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This is a sacred practice. Through it, the practitioner moves from an outward-oriented state to an inward-oriented one, becoming detached and rising above attachment and aversion. Kayotsarga reduces physical attachment. Attachment to the body is the biggest obstacle to spiritual practice. By reducing attachment to the body through Kayotsarga, the practitioner is freed from the desire to adorn and beautify the body and becomes absorbed in the Self. This is why Kayotsarga is said to be the end of suffering for the practitioner. Whatever the practitioner does, they are advised to perform Kayotsarga after the action, so that they can be free from attachment to the body.
Kayotsarga is given a separate place in the six essentials, which expresses the sentiment that every practitioner should contemplate morning and evening that this body is separate and I am separate. I am eternal, immortal, imperishable. This body is transient. Like a dewdrop on a lotus leaf, it is impossible to say when this body will be destroyed. For the sake of the body, a human being also performs actions that are not conducive to their spiritual progress. They are unable to discern between edible and inedible food for the nourishment of the body. Kayotsarga reduces attachment to the body. When the practitioner is in Kayotsarga, they endure any kind of affliction, such as bites from insects, mosquitoes, or cold and heat, with a peaceful mind. They remain in the body but are beyond the body. Acharya Dharmadas has written in the Upadeshamala that one should not wear any covering during Kayotsarga.
In Kayotsarga, the practitioner is completely still and motionless like a rock. They remain in the posture in which they abandon attachment to the body and become absorbed in the Self. Acharya Bhadrabahu has written that in the state of Kayotsarga, if someone applies sandalwood to the practitioner out of devotion, or if someone pierces their body with a needle out of hatred, whether they live or die, the practitioner remains the same in all situations. Only then is Kayotsarga pure. During Kayotsarga, if any kind of affliction arises from gods, humans, or animals, the practitioner who endures them with equanimity, their Kayotsarga is truly correct.
The facts that Acharya Bhadrabahu has presented for the practitioners of Kayotsarga infuse strength into the practitioner's inner mind, and they become immersed in Kayotsarga with determination. However, this does not mean that they should fall into the trap of false beliefs and sacrifice their lives. Because the situation of all practitioners is not the same. Some practitioners may be exceptional, they are not afraid of hardships, they move forward courageously like lions. But there are also some weak practitioners, for them the Necessary Sutras instruct on the use of shelters. In Kayotsarga, there may be various bodily ailments such as coughing, sneezing, belching, fainting, etc. Sometimes there may also be tremors in the body. Even then, Kayotsarga is not broken. At some point, the practitioner may be standing in Kayotsarga, and at that time, the wall or roof of the house may also collapse. There may also be a fire in the house or where they are standing. There may also be afflictions from thieves and kings. At that time, the practitioner can leave Kayotsarga and go to a safe place. Their Kayotsarga will not be broken, because the main purpose of Kayotsarga is Samadhi. If Samadhi is broken, it turns into Artha and Raudra meditation. This transformation breaks Kayotsarga. The Kayotsarga in which Samadhi increases is beneficial. But the action that increases Asamadhi
1. Aavashyakaniyukti, Gatha 1548 2. Tivihanuvasagganam Manusaanam Tiriyaanam.
Sammamahiyasanaae Kaussaggo Havai Sumro ||
- Aavashyakaniyukti, Gatha 1549
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