AHIMSA

Jains believe that every centimeter of the universe is filled with living beings, some of them minute. All deserve to live and evolve and humans have no special right to supremacy. To kill any living being has adverse karmic effects. It is difficult to avoid doing some violence to other living creatures, but Jains refrain from eating after sunset to avoid unknowingly swallowing insects. Monks and nuns will cover their mouths with cloths to avoid inhaling an insect and some will brush the path in front of where they walk to avoid treading on any living being. As the Akaranga Sutra says, ‘All breathing, existing, living, sentient creatures should not be slain, nor treated with violence, nor abused, nor tormented, nor driven away. This is the pure unchangeable, eternal law.

The early stages of Jainism

The Early Centuries of Jainism -

Jainism is one of the oldest religions in the world, so old that we cannot with certainty date its beginnings. Jain tradition tells that Mahavira twenty fourth and last of the Tirthankara or Prophets of the current cycle of the time. Some of the stories about them are truly amazing and non Jains are rarely convinced. They are credited with enormously long spans of life and gigantic size and various other miraculous attributes. Leaving aside the stories (which are valuable if regarded as edifying stories), we have some historical details about some of them. The first Tirthankara was Risabha and there are some accounts in non- Jain records which seem to fit in with the broad details of Jain tradition. He is recorded as a king of some ability who gave up his throne to become a wandering ascetic, going around naked (a symbol of total renunciation of worldly possessions) and frequently scorned or attacked by the ignorant. After Risabha, Jain tradition gives us the names and some details if the next twenty Tirthankara. They were all men except perhaps the nineteenth, Malli, who is said to have been a woman (though this is not accepted by all Jains.) The twenty-second, Neminatha or Aristanemi (both names are found) is said to have been a relative and contemporary of the Hindu God hero Krishna.

With the twenty-third Tirthankara, Parsva, modern scholars fins themselves on stronger ground. He is recorded as the son of the king of Varanasi (Benares), the greatest holy city in India. He renounced the worlds at the age of thirty and after a fairly brief period of meditation and austerity he attained enlightenment. Thereafter he preached his message and gathered followers around him. He died, reputedly at the age of 100, passing to his final abode of bliss as a liberated soul. This was about 250 years before the time of Mahavira: Mahavira's parents were followers of the religion of Parsva. He taught four of the five great moral precepts of Jainism, non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing and non-acquisitiveness, omitting, for reasons which have been disputed, the vow of sexual restraint which was introduced or reintroduced by Mahavira. So with Parsva the Jain religion emerges clearly into the light of history, through darkness falls again in the period between the attainment of moksha or liberation by Parsva in the Parasanatha Hills (in Bihar) around 780 B.C.
A great many people were impressed by Mahavira's personality and his teachings so that when his life on earth ended he left behind a large number of people (reputed to be as many as a third of a million) who were trying in various ways, in the vocation of Monk (sadhu) or nun (sadhvi) or as lay men (shravaka) and women (shravika), to follow the principles of Jainism. In his lifetime Mahavira appointed eleven leaders (ganadhara) among his followers. Only two of them, Indrabhudi Gautama and Sudharman were alive at the time of Mahavira's moksha and it was to Sudharman that the task fell of preserving and passing on the teachings of their master, and leading the community, when Mahavira was no longer with them. The order of nuns was headed by Chandana. She had been placed in this position by Mahavira: nuns have always had a important place in Jainism and it is said that the nuns under Chandana outnumbered the Jain monks of the time by more than two to one.
Mahavira and his early followers lived in north-eastern part of India, mainly in ancient kingdom of Magadh (in modern Bihar). Jain missionaries visited Kashmir and even Nepal but it was not until several centuries after Mahavira that Gujarat and the western part of India became the major center of Jainism as it is today. However Jainism spread southwards from Magadha into the kingdom of Kalinga (in modern Orissa) whose ruler became a convert. This king, Kharavela, lived in the second or third B.C. We learn from an inscription that he was a pious Jain and provided for monks but he appears to not to have have seen military expeditions as incompatible with his religion. This area became an important centre of Jainism in the earlier centuries, though we must not forget that we are speaking several hundred years after Mahavira. Much in Indian history of this period is not yet completely clear to historians and the spread of Jainism has to be pieced together from scattered, and sometimes cryptic, references. However, for the first centuries it is clear that the centres of this religion were in eastern India. There seem to have been Jains in Bengal from very early times.
The teachings of Jainism made a considerable impact amongst all classes of society. There is even a story that the great emperor Chandragupta Maurya, around 300 B.C. became a Jain monk at the end of his life. Chandragupta's grandson, Ashoka, ruled over an empire which included all the sub-continent except the extreme south. As his capital was in the region of Magadha he was doubtless familiar with the Jains and they are mentioned in his records (though Ashoka himself was a Buddhist). However, one of Asoka's grandsons was certainly a Jain and he did a lot to further the progress of his faith.
In a religion as ancient as Jainism it is natural that interesting controversies about details of the faith emerge. Whilst Jains are united on the fundamental questions, within that unity many different sects and schools of thought co-exist in a tolerant manner. These may be the followers of one revered teacher or a group placing emphasis on certain particular teachings. The important division is between the Svetambara and the Digambara sections. 'Svetambara' means 'dressed in white' and 'Digambara' means 'dressed in the sky', a reference to the fact that Digambara monks renounce all worldly possessions, including clothes, whilst the monks of the Svetambara section wear two pieces of white cloth. The Svetambara (who form probably around two-thirds of all Jains, and the very large majority of those in the United Kingdom) are found in particular in Gujarat and the neighboring areas of Western India. The Digambara are strongest in South India. The origins of the split are not clear. One account says that, probably some three hundred years B.C., there was a terrible famine in Bihar. The crops failed, people were dying of starvation and this went on for twelve years. Some of the Jain monks, led by Bhadrabahu, moved southwards away from the famine area. It is said that the monks who left were more rigorous in certain ways than those who stayed behind and when, after the famine was over, they came back it was found that the two groups had drifted apart in some ways. In particular, according to this account, before this time all Jain monks went naked but those who stayed in the north had now taken to wearing a single piece of cloth to cover themselves. Other accounts place the division much later, possibly as late as the second century A.D. Quite probably it was not a sudden split but a slow process. At any rate, to this day the Svetambara and the Digambara differ on certain minor matters, not only the clothing of monks but also such questions as whether a woman can achieve moksha (the Digambara say not until she is reborn as a man), whether Mahavira was married before he gave up the world, and some other points.
In these early centuries, of course, reading and writing were not as common as they are today, and religious teachings (and indeed all other literature, history, stories and songs) were preserved in the memory of people. Mahavira's closest followers must have committed to memory the things which he said in his preachments and after he left them the responsibility of passing on the teachings fell on the new leader of the community, Sudharman, whom we have mentioned above. For nearly two centuries the collected teachings were handed down by word of mouth. It seems wonderful to us today that a man could retain in his memory the fourteen Purva texts, each of them quite a lengthy work, which made up the basic part of the sacred literature of the Jains. But the Jain monks of those early centuries lived a much simpler life than we do today without the distractions of our complicated modern civilization. Moreover they doubtless did train their memories for the repetition of long texts. Even so it appears that memories were not infallible and only ten of the fourteen Purva texts were still known 200 years after Mahavira. They have now all been lost, though much of their teaching (which was said to go back in part to the time of Parsva) was preserved in other texts, like the twelve Angaanga texts, eleven of which survive to this day.
The last man who knew all the scriptures by heart was Bhadrabahu and he died 170 years after Mahavira. About that time, around 360 B.C., the Jains were concerned that the memory of the holy scriptures might get lost. It was a difficult time in parts of India with a long famine and the death or dispersal of many monks. Hence a great conference of monks was held at Pataliputra (now called Patna, in Bihar) when the contents of the sacred texts (those which had not been lost) were put in order. Not all Jains believe today that the original scriptures have survived. The Digambara in general feel that the original texts eventually disappeared from knowledge over a fairly long period of time. Some modern scholars believe that some re-editing of the texts must have taken place so that they are not exactly in the original form. Many centuries after the conference at Pataliputra another conference was held at Valabhi, around 460 A.D. when all the sacred scriptures were finally written down, the twelve Anga texts representing the oldest section, with a further thirty-four works which are recognize as rather later in time. There is no doubt that, in spite of some differences of opinion about it, the Jains still have today a collection of ancient religious literature which contains the noble teaching of Mahavira as itwas followed two thousand and more years ago. For a very long time these scriptures were studied only by monks and learned men. The language in which they were compiled, called Ardha Magadhi, was once the language of ordinary people in Magadha so that the teachings of Mahavira (who preached in this language) could be understood by them. But Ardha Magadhi died out as a spoken language and only scholars could understood it (though most Jains today know at least some of the ancient prayers in the beautiful and solemn ancient tongue). In recent years, however, many of the Jain writings have been translated into modern Indian languages, as well as into English and other European languages, so that with little trouble we can obtain and read them today.
We have been talking about matters which cover many, many centuries of time. Generation after generation passed, of people much like ourselves, even though they lived two thousand and more years ago. They had the same hopes and fears, the same joys and sorrows. And like Jains everywhere today they had the teachings of Mahavira to guide and support them.

GHATI KARMA

GHATI KARMA

If a soul has the inherent power to know and see everything, then why
does our soul not know and see everything? If a soul is to be
non-attached and has infinite power, then why do we have attachment and
why we are weak?

Karmas are responsible for such distortions of the soul. Karmas fall
into two groups: 1) Ghati (Destructive) karmas and 2) Aghati (Non-
destructive) karmas. Ghati karmas obstruct the true nature of the soul
while they are attached to it. When ghati karmas are destroyed, the
soul exhibits its true nature of total knowledge and perception as well
as non-attachment and infinite power. Arihants and Siddhas have
destroyed these ghati karmas, and that is why their souls exhibit total
knowledge and perception as well as non-attachment and infinite power.
We should all strive for this stage of destroying ghati karmas.

Ghati karmas are:
1) Jnanavarniya (Knowledge obscuring) karma
2) Darshanavarniya (Perception obscuring) karma
3) Antaraya(Obstructing) karma
4) Mohniya (Deluding) karma


1) Jnanavarniya (Knowledge obscuring) karma
As the name implies Jnanavarniya karma obscures the knowledge power of
the soul. Those who have less Jnanavarniya karma are more intelligent
and learn more easily, while those who have more Jnanavarniya karma
will have problems retaining knowledge. There are five sub-types of
Jnanavarniya karma. They are:
1) Mati-Jnanavarniya (Senses and mind oriented knowledge obscuring)
karma
2) Shrut-Jnanavarniya (Writing interpretation oriented knowledge
obscuring) karma
3) Avadhi-Jnanavarniya (Remote viewing knowledge obscuring) karma
4) Manah-Paryay-Jnanavarniya (Thoughts reading knowledge obscuring)
karma
5) Keval-Jnanavarniya (Perfect knowledge obscuring) karma

1) Mati-Jnanavarniya (Senses and mind oriented knowledge obscuring)
karma
Mati-Jnan refers to the knowledge which is attained through the use of
the senses and mind. Karma that blocks this function of the mind and
senses is known as
Mati-Jnanavarniya karma. Therefore, if someone had more
Mati-Jnanavarniya karma, then he/she would be less intelligent, while
on the other hand, if someone had less
Mati-Jnanavarniya karmas, then he/she would be more intelligent.

2) Shrut-Jnanavarniya (Writing interpretation knowledge obscuring)
karma
The knowledge which is acquired by understanding of words, writing or
gestures is known as Shrut-Jnan. The karma that obscures this process
of gaining knowledge is known as Shrut-Jnanavarniya karma. For this
reason it is understood why some people can remember things after
reading only once, while others cannot remember even after reading them
many times.

3) Avadhi-Jnanavarniya (remote viewing knowledge obscuring) karma
The soul through Avadhi-Jnan can see the material things far beyond our
normal eyes can see without the help of senses or mind. The karma that
obscures this type of knowledge is known as "Avadhi-Jnanavarniya
karma". Different people have a different range of distance they can
see.

4) Manah Paryay-Jnanavarniya (Thoughts reading knowledge obscuring)
karma
The soul through Manah Paryay-Jnan can know the mental thoughts of
others without the help of senses and mind. The karma that obscures
this type of knowledge is known as Manah Paryay-Jnanavarniya karma.
The soul who would be a Tirthankar in that life would attain Manah
Paryay-Jnan at the time of renunciation of worldly life.

5) Keval-Jnanavarniya (Perfect knowledge obscuring) karma
The soul has the power to know what is happening now, what happened in
the past, and what will happen in the future in the whole universe at
the same time. Such knowledge is known as Keval-Jnan and the karma that
obscures this type of knowledge is known as Keval-Jnanavarniya karma.
Arihants and Siddhas have destroyed Keval-Jnanavarniya karma and that
is why they have attained Keval-Jnan.

Some of the effects of Jnanavarniya Karma are ignorance, inability to
understand, incapability of being taught, illiteracy, and stammering.

Jnanavarniya Karma is accumulated if we condemn knowledge, scholars, or
enlightened people, show laziness, contempt, or displeasure in studying
and learning, or show any disrespect for knowledge and knowledge
related things, such as tearing out pages or throwing books around.

Jnanavarniya Karma can be shed by worshipping knowledge, paying
reverence and respect to teachers, showing respect for books, and by
studying religion regularly with humility.

When we rid ourselves of Jnanavarniya Karma, we will develop Keval-Jnan
and become Anantjnani. Our soul will know everything from the past,
present, and future all at the same time.




2) Darshanavarniya (Perception obscuring) Karma
Darshanavarniya Karma diminishes the powers of our perception through
the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin to the extent that we may not
able to see well, hear well, smell well, etc. There are nine sub-types
of Darshanavarniya Karma:
1) Chakshu-Darshanavarniya (Vision perception obscuring) Karma
2) Achakshu-Darshanavarniya (Non-vision perception obscuring) Karma
3) Avadhi-Darshanavarniya (Remote seeing-perception obscuring) Karma
4) Kevali-Darshanavarniya (Perfect perception obscuring) Karma
5) Nindra (Light sleep producing) Karma
6) Nindra-nindra (Deep sleep producing) Karma
7) Prachala (Sound sleep producing) Karma
8) Prachala-prachala (Exceedingly intensive sleep producing) Karma
9) Styanarddhi Nindra (Somnambulistic sleep producing) Karma

Some of the effects of Darshanavarniya Karma are blindness, inadequacy
of the senses, sleepiness, swooning, and sleepwalking.

Darshanavarniya Karma is accumulated on account of condemning the
principles of dharma, disrespecting the virtuous, and trying to find
faults in others perception.

Darshanavarniya Karma is shed by worshipping faithfully, having faith in
the Jinas, and being respectful to spiritual teachers and dharma. In
order to avoid accumulating this karmas we should not insult sadhus,
sadhvis, shravaks, or shravikas, we should be humble followers of the
Jain Religion, we should help others to follow it, and we should be
alert and work for the peace of the four-fold (sadhus, sadhvis, male
and female householders) Jain religion.

Once our Darshanavarniya Karma is shed, we will develop Kevaldarshan and
become Anantdarshani. Arihants and Siddhas perceive everything that is
happening now, happened in the past, and will happen in future all at
the same time.


3) Antaraya(Obstructing) karma
Even though many of us desire to give charity, we cannot do so. A
diabetic rich person can afford any dinner of choice but cannot
necessarily enjoy it. You might have had the experience in which
everything was set 100% right to complete the project, but for some
reason you could not even start the project. Situations of these types
occur because of the influence of Antaray Karma. This karma also
causes obstruction to the worship of Jina and to the performance of
spiritual activities. Consequently Antaray Karma is responsible for all
the obstacles we face in our lives. There are five sub-types of Antaray
Karma:
1) Danantray (Charity obstructing) Karma
2) Labhantray (gain obstructing) Karma
3) Bhogantray (Enjoyment Obstructing) Karma
4) Upabhogantray (Re-enjoyment obstructing) Karma
5) Viryantray (Will-power obstructing) Karma

Some of the effects of Antaray Karma include the inability to perform
penance, laziness, and weakness. Even if one had the desire to travel
on the right path, on account of excessive Antaraya Karma, one would
not be able to do so.

Antar习Karma is accumulated due to the obstruction of the worship of
the Jinas and other spiritual activities, obstructing others from doing
penance, service, or practicing devotion or giving charity, not giving
charity, and causing of loss to others.

Antar习Karma can be shed by giving charity, sharing knowledge, helping
sadhus and sadhvis, encouraging others to give charity, and encouraging
and helping others to do penance and service and by showing
benevolence.

When we get rid ourselves of Antaraya Karma, we become Anantshakti. The
soul will have no disability or weakness. It will never become tired,
and never fail.


4) Mohniya - Deluding Karma

Mohniya Karma creates doubts about religion and spiritual teachers and
destroys faith in the Jina. It obscures right belief and right conduct
of the soul. Mohniya Karma causes attachment and hatred and passions
such as anger, ego, deceit, and greed. Of all the karmas, Mohniya
Karma is the most dangerous and the most difficult to overcome and once
you overcome. Once we overcome this karma the salvation or liberation
is guaranteed. There are twenty eight sub-types of Mohniya Karma:
a) Darshan (Belief disturbing) Mohniya Karma
1) Mithyatva (False belief causing) Mohniya Karma
2) Mishra (Mixed belief causing) Mohniya Karma
3) Samyaktva (Correct belief causing) Mohniya Karma
b) Charitra ( Right conduct disturbing) Mohniya Karma
1) Anantanubandhi (Right conduct hindering) Krodha, Man, Maya, and
Lobha Mohniya Karmas
2) Apratyakhanavarniya (Partial renunciation hindering) Krodha, Man,
Maya, and Lobha Mohniya Karmas
3) Pratyakhanavarniya (Total renunciation hindering) Krodha, Man,
Maya, and Lobha Mohniya Karmas
4) Sanjvalan (Complete right conduct hindering) Krodha, Man, Maya, and
Lobha Mohniya Karmas
5) Strived (Sex desire with man causing) karma
6) Purushaved (Sex desire with woman causing) Karma
7) Napunsankved (Sex desire with both man and woman causing) Karma
8) Hashya (Laughing causing) Karma
9) Rati (Liking causing) Karma
10) Arati (Disliking causing) Karma
11) Bhaya (Fear causing) Karma
12) Shock (Sorrow causing) Karma
13) Jugupsa (Disgust causing) Karma

Some effects of Mohniya Karma include attachment, hatred, envy,
contempt, misery, infatuation, longing, ecstasy, anger, greed, ego, and
deception.

Mohniya Karma is accumulated on account of treating gods and preceptors
with contempt, having a deep attachment and hatred, lamenting and
weeping, becoming over excited, being irritable, furious, greedy,
egoistic, deceptive, etc.

Mohniya Karma can be shed by observing virtues such as honesty,
humbleness, contentness, and straightforwardness. In order to avoid
Mohniya Karma we should say prayers, go to the upashraya to worship
spiritual teachers, and perform austerities everyday.

When we rid ourselves of Mohniya Karma we become Veetragi. After this
point the soul never becomes angry, proud, greedy, pleased, displeased,
happy, sad, or afraid. A Veetragi soul has no attachment or hatred for
anyone. Once Mohniya Karma is destroyed, Jnanavarniya,
Darshan䶡rniya, and Antar习Karmas are destroyed within forty eight
minutes and Kevaljnan, Kevaldarshan, and Anant Virya are all achieved.

KASHAYA (PASSIONS)

KASHAYAS

The word kashaya (passions) can be broken down into kasha meaning
worldly life and aya meaning gain. The literal meaning of kashaya is to
gain worldly life again which that as long as you have kashayas, the
cycle of birth and death will continue. There are four types of
kashayas namely: Krodha (Anger), Mana (Ego), Maya (Deceit), Lobha
(Greed). These four can be grouped into two categories: 1) Rag
(attachment), 2) Dwesh (hatred). Rag is formed from maya and lobha and
dwesh is formed from krodh and man.

Spiritually, our goal is to lose worldly life and become liberated. When
we develop attachment, hatred or passions for worldly objects, we
hinder the spiritual progress of the soul. When we are under the
influence of passions, our intellect becomes irrational, we become
vicious by nature. Thus, passions are the greatest enemies of the soul
and we should save ourselves from their influences. Affinity,
attachment, hatred, and aversion are the roots of passion. We develop
affinity and hatred for things due to our distorted attitude,
ignorance, and false perception and knowledge. Humans are
opportunistic and when they are deprived of what they like they react
with anger. In the same way when they do not get the fame they think
they deserve, their ego get hurt and they react accordingly. Therefore
liking or affinity known as attachment (rag) can be cited as the one
single cause for passions. One who has conquered attachment or liking
can be said to have conquered everything. It is for that reason that
the Lord Jina is called Vitaragi, one who has conquered attachment (and
hatred).

Passions are caused by the maturation of previous Mohniya Karma.
Therefore, instead of reacting with more passion we should stay
tranquil in order to break the cycle which causes new karmas. Our aim
should be to stop the new karmas from coming in. If we can do that, the
door to liberation will open.

The four passions: krodh, man, maya, and lobha, are each further
sub-divided into four types, depending upon the of their intensity.
They are:
1) Anantanubadh (extremely severe): This obstructs right belief and
conduct and until it is destroyed, we cannot attain right belief or
conduct. Its effects pursue through endless time and always operate
with Darshan Mohniya Karma.
2) Apratyakhanavarana (severe): This obstructs even partial
renunciation but does not affect true belief. While it is active, we
cannot take even partial vows.
3) Pratyakhanavarana (moderate): This obstructs total renunciation,
but does not affect right belief and partial renunciation. While it is
active partial renunciation is possible by us, but total renunciation
(monkshood) is not.
4) Sanjvalana (slight): This obstructs the attainment of total right
conduct, but does not affect right belief and total renunciation. While
it is active, initiation into monkshood and spiritual progress are
possible, but becoming a vitragi is not possible.


KRODHA (ANGER)
When anger flares we lose our sense of judgment. Virtues, love and
forgiveness are destroyed. Anger arises if someone acts against our
wish, if someone causes obstacles in the fulfillment of our desires, or
if someone makes a breach of our trust. Everyone wants to stay away
from those who become angry easily. Due to anger, friends becomes
foes. No one wants to help an angry person, nor does anyone love him.
Anger nourishes revenge and instead of an angry nature we should have a
forgiving and peaceful nature. Not only is anger harmful in this life,
but it can bring bitter consequences in our next lives too. Sometimes,
virtuous people become angry, but they immediately calm down and ask
for forgiveness from the people with whom they became angry. We should
do the same. Thus, by following their example the sin caused by anger
would be removed. We should cultivate virtues such as forgiveness,
penance, and repentance.

LOBHA (GREED)
A greedy person is not satisfied with what he has. To get more, the
person may use all kind of means without caring for others. We should
not forget, that our gain is a loss of others. Greed does not let us
give anything away, even to the needy people. We should be content
with what we have and only accumulate to meet our needs. We should
develop the habit of helping others by offering what we have. Greed
destroys peace and happiness while caring brings them back.

MANA (EGO)
One who is full of ego looses his sense of judgment and politeness. A
proud man invites his own destruction. We can obtain knowledge only if
we are humble. Humility brings good thoughts where there is no room
for pride or ego. Humility is at the root of religion and it is rather
difficult to develop religious feelings as long as ego exists.

MAYA (DECEIT)
Deceit is responsible for a dishonest life. Due to deceit one loses
friends. Honesty helps to realize the truth. A deceitful person has
little understanding of religion.

There are nine No-kashaya (pseudo-passions) which trigger our passions.
They are:
1) Hashya - laughing or joking
2) Rati - pleasure for sensual activities
3) Arati - displeasure for sensual activities
4) Shoka - sorrow
5) Bhaya - fear
6) Jugupsa - disgust
7) Prurushved - cause of sexual desires for women
8) Strived - cause of sexual desires for men
9) Napumsakaved - cause of sexual desires for both men and women
Manifestation of no-kashaya decreases as spiritual uplift begins.
Therefore, we should be careful not only of kashaya, but of no-kashaya,
too.

THEORY OF KARMA

THEORY OF KARMA
Jain religion is one of the ancient religions of India and has a lot of material devoted to the theory of karma in its holy scriptures just as some of the other religions do. I hope that the people belonging to faiths other than Jainism would find some ideas in this article close to those preached by their own saints and consider using them in their daily lives. Upon study and reflection, many of us would conclude that the Theory of Karma does have relevance even in to-day's world.

All of us have heard the saying 'As you sow, so you reap'-. Several eastern religions have expressed the same idea in different ways. In any case, I think this simple saying contains the essence of human wisdom. Basically it implies a strong cause/effect relationship. And it is the same cause and effect relationship on which the scientific and technological world is based . The question then is: If the cause and effect relationship is so powerful in the material world we live in, why should it not be just as powerful in the spiritual world ? If we accept this line of reasoning, the Theory of Karma will be easier to accept because it is nothing but a cause/effect spiritual phenomenon

Why do some students do well in school while others struggle? Why do
some earn money easily while others are poor? Why do some suffer while
others enjoy their lives? Why do some live longer while others die at
a young age?

The answers to all of these questions is the effects of our karmas.

The theory of karma explains how, why, and what happens to us. It also
explains the role that karmas play in our lives, how we accumulate
karmas, and how we get rid of them.
What is Karma ?

The literal meaning of the Sanskrit word Karma is deeds, including thoughts and words. However, according to Jainism, Karmas are invisible, fine particles of matter prevailing all around us just like the air particles. Our souls attract these karmas through activities related to mind, body and speech. This means every time we get angry, we attract karmas, every time we kill some one, we attract karmas, every time we deceive someone or become greedy, we attract karmas. These karmas form layers upon layers over our souls and keep us from realizing our true potential.

As the theory goes, the true nature of soul is pure, crystal clear and full of true knowledge. However the karmas keep the soul away from the truth and make it go through the cycles of birth and death. A wordly soul remains under uncertain condition- at one moment it gets closer to the truth, the next moment it starts doubting it.

Strength and duration of the Karmic bonds (layers):

The strength and duration of karmic bonds are very much dependent on the intensity of our passions (kashayas). In other words, our motives at the time of performing any good or bad acts determine the strength and duration of the bondage of karma. Thus motive counts a lot in Jainism: two people performing similar activities could acquire karma in a completely different way. For example, a person killing a deer intentionally is producing a karmic bond much stronger than a person killing insects unintentionally while walking. Both involve an act of killing but the impact is substantially different with regard to the acquisition of karma.

Types of Karmas:

There are 8 different types of Karmas :

1.Knowledge-obscuring (Gyanavaraniya) Karma:

Gyan means knowledge.Varaniya means stoppage. This karma prevents the soul from acquiring true knowledge and keeps us ignorant just as a blindfold keeps us from seeing. How can we improve our lot unless we know what we are?

2. Perception-obscuring (Darshanavarniya) Karma:

Darshan means faith or perception. This karma prevents us from having a rational, common-sense approach towards our lives and surroundings.

3. Feeling-producing (Vedaniya) Karma:

This karma makes us experience either the sweetness of physical happiness or the bitterness of misery.

4. Deluding (Mohaneeya) Karma:

This karma, like too much alcohol, confuses all the human faculties and makes us forget what is right and what is wrong. It makes the souls bewildered and perplexed.

5. Life-span-determining (Ayu) Karma:

This karma determines the life spans of all living beings.

6. Physique-determining (Nam) Karma:

This karma determines the looks, skin, form etc.of the bodies of living beings.

7. Status-determining (Gotra) Karma:

This karma determines the family and status of our birth.

8. Obstructing (Antaraya) Karma:

This karma prevents us from doing a good deed or undoing a bad action when there is a desire to do it. For example, we may want to give donation to a charity but this karma might put obstacles in our path and stop us from doing so.

The Jain system has further sub-divided these eight karmas into 144 sub classes designed to account for almost every conceivable experience that a living being could have in a life time. All interactions between the wordly souls and other entities of the world are guided by these karmas. This is true of humans as well as other living beings. The same rules apply to all worldly souls. These karmas keep us trapped in the cycles of birth and death, happiness and unhappiness.

Is there a way out?

Jain religion is proactive in this area. It offers an excellent solution to rid one's soul of karmas. The solution lies in following this two step process: 1. Stoppage (Samvar) and 2. Shedding (Nirjara)

Samvar means stopping the inflow of karmas, Nirjara means getting rid of the past karmas with the practice of these virtues: Non-violence (Ahimsa), Truth (Satya), Non-stealing (Achaura), Purity of body, mind and spirit (Brahmacharya), and Non-possessiveness (Aparigrah) and by using self-restraint and discipline in daily lives.

By practicing these virtues, one can ultimately purge himself of the past karmas and stop the influx of the new ones and ultimately purify one's soul.

Is there anyway to validate this theory?

Since the subject falls in the area of spiritualism, the validity is rather difficult. We can only observe some concrete examples in day-to-living and establish some connection between cause and effect:

Looking at two extreme examples: lives of Nixon and Adolph Hitler seem to reinforce the karma theory. However direct correlation between evil deeds and agony (or the direct opposite of it) within the same life span is difficult to establish in many cases. If we believe in the life after death and believe that every one has to pay a price for his evil deeds either now or later, then karma theory holds good nicely. The theory does not seem to contradict our common sense; each person has to decide for himself and understand the real meaning of karma theory through study and experience.

Conclusions:

1. If the Cause and effect holds good in our daily material lives, then the theory of karma must hold good in our spiritual lives.

2. Motives count a lot in Jainism. Hence the very heavy emphasis on pure thoughts in this religion.

3. Karmas are formed by evil deeds/thoughts/words. They can be stopped by good conduct and proper mental activity. The karmic accounts can be settled by practicing the virtues of truth, non-violence, austerity, discipline and self sacrifice.
**************

PUNYA and PAP

PUNYA AND PAP

Why are some people in more favorable situations then others?. Why are
some rich, while others struggle? Why do some suffer more sickness than
others? Why is science unable to explain all of these questions? The
answer to such disparity lies in the understanding of punya and pap.
What are punya and pap? Punya is earned when our activities are good
while pap is earned when our activities are bad. When punya matures or
gives its result it brings happiness and comfort and when pap matures
or gives its result, it brings nothing but suffering.

Now, it is obvious that what we see in the world is nothing other than
the result of our past actions. Knowing this will remind us that our
activities should be wholesome if we want happiness and comfort in
life, otherwise we should be ready to accept unhappiness as well as
discomfort. When speaking about activities people mostly think of
physical activities, but we should not forget that what we express
verbally as well as what we think mentally, are also considered
activities. For this reason, not only should our physical activities
should be wholesome, but our speech and thoughts should also be pure.
We should remember, that not only do we accumulate punya and pap from
our actions , but also from asking someone else to do something for us
or from encouraging someone else to do something.

Lord Mahavira?s message is "Live and let live". Everybody desires to
live and enjoy the comforts of life. Therefore, we should not come in
the way of anyone seeking the same. If we can properly understand the
implications of this message, it will go long way in molding our
attitude. Around us we see and hear that many people hunt or fish; they
eat meat, chicken, fish, eggs, etc. Some people argue that while eating
meat we ourselves are not killing, so it should not affect us. However,
they do not realize that by eating meat, even though they are not
directly killing animals, birds, fish, etc., they are instrumental in
killing. The more they eat the more killing there will be. Just like
us, those animals also want to live. We should remember that not only
do our actions bring karmas, but even our actions which are indirectly
or directly the cause of other?s actions also bring karmas to us.

People also use harsh words against each other and plan destruction.
Unfortunately, because some karmas do not produce their results
immediately, people do not care what may happen in the future, but
these actions also produce karmas.

We also hear about riots in which people plunder, hit, and/or kill
others and set fire to shops, homes, and other buildings. By doing so,
they put a lot of people through unnecessary suffering. These people
undertaking such heinous activities may think that they are getting
even. However, they fail to realize that by causing suffering to others
they themselves will have to suffer the consequences of their evil acts
at some point, if not in this life, then in coming lives.

Consequently, our objective should not involve disturbing the comforts
of other beings, hurting them in any way, and killing or being in any
way instrumental in taking their lives. By providing comfort and
security to others we can gain good karmas also known as Punya. Punya
brings forth happiness in this or coming lives. On the other hand, if
we cause suffering or unhappiness to others then, we have committed a
sin and we acquire bad karmas, also known as P䰮 Such P䰠brings forth
unhappiness in this or in future lives.

Jain scripture describes that even though punya or pap, on surface, may
look as if their only effect is to cause comfort or discomfort, there
is more to it.
Punya is sub-divided into two categories:
1) Punyanubandhu punya
2) Papanubandhu Punya

Pap is sub-divided into two categories:
1) Papanubandhu pap
2) Punyanubandhu pap

1) Punyanubandhu punya - punya which we accumulate now will bring us
comforts and leads to a life where we will accumulate punya again.
2) Papanubandhu punya - punya which we accumulate now, also will bring
us comforts, and leads to a life where we will accumulate pap instead
of punya.
3) Papanubandhu pap - pap which we accumulate now will bring us
discomfort, and leads to a life where we will accumulate pap again.
4) Punyanubandhu pap - pap which we accumulate now will bring us
discomforts but leads to a life where we will accumulate punya instead
of pap.

Punyanubandhu punya:
A long time ago, a poor widow had a young son. She had to work hard to
maintain herself and her son. Once there was a day of great festival
and neighboring families prepared a tasteful pudding of milk and rice
called kheer in order to celebrate. The neighborhood kids were enjoying
the kheer and on seeing this poor boy went to his mother and asked her
to make kheer for him too. He did not realize that his mother did not
have enough money to buy the milk, rice, and sugar needed for making
kheer. The mother tried to explain the situation but the boy started
crying for kheer.

The mother could not tolerate his crying, so she said, "Don't cry, my
boy, I will cook kheer for you." She went to the neighbors and borrowed
some milk, sugar and rice and made kheer. She served him in a earthen
plate and told him to wait until it cooled. She then left to get water
from the well.

While the kheer was cooling, a monk came to the boy?s home to ask for
alms (to get a food). The boy felt very happy and invited monk to come
in. He served all his kheer to the monk and felt very happy to offer
food to the monk. After the monk left, he ate whatever kheer was stuck
to the plate and the pot. His thoughts did not change. He had offered
the kheer to the monk willingly, thereby, he earned tremendous
wholesome karma or punya. As a result of this action, in his next life,
he was known as Shalibhadra born into a very wealthy family with all
luxuries. During this life he realized what life is all about. He
renounced the luxuries of life and uplifted his soul by becoming a monk
of Lord Mah䶩ra.

Papanubandhu Punya:
There lived a man who one day offered ladoos (sweet balls) to a monk who
came to his house for alms. Later, he sat down to eat the left over
ladoos and realized how sweet those ladoos were. He felt sorry for
giving away such ladoos. He left to track down a monk to ask back those
ladoos. Harboring such thoughts, he sought out to find the monk in
order to get the ladoos back. By the time he found the monk the ladoos
had already been eaten. He kept regretting offering the ladoos to the
monk.

As a result of giving alms to the monk, he was reborn as a rich man in
his next life, but because he had regrets about his offerings he became
miser in this life. He could not use his wealth and lived unhappy. In
fact, he risked his life in order to collect more money. For this
reasons, he died and went to hell.

It should be realized that even though both the boy and the man should
have been happier because of their offering, the second one was not.
These stories remind us of a very important fact: anytime we offer
something not only should we offer it happily, but we should never have
regrets about offering it. Otherwise the offering turns sour. In
retrospect, punya accumulated in the first example are called
Punyanubandhu punya and those accumulated in the second example are
called Papanubandhu punya.

Papanubandhu pap:
There lived a butcher in Magadh city. He enjoyed his job. One day, King
Shrenik decided that there would be no more killing in the city. All
killing in the city halted except for this butcher?s killing. As to
when he was asked why he did not observe King Shrenik?s command, he
said he loved killing and could not stop. King Shrenik decided to put
him in an almost dry well so that there would be nothing to kill. To
everyone?s surprise, the killing did not stop there either. The butcher
made animals with wet clay and then pretended to kill them. Since he
was enjoying killing so much, he accumulated pap (bad karmas) which
gave rise to a situation where he could do nothing other than continue
killing.

Punyanubandhu pap:
There was a robber named Rohini during Lord Mahavira?s time. At his
father?s death, Rohini promised that he would not go and to listen to
Lord Mahavira at any time. He kept on robbing and he avoided Lord
Mahavira to keep his promise. He would help the poor from what he
collected from robbery. But one day, things were not favorable for him
and when he was on his way to commit a robbery, he learned that Lord
Mahavira was giving a sermon on his path. He thought about changing his
route. But he realized that it would take longer putting him at risk of
being caught. He was puzzled because if he went on the first path he
would be unable to keep the promise he gave to his father and if he
went on the second path he might get caught. After some thought, he
decided to go on the path where Lord Mahavir was preaching, but he also
decided that he would cover his ears with his hands so that he would be
unable to hear. While he was passing the area where Lord Mahavir was
giving a sermon a thorn pocked into his leg. He decided that he would
rather bear the pain than let go with his hands. As he walked further
the pain became unbearable and he decided to pull the thorn quickly out
of his leg. He thought to himself, "How much can I hear in a few
seconds any way?" While pulling the thorn he heard the following words:
"Angels do not walk on the ground, do not cast a shadow, and do not
blink. Flowers they wear do not whither." He figured that these words
would not affect his profession.

Rohini continued on his pursuit of the robbery. Somehow, he got caught
but would not admit to committing any crime. Abhaykumar, the chief
minister of King Shrenik, decided to trick Rohini by getting him drunk
and creating an environment of being born in heaven. He put Rohini in a
bed in a highly decorated palace with lots of young girls acting as
angels. When he awoke, they asked him, "Beloved, what kind of good
karmas did you accumulate that entitled you to became our master?" For
a moment, Rohini was confused. He did not know what was going on or
whether he really was an angel. Contemplating deeply, he suddenly
noticed that all the angels had a shadow, they all walked on the
ground, their eyes blinked, and their flowers were withering. He
realized what was truly going on and recognized that it was a trap. So
he went along with them. He said, "He was a very nice and righteous
person and had helped many people." Since Abhaykumar did not get the
confession he was looking for, he let Rohini go free. Rohini was amazed
at what a few words of Lord Mahavira had done for him. After some
thinking, he decided to go and listen to the words of Lord Mahavira.
After listening Lord Mahavira?s sermon, he renounced his life and began
on the path to spiritual uplift.

>From these last two examples, we would not expect either the butcher or
Rohini to become spiritually elevated. For the butcher the expected
outcome prevailed because all that was on his mind was killing. Rohini,
on the other hand, defied the expected outcome because he had more on
his mind than just robbing. Rohini did not have a callous heart for he
helped the poor and so, while he was accumulating pap from robbing he
also left a window open through which punya could enter. Ultimately,
the effect of the punya led Rohini in the right direction. There is a
lesson to be learned here: if we have to indulge in bad activities, for
whatever reasons, then we should not enjoy them. In fact, we should
regret committing such acts and try to do anything good if possible. We
must remember that pap will lead us to more pap, leaving us no chance
to improve and therefore, we should try, with our fullest efforts, to
avoid accumulation of papanubandhu pap. In the other scenario we have
at least some chances for improvement and therefore, if it is necessary
to accumulate pap, we should try to accumulate punyanubandhu pap.

We should now understand that if we want to have happiness and comforts,
then we should be careful what we do and how we do it.
The following is a list of some activities which can bring comfort to
others and can ultimately provide the same for us. They are:
1) offering food to the needy (Only vegetarian food).
2) offering clothes to the needy.
3) helping the sick.
4) helping others to acquire knowledge.
5) giving charity (Be sure that the money is used for a good cause).
6) helping parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents, and others in need.
7) helping animals or organizations that help animals.
8) studying religion and following its precepts in our daily lives.
9) worshipping Tirthankaras like Lord Mah䶩ra.

Here is a list of some of the activities which cause discomfort to
others and can ultimately cause discomfort to us. They are:
1) being cruel or violent towards others including of humans, animals,
birds,
bugs, and other living beings.
2) killing humans, animals, birds, bugs, etc.
3) showing disrespect to parents, teachers, and other respectable
persons.
4) speaking harsh words or planning violence.
5) not following religious principles in daily life.
6) being angry or greedy;
7) showing arrogance
8) being deceptive.

KALCHAKRA

KALCHAKRA

Jains believe that time is infinite, without any beginning or end. Timeis divided into infinite equal time cycles (Kalchakras). Every timecycle is further sub-divided in two equal halves. The first half is theprogressive cycle or ascending order, called Utsarpini. The other halfis the regressive cycle or the descending order, called Avasarpini.Every Utsarpini and Avasarpini is divided into six unequal periodscalled IJ䳮 During the Utsarpini half cycle, progress, development,happiness, strength, age, body, religious trends, etc. go from theworst conditions to the best. During the Avasarpini half cycle,progress, development, happiness, strength, age, body, religioustrends, etc. go from the best conditions to the worst. Presently, weare in the fifth Ara of the Avasarpini phase. When the Avasarpini phaseends the Utsarpini phase begins. This k䬣hakra repeats again andcontinues forever.

The six aras are:

(1) Sukham Sukham Kal (very good).

(2) Sukham Kal (good).

(3) Sukham Dukham Kal (good bad).

(4) Dukham Sukham Kal (bad good).

(5) Dukham Kal (bad).

(6) Dukham Dukham Kal (very bad)

.1) Sukham Sukham Kal: This is a time of absolute happiness. During this phase people arevery tall and live for a very long period of time. Children are bornas twins, a boy and a girl. All the needs and desires of the people arefulfilled by ten different kinds of Kalpavriksha (wish-giving trees).The trees provide places to live, clothes, pots and pans, good food,fruits and sweets, harmonious music, jewelry, beautiful flowers,radiant lamps, and a bright light at night. There is no killing, crime,or vice.

2) Sukham Kal - This is the phase of happiness, but it is not absolute.The wish-giving trees still continue to provide for the people?s needs,but the people are not as tall and do not live as long.

3) Sukham Dukham Kal - This is a phase consisting of more happiness thanmisery. During this period the kalpvrikshas do not consistentlyprovide what is desired. Towards the end of this period in the currenttime cycle Rushabhdev became the first Tirthankar. He realized thatthings were going to get worse. So he taught the people useful artsincluding, sewing, farming, and cooking which will enable them todepend upon themselves. He also introduced a political system andbecame the first king. This era came to an end three years and eightmonths after the nirvana of Rushabhdev. The first Chakravarti Bharat,Bahubali also known for his strength, and Brahmi who devised eighteendifferent alphabets were Rushabhdeva?s children.

4) Dukham Sukham Kal - This is a phase of more misery, sorrow, andsuffering than happiness. The other twenty-three Tirthankaras andeleven Chakravarties were born during this era which came to an endthree years and eight months after Lord Mah䶩r's nirv䮮

5) Dukham Kal - This ara is currently prevailing. It is an ara ofunhappiness which began a little over 2,500 years ago and will last fora total of 21,000 years. No one born during this period will gainsalvation in their present life, because no one will observe truereligion. It is said that by the end of this ara, the Jain religionwill be lost.

6) Dukham Dukham Kal - This is a time of absolute misery andunhappiness. During this time people will experience nothing butsuffering. There will be no trace of religious activities. The lifespans of people will be very short, exceeding no more than twentyyears. Most people will be non-vegetarian and the social structurewill be destroyed. The weather will become extreme, the days will bevery hot, and the nights will be very cold. At the end of this ara, aperiod of Utsarpini will start and the time wheel will take an upwardswing. There will be days of rain which will provide nourishment sothat seeds can once again grow. Miseries will diminish and happinesswill increase until absolute happiness is once again reached.