________________ 190 TATTVARTHA SUTRA i) Prayashchitta: This means atonement or repentance. We often happen to indulge in wrong or undesirable activities and evil tendencies. This may be due to habit, addiction, weakness of mind, or shortsightedness. A spiritual aspirant has to stay aware of such indulgences so as to avert the same. When he notices anything wrong on his part, he should repent for that. His sense of remorse should enable him to avoid the recurrence of such indulgences. Sutra 22 lays the following nine categories of Prayashchitta, viz. a) Alochan, which means confession of lapses and faults to the preceptor, b) Pratikraman, which means recalling the lapses with a view to atoning for that, c) Tadubhay, which means confession cum atonement, d) Vivek, which means discriminating wisdom, e) Vyutsarga, which means giving up physical and mental involvement, f) Tap, which means undertaking of austerities, g) Chhed, which means reduction in the period of one's initiation in proportion to his faults, h) Parihar, which means remaining in a sort of quarantine for a period proportionate to the faults and i) Upasthapan, which means re-adoption of the vows that were grossly infringed. ii) Vinay: This means modesty on one's own part and respect towards others. Respect has to be appropriate and may even take the form of devotion. That would help in proceeding towards spiritual development. If one has regard for his preceptor, he would not undertake any activity without seeking his guidance. That would automatically restrain him from indulging in anything wrong or undesirable. Moreover, he may feel inclined to develop the wholesome attributes by noticing the virtues of others and that can lead him to an increasingly Jain Education International For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org
