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feeling, have a beneficial effect, but the results are not adequate. To derive full benefit, japa should be accompanied by both feeling and concentration of mind. It is a fact that a spell word has great power, but the explosion of this energy takes place only when the practitioner's recitation of the mantra is charged with feeling. Feelingless verbal repetition may fall in the sphere of ritual, but it cannot yield lasting joy, peace or health.
Every medicine has a virtue of its own. But in order to increase its potency, it is treated and infused with various kinds of more potent medicines. This is the typical Ayurvedic technique. By using this technique, one and the same drug can be made to yield several kinds of medicines and their efficacy much improved. Just as a drug is charged with power, a man's mind, too, can be charged with bhavana. A perfunctory recitation of a spell may be beneficial to some extent. But in the end it turns into a mere ritual. In view of this, the contribution of bhavana is very important.
A muni undertakes great vows. It is necessary for him to observe five vows, which form the chief basis of his sadhana. And without the infusion of spirituality, these cannot be fulfilled. In view of this, every great vow has been assigned five principles to be practised again and again (five bhavanas). Without assimilating these 25 principles associated with five great vows, no sadhak can reach the highpoint of sadhana.
A slight infusion enhances the efficacy of a medicinė, and through bhavana great vows are fulfilled. Similarly, only japa mixed with bhavana, can yield appropriate results. Expressions such as, "with the whole mind", 'heart and soul', 'charged with devotion', etc. underline the fact that the practice of japa and meditation is incomplete without concentration. If, while iterating a seed
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