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It is essential. The Anuogadwar Maldhariy Tika states that the one who is the abode of all virtues is Avasak. It is an essential sutra. In other words, it can also be said that the one who makes the soul prosperous with excellent virtues is Avasak. It is the lifeblood of essential Jain practice. It is a living commentary on life purification and fault correction. Whether the practitioner is literate or illiterate, whether a common inquirer or a great sage with extraordinary brilliance, knowledge of the essential is not only necessary but mandatory for all practitioners. Through the knowledge of the essential sutra, the practitioner examines and tests his soul. Just as there is Sandhyakarma in the Vedic tradition, worship in the Buddhist tradition, Khor Deh Avesta in the Parsis, prayer in the Jews and Christians, and Namaz in Islam, so too in Jainism, there is the essential for the purification of faults and the increase of virtues.
The essential is the main part of Jain practice. It is the basis of spiritual equality, humility, and other virtues. The goal of an insightful practitioner is not external matter, but self-purification. The practice and worship through which the soul experiences eternal happiness, destroys karma-mala, and attains the light of spirituality through right faith, right knowledge, and right conduct, is the essential. It is necessary to do something to refine those mistakes after seeing one's own mistakes. The provision of the essential is for everyone, whether a monk or a nun, a layman or a laywoman. The Anuogadwar Sutra gives eight synonyms for the essential - essential, necessary, Dhruvanigraha, Vishudhi, Adhyayan Shatkvarg, Nyaya, Aradhana, and Marg. Although there is a slight difference in meaning in these names, all the names express the same meaning.
It is a rule for the monks of the first and last Tirthankaras that they must perform the essential. If monks and nuns do not perform the essential, they are deviated from the monastic dharma. Even if there is a stain of fault in life, or even if there is no stain, the essential should be performed. The Essential Appointment clearly states that in the reign of the first and last Tirthankaras, dharma was formulated including Pratikraman. Knowledge of the essential is also considered essential for lay people. This is why in the Svetambar tradition, the religious studies of children begin with the Essential Sutra. The Essential Sutra has six parts -
1. Samayik - practice of equality, 2. Chaturvinshati Stav - praise of the twenty-four Tirthankara Devas
- Anuogadwar Churni, p. 14 Anuogadwar Maldhariy Tika, p. 28
1. Sunnamappaṇam tam pasatthabhaavehiṁ āvāsetiiti āvāsam. 2. Samagrasyaapi gunagraamasyaavasakamityavasakam. • 3. Samaṇeṇa sāvaena ya, avassa kāyavvayam havaī jamhā.
Ante aho-nisassa ya, tamhā āvassaṁ nāma|| 4. Sapaḍikkamaṇo dhammo, purimasssa ya pacchimasssa ya jiṇassa.
Majjhimayaṇ jiṇāṇam, kāraṇajāe paḍikkamaṇam ||
- Avasyavritti, Gatha 2, page 53
- Avasyanyukti, Gatha 1244
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