva- Gunasthana) he is completed under the influence Mohaniya (deluding)
Karma and known nothing of spiritual truth. When the soul attains to a
state which enables him to distinguish between what is false and what is true
either through the influence to his past. Good deeds or through, the teaching
of his spiritual Guru, he comes to acquire what is true faith with the result
that he is spiritually awakened. He then realises the great importana of
ethico-spiritual conduct. He devotes himself
to meditation and arrives at the state Karmas which is state of
embodied liberation. From the stage he at once attains Siddhahood, disembodied
liberation. It is a state of infinite, unique, and unalloyed bliss, which is
the same as Nirväna or Moksa.
Six lesyas
The Lesyas are different
conditions produced in the soul by the influence of different Karmas.
They are, therefore, not dependent on the nature of the soul, but on the Karma
which accompanies the soul, and are, as it were, the reflection of the Karmans
on the soul. The Lesya is, according to the Sutrakritnaga, a term
signifying, 'colour'.
The Jaina religious efforts
are directed towards the acquisition of pure Lesya. This doctrine of the six
Lesyas is merely hinted at here and there in the Sutrakrtanga and fully
explained in the Uttaradhyayana. They are named in the following order: Krsna
(black). Nila (blue), Kapota (grey), Teja (red), Padma (Yellow) and Sukla
(White).
The black Lesya has the
colour of a rain-cloud, a buffalow's horn. The blue Lesya has the colour of the
blue Ashoka having red flowers. The grey Lesya has the colour of Atasi having
blue flowers. The red Lesya has the colour of vermilion. The yellow Lesya has
the colour of orpiment. The white Lesya has the colour of conch shell.
The smell of the bad
Lesyas (viz., of the first three) is infinitely worse than that of a dead cow,
dog or snake. The smell of the three good Lesyas is infinitely more pleasant
than that of fragrant flowers and of perfumes when they are pounded. The touch
of the bad Lesyas is infinitely worse than that of a saw, the tongue of a cow,
or the leaf of the teak tree. The touch of the three good Lesyas is infinitely
more pleasant than that of cotton, butter or Siriska flowers.
He who acts, on the
impulse of the five sins, who commits cruel acts, and who is wicked and
mischievous, is described as one fostering the black Lesya (Krsna). He who
nourishes anger, ignorance, hatred, wickedness, deceit, greed, carelessness,
love of enjoyment, etc., develops the blue Lesya (Nila). He who is dishonest in
words and acts, who is a heretic, a deceiver, a thief, etc., develops the grey
Lesya (Kapota). He who is humble, well-disciplined, restrained, free from
decit, who loves the doctrine develops the red Leáyä. He who controls
himself and is attentive to his study and duties, develops the yellow Leáyä.
He who controls himself. who abstains from constant thinking about his misery,
who is free from passion, who is calm and who subdues his senses, develops the
white Leáyä. The black, blue, and grey Leáyäs are the Lowest Leáyäs; through them,
the soul is dragged into certain miserable courses of life. The red, yellow and
white Leáyäs are the good Leáyäs, for through them the soul is
brought into a state of happiness. The above six types of Lesyas may be
respectively illustrated by the attitude of individuals who want to relish
fruits (1) by uprooting the tree, (2) by cutting the trunk, (3) by cutting
big branches, (4) by cutting small branches, (5) by plucking only the fruits,
and lastly (6) by having those fruits that are fallen on the ground.
Doctrine of
nayas
Sņjaya is an important landmark in the
development of Mahävīra's philosophy. H. Jacobi
assumes that in opposition to the agnosticism (Ajņänaväda) of Saņjaya,
Mahävīra propounded his doctrine of Nayas.1 The canonical texts just mention Nayas
without fixing up their number four or seven. It is true Bhagavati and the but
these texts contain works, Syädväda (Saptabhaõginyäya), according
seven alternatives to a decisive conclusion. Nayas are actually the ways of
expressing the nature of things from different points of view; They appealed to
the masses because they encouraged a tolerant attitude towards different
religions.
The questions with
regard to which Saņjaya suspended judgment were in fact the questions to be
excluded from the problems of knowledge. Is the world eternal, or is it
non-eternal? Is it both eternal and non-eternal, or is it neither eternal
nor-non-eternal? Is the world finite or infinite? Is there any idividual
existence of man after death, or is there not? Is the absolute truth seen face
to face by a seer, comprehended by a philosopher, part of real tangible
existence, or not? It was with regard to these and similar questions that
Saņjaya refused to submit any affirmative answer.
It is with regard to
these questions that Mahävīra declared: "From these alternatives, you
cannot arrive at truth; from these alternatives, you are certainly led ?? The
world is eternal as far as that part is concerned which is the substratum of
the (dravya) "world"; it is not eternal as far as its
ever-changing state is concerned. In regard to such questions, Mahävīra's
advice to his disciples was neither to support those who maintained that the
world is eternal nor those who advocated that it is not eternal. He would have
said she same thing regarding such propositions as the world exists and it does
not exist; the world is unchangeable; the world is in constant flux; the world
has a beginning; the world has no beginning; the world has an end; the world
has no end; etc. Those who are not
well-instructed differ in their opinions and hold fast to their dogmas without
reason.3 And these were precisely the
questions which Buddha regarded as unthinkable on the ground that those who
will think about them are sure to go mad, without ever being able to find a
final answer, or to reach apodeictic certainty.4
If one has to answer
such questions, one should answer them by saying, contrary to both a dogmatist
and a sceptic, "It may be that in one sense, looking from one point of
view, A is B. It may be that in another sense, looking from another point of
view, a is not-B. It may again be that looking from a third point of view, A is
both B and not-B. It may equally be that when viewed from a fourth point of
view, A is neither B nor not-B."
Since one cannot prolong
life,2 one should not on that account be
careless. Those who acquire wealth by evil deeds and by adhering to wrong
principles, will lose it. People in this world and in the next cannot escape
the effect of their own actions. Wealth will never protect a careless man in
this world. Like a wise man, trust nobody but be always wary and on the alert.
One cannot quickly
arrive at discernment; therefore one should exert oneself, abstain from
pleasures, understand the world, guard oneself and be impartial like a sage.
External things weaken the intellect and allure many; therefore keep them out
of mind. Remove pride, delusion, greed and deceit. Heretics, who are impure and
proud, are always subject to love and hatred, and they are wholly under the
influence of their passions. Despising them as unholy men, one should desire
virtue till the end of one's life.3
Death
Against (And with) One's will
There can be two ways of dying4: (1) Death with one's will, and (2)
death against one's will. Death against one's will is the death of an ignorant
man, and it happens to him several times. Death with one's will is the death of
a wise man, and it happenes only once as, for instance, in the case of a Kevalin.
A fool being attached to pleasure does cruel actions. He who is attached to
pleasures and amusements will be caught in the trap of deceit. An ignorant man
kills, lies, deceives, drinks wine and eats meat, thinking that there is
nothing wrong in doing what he does. A man desirous of possessing wealth and
woman accumulates sins by his act and thought. Fools, who do cruel deeds, will
suffer violently. When death really comes, the fool trembles in fear. He dies
against his will. Some householders are inded superior to some monks of
self-control. But the saints are verily superior to all householders in
self-control. Those who are trained in self-control and penance, whether monks
or householders, go straight to the highest regions. The virtuous and the
learned do not tremble in the hour of death. A wise man will become calm
through patience and will have an undisturbed mind at the time of death. When
the right time for death has come, a faithful monk should in the presence of
his teacher overcomes all emotions of fear or joy, and wait for his end. When
the time for quitting the body comes the sage dies willingly.1
On
Discipline
A wise man shold not be angry if
reprimanded. He should rather, be a man of forbearing temperament. Nor should
he associate with mean persons and be guilty of doing anything mean or evil. He
should meditate by himself after having learnt his lessons. He should never
rufuse to confess if he does anything mean. He should not speak unasked for. He
should not tell a lie when asked. If the self is subdued, a person will be
happy. It is better to subdue one's own self by self-control and penance than
be subdued by others with fetters and corporal punishment.2 He should never do anything
disagreeable to his superiors either in words or deeds, openly or secretly. He
should always approach his teacher politely. An intelligent pupil will rise
from his seat and answer the teacher's call modestly and attentively3. A good pupil has the best opinion
of his teacher, for he thinks that his teacher treats him like his own son or
brother. He should not provoke his teacher's anger, nor should he himself lose
his temper. If the teacher is angry, he should pacify him by kindness and
appease him with folded hands. An intelligent man, who has learnt the sacred
text, takes his duties upon himself. When a worthy teacher is satisfied with a
pupil, he will transmit to him, his vast knowledge of the sacred texts, and the
pupil will gladden the heart of his teacher by his good deeds.1
Egoism, anger
carelessness, illness, and idleness are the five causes which render good
discipline impossible. Discipline calls upon the practitioner: (1) not to be fond
of mirth, (2) to control himself, (3) not to speak evil of others, (4) not to
be without discipline, (5) not to be of wrong discipline (6) not to be
covetous, (7) not to be choleric, and (8) to love truth.2
The saint accepts food
with the sacred aim of performing study, pursuing self-control and performing
meditation. He feeds the body for making the noble efforts of realising the true self, just as the lamp is
supplied with oil for seeing the objects clearly, Thus, the ascetics are as
good as going without food, and even if they accepts faultless food, since
thereby they do not fall a victim of Karma.
Actions of
ignorant and wise men
All men, who are ignorant of truth,
are subject to pain. A wise man who considers well the way that lead to bondage
and birth should search for the truth. A man of pure faith should realize the
truth that he will have to suffer for his own deeds.8
Clever talking will not
bring salvation. Even while sinking lower and lower through their sins, fools
believe themselves to be wise men. One should move about carefully in the
endless Saãsära. One should never desire worldly objects but sutain
one's body only to annihilate one's Karma4.
It is an ignorant man who
kills, tells lies, robs on the highway, steals goods, and deceives others.5 He will go to the world of the Asuras
(demons) against his will. Those men who, through the exercise of various
virtues, become pious householders, will surely reap the fruit of their
actions. A virtuous man cheerfully ascends to the state of gods. He who has not
given up pleasures will not be able to reach the true end of his soul. He will
go astray again and again though he has been
tanught the right way. A sinner will be born in hell and a virtous man
will be born in heaven.
The best of the sages
who are free from delusion and possess perfect knowledge and faith, speaks for
the benefit, welfare, and the final liberation of all beings.
Vanity of
Worldly Pleasures
Pleasures, which are liked by the
ignorant and which prouduce pain, do not delight pious monks who do not care
for pleasures but are intent on the virtue of right conduct4. All singing is but prattle, all
dancing is but mocking, all ornaments are but a burden, all pleasures produce
but pain.3 He alone will have to endure his
sufferings, neither his kinsmen, nor his firends, not his sons, not his
relations, for Karma follows the doer5. Life drags on towards death
continuously, and old age carries off the vigour of man.6 Time runs out and the days quickly
pass. Pleasures which men enjoy are not permanent. They leave them as soon as
they come just as a bird leaves a tree devoid of fruits. It one is unable to
give up pleasures, then one must do noble deeds, follow the doctrine and have
compassion on all creatures.1
Man's life is transitory
and precarious. He finds no delight in domestic life. Pleasures bring him only
a moments's happiness. Pleasures are an obstacle to the liberation from mundane
existence. and are a mine of evils.2 The soul cannot be apprehended by
the senses because it possesses no corporeal form; and since it has no
corporeal from, it is eternal. The fetter of the soul born of our evil deeds is
called th cause of worldly existence. Mankind is harassed by death. He who has
acquired righteousness may look upon death as his friend.3 Faith will enable him to put aside
attachment.4 The pleasures he enjoys cause the
continuance of his worldly existence.5 He should learn the doctrine
thoroughly, practise severe penance, and never dissipate his energy.6
Through the possession
of true knowledge, through theavoidance of ignorance and delusion, and through
the destruction of love and hatred, one arrives at deliverance which is nothing
but bliss.7 One should serve the Guru
and the old teachers, avoid foolish people, apply oneself earnestly to study,
and to ponder over the meaning of the Sütras.8 A áramaîa who engaged in
austerities longs for righteousness should eat only the quantity of food
allowed, should select a companion of right understanding and should live in a
solitary place.9 If he does not meet with a suitable
companion, he should live by himself, abstaining from sins and not devoted to
pleasures.10 Love and hatred are caused by Karma
which has its origin in delusion. Karma is the root of birth and death.1 Misery ceases with the absence of
delusion, delusion with the absence of desire, desire with the absence of
greed, and greed with the absence of property.2 Rich and delicious food should not
particularly be preferred, for it generally makes men overstrong, and desires
rush upon the strong.3 The mind of those who always live
in unfrequented lodgings, who eat simple food, and who subdue their senses,
will not be attached by passions which are vanquished as disease is by
medicine.4
Sinful And
wicked deeds
There are three ways of committing
sins : by one's own action, by commission, and by approval of the deed.12 A learned or a virtuous man will
generally be punished for his deed when he is given to actions of deceit.1 Men who are drowned in lust and
addicted to pleasures will be deluded for want of self control.2 Heroes of faight who do not commit
sins, and who exert themselves as they should, who subdue anger and fear, will
never kill living beings.3 The wicked wander about in the
circle of births, subject to old age and death. One should not kill living
beings in the threefold way (in thought, act and speech) if one is intent on
spiritual welfare and abstention from sins4. A sinner does not confess himself
to be wrong; instead he boasts of his sin when reprimanded. The adulteres are
severely punished.
Those who kill others
for the sake of their own pleasure are wicked.
Sinners, subject to love
and hatred and wrong-doing, acquire Karma arising from passions and commit
many sins. The careless commit sins in their thought, act and speech.9 A cruel man does cruel things and
is thereby involved in other cruelties.10 Sinful undertakings will in the end
entail suffering.
Real
Brähmaîa
He who has no worldy attachment,
who does not repent of having become a monk and who takes delight in noble
words is called a Brähmaîa.1 He who is free from love, hatred,
and fear is called a Brähmaîa.2 A lean, self-subduing ascetic, who
reduces his flesh and blood, who is pious, and who has reached Nirväîa
is a Brähmaîa.3 He who thoroughly knows living
beings and does not injure them in any of the three ways (by his thought, word,
and deed), is a Brähmaîa4
He who does not speak untruth from anger, or from greed, or from fear is
a Brähmaîa.5 He who does not take anything which
is not given to him is a Brähmaîa.6 He who is not greedy, who lives
unknown, who has no house, is a Brähmaîa.9 10 One does not become a Áramaîa
by the tonsure, nor a Brähmaîa by pronouncing the sacred syllable Om,
nor a Muni by living in the forest, nor a Täpasa by wearing
clothes of Kuáa-grass.11 One becomes a Áramaîa by
equanimity, a Brähmaîa by chastity, a Muni by knowledge, and a Täpasa
by penance.12 One becomes a Brähmaîa or a Kshatriya
or a Vaiáya or a Áüdra by one's actions.13
The monk Should abscure the five
great vows (Mahävratas) viz. not to kill, to speak the truth, not to
steal, no be chaste, and to have no possessions at all. A wise man should
follow the doctrines taught by the Jinas.2 A monk should be of a forbearing
nature, restrained, and chaste, He should live with his senses under control.3 He should walk about in utter
indifference and bear everything, pleasant and unpleasant. He should not care
for respectful treatment or blame.4 He should endure with equanimity
both cold and heat, unpleasant feelings and physical disorders which attack the
human body.6 An ascetic will by means of his
simplicity enter the path of Nirväîa.7 He is neither grieved nor pleased.
He is intent on the benefit of his soul and strives for the highest good.8
The Samitis
And The Guptis
There are five Samitis and three
Guptis which are called Pravacanamata, since they guard the belief, knowledge,
and conduct of the saint in such a way as the mother protects her child8. The Samitis are the following : 1.
going by paths trodden by men, beasts, carts, etc., and looking carefully so as
not to cause the death of any living being; 2. gentle, sweet, and religious
speech; 3. accepting and eating faultless food; 4. careful mental state in
receiving and keeping things necessary for religious life : 5. answering the
call of nature and the like in an unfrequented place and devoid of insects and
seeds. The three Guptis are the following: 1. restraint of mind; It means the
controlling of mind from sensual pleasures by engaging it in meditation and
study. 2. restraint of body : It means refraining from bodily actions of
binding, piercing and beating human beings; 3. restraint of speech : It
means renouncement of gossip concerning women, state theft and food. Thus Gupti
negates vicious activities while Samiti affirms virtuous performance of
activities.