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THE KEY OF KNOWLEDGE.
animals, they who get them slaughtered, and, also, they who purchase their dead limbs are travelling on the path which leads to suffering and pain. Mr. Warren points out (Jainism, p. 101):--
“If we analyse the state of mind of a person who is hunting for sport, we find three factors, (1) an absence of thought of the pain and harm he is inflicting on the innocent creatures ; (2) he is entirely taken up with his own pleasure ; and (3) he has no feeling for the pain and suffering of the animals. Thus we find thoughtlessness, selfishness and heartlessness."
Neither the heaven-world, nor Nirvana is suitable for the residence of those who possess these three qualifications, and the only other place for their after-death sojourn is too dreadful to contemplate.
Ahimsa, thus, is the path of salvation, which is open to each and every one who would but exert himself to reach the goal. Freedom and bliss lie only in this, not in the pursuit of the wisdom of the world.
After what has been said above, it is not necessary to dwell any longer upon the power of Will in preserving life and conquering death. As regards its healing powers, the testimony is overwhelming in its favour, for the art of mental healing is a birth-right of our race which has descended to us from the remotest antiquity. Even to-day scores of men, whose lives bad been given up hy medical specialists, bear grateful testimony to its efficacy. Whether it be the 'laying of hands,' or the making of magnetic passes, or a mere word of command, or any other process, its efficacy lies only in the omnipotence of Will; and its success depends, not so much on the powers of the operator, as on the mental buoyancy, courage and faith of the patient himself. The reader
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