Path of Arhat

SR No.: 001745
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: T U Mehta
Publisher: Sohanlal Smarak Parshwanath Shodhpitha Varanasi
Publication Year: 1993
Total Pages: 262
Language: English
Classification: Book_English, Spiritual, Religion, & Principle
File Size: 15 MB

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The Path of Arhat : A Religious Democracy
(4) Belief in the plurality of Souls is also the same in both.
(5) Both reject the idea of some supreme power outside one self as creative, regulatory and deciding our destiny.
(6) Uolike the 'Advaitins' both treat Prakști or Ajiva as real and not a mere production of Māyā.
(7) We have already noted how the Yoga-system comes very near to Jaina system when it talks about the removal of impairments which do not allow the Puruşa to gain its original self.
The only difference between Sáňkhya and the Jaina thinking is about the part played by Atman in his play with Praksti (Ajiva of the Jainas ). While the Jainas believe that Jīva and Ajīva are combined from time immemorial and the Jiva is ‘Karta' ( Doer) as well as 'Bhoktā' ( Enjoyer ) of the karmas and their fruits, the Saukhya believes that Puruşa is 'Kūtastha' and remains totally unaffected by the play of Praksti. However, being in company of the various evolutes of Prakrti, it begins to identify itself with them out of sheer ignorance. If this is so, one would find little or no difference between the two systems even on the question of the part played by Jiva of Jainas and Puruşa of Sārkhya in their relationship with Ajiva or Prakrti.
Jainas almost recognise the ‘Kūțastha' nature of Jiva when they say that the intrinsic nature of Jiva is pure consciousness (Jñātā : knowership ) and ( Draştā : seership ) and applying their system of Nayavada, they say that from the view point of ‘Niścaya' (Real point of view ) the Jivas character remains untouched by the karmas which cloud Jiva's luminosity just as the clouds in the sky conceal the luminosity of the sun. However from the practical stand point ‘Vyavahāra', the Jiva is "Karta' ( Doer ) as well as 'Bhokta' ( Enjoyer ).
It seems that both the systems want to convey the same principle by different methods.