________________
RECONCILIATION.
951
Of the devotion to an unmanifest God it is sufficient to say that it is time wasted almost wholly, since the Unmanifest is only an abstraction, and as such devoid of existence, except in pure metaphysical thought. Hence, the worshippers of the Unmanifest are little better than those who personify thunder and lightning and other forces of nature as gods and goddesses, and then fall down at their feet in adoration.
The idea of an image as an aid to meditation stands on the same ground as the photograph of one's intended. Both are a means to put the soul en rapport with the object of Love, the ideal of spiritual or domestic felicity and joy. And just as it cannot be said that the lover intends to marry the photograph of his intended, though he kisses and places it next to his heart, so can it not be said that the true worshipper takes the piece of stone to be his God.
So far as the images of the non-Jaina gods and goddesses are concerned; obviously they do not possess sufficient merit to lead to the salvation of the soul, since they are mere symbols of the various aspects of Life. It is, however, true that the contemplation of the different aspects of Life is not without its usefulness, since meditation is the only means of jnana, which arising in the soul, enables it to turn to the true Godhead. But while it is true that the worship of symbolical gods and goddesses would ultimately lead to the true form of worship, it is not possible to minimise the value of time lost, in a fruitless pursuit, which has ultimately to be given up. As a matter of fact, mythology is only calculated to lead into error more often than
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org