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FORBIDDING POSITIVE NON-VIOLENCE DUE TO MERITORIOUS KARMIC
BONDAGE IS WRONG
The Erroneous belief -
One of the present day traditions of the Jainas maintain that all activity results in karmic bondages. Therefore, in order to prevent karmic bondage it is essential to give up all activity and become inactive. The karmic bondages are of two types - 1. Sinful karmic bondages and 2. Meritorious karmic bondages. For liberation, the sinful karmic bondages are as abandonable as the meritorious karmic bondages. Those who make this belief as the basis of their religious practices say that the sinful acts like violence, telling lies, stealing, sexual indiscipline, etc., are abandonable in other religious traditions also. The Jaina religious tradition stands out in comparison only because in Jaina tradition along with these sinful activities the meritorious activities are also abandonable and it is a matter of pride for the Jaina tradition. Therefore as the inauspicious activities of violence, untruth, stealing, sexual indiscipline, etc.,, which are the causes of sinful karmic bondages, are abandonable, so are the auspicious activities of mercy, kindness, compassion, charity, etc.,, which are the causes of meritorious karmic bondages, also abandonable. Rectification -
The abovementioned belief is absolutely baseless, contrary to the canonical dictates and erroneous. This is being discussed in this chapter.
Positive Non-Violence
175
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