________________
254
THE KEY OF KNOWLEDGE.
body to mean the material body. No: the whole body means the whole man--the real, spiritual man. The offending eye and hand here mentioned, denote certain perverse propensities of the human mind, which govern the whole man. Consequently, unless these propěnşities be rejected or subdued (which is what is meant by plucking out the eye and cutting of the hand), the whole mind, that is, the entire and real man, is finally brought into an infernal state, This is what is meant by the whole body being cast into hell."
Entering into life' means acquiring immortality without which even heaven, however attractive it might otherwise be, will, for ever, remain but little better than the mother earth with all the woes and miseries which are the lot of humanity on her surface. The word 'hell,' in addition to its accepted significance, also indicates a state of suffering, a wretched, miserable condition of mind, death, and the grave. Sin is the hell begun. In the East people generally say that heaven and hell are both on this earth : according to one's deeds does one live in either of them, here and now, in this life. Even in the Bible, the word is frequently used in the sense of a grave and death.
The true sense of the passage under consideration, which becomes clear after the wrong notions about heaven and hell have been eliminated, obviously, is, that blissful immortality is the reward of those who lead the life of blessed righteousness, but misery and suffering of those who are wicked ; and, since the real self is not the bodily, i.e., the apparent man, the former's happiness should not be allowed to be marred by the latter's offensive eyes and hands, which should be plucked out or cut off, if not amenable to control and correction otherwise. Immortality must begin here and now
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org