________________
क्रूरकर्मसु निःशङ्कं देवतागुरुनिन्दिषु ।
आत्मशंसिषु योपेक्षा तन्माध्यस्थ्यमुदीरितम् ।। "By Maitri, i.e., amity, that mentality is meant which makes one wish that no creature should be suffering, and that the whole universe may find Salvation." "Pramoda, i.e., joy, designates the fullest appreciation of, and admiration for, the virtues of those who have shaken of all sin, and who can see through the essence of all things. "Kārunya, i.e. compassion is that trend of mind which makes one wish to help all creatures in need, all that are afflicted, and all that beg for their lives." "Mādhyasthya, i.e., impartiality, is that in difference, or rather leniency one should always bear towards those who commit cruel actions, those who openly blashpheme the Divine, or the spiritual teacher, and
those who are filled with arrogance." Perfect Individual Welfare Warranted By Jainism.
It is clear that all such principles, put in action, guarantee such an amount of happiness and peace within the whole brotherhood of living creatures, such a paradise like state of general bliss, that one should wish them to be universally adopted and followed, to the benefit of all that lives.
On the other hand, it is true, they presuppose what appears to be a kind of sacrifice on behalf of the individual.
This apparent sacrifice at the cost of which that state of general well-being is being brought about, consists in a ceratin amount of the latter, which the individuals has evidently to renounce, in the case of even the most insignificant of the Pratyākhyānas, and in every one of in positive altruistic effrots.
It is clear that the equilibrium of personal and general wellbeing would indeed remain incomplete, and Jainism could not be
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org