Golden Steps To Salvation

SR No.: 008710
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Padmasagarsuri
Publisher: Arunoday Foundation
Publication Year: 1994
Total Pages: 224
Language: English
Classification: Book_English, Philosophy, & Religion
File Size: 12 MB

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“What defect can be there in my handling of it? The pārasmani, if it is a genuine one must turn iron into gold at a mere contact; but even though I kept it in an iron vessel for a whole day, the iron did not change into gold. You may kindly come to my house and see it with your own eyes."
The ascetic went to his devotee's house and saw it. The vessel was an old one. It was completely covered with a thick coat of dust. There were many spiders' webs in it. The parasmani was lying resplendent among the spiders' webs. How could it produce any effect? It had not touched the iron vessel at all. The ascetic got the vessel cleaned and then he demonstrated the effect of the pārasmani on it.
The discourses delivered by preceptors also act in the same manner because even discourses cannot influence your minds and hearts until they are fully cleansed of their impurities. If the discourses should produce any effect on your minds and souls you should cleanse them of the spiders' webs of passions and the dust of selfishness and other vices.
If you adore Jain ascetics and if you seek good company what will they tell you? They, having renounced life, inspire and exhort you to make self-sacrifice. They begin with advising you to renounce external objects since that is the beginning for making a total renunciation.
A preceptor made a shrāvak (a pious Jain) give up eating ash gourds. Returning home, the shravak informed his wife that on account of the advice of a sadhuji (ascetic) he had given up eating ash gourds and told her to buy some other vegetable and to cook it. She thought, “Those who are caught in the snares of the ascetics first give up ash-gourds and finally they give up their family also. Hence, this tendency to renounce things must be nipped in the bud.” Getting furious, she said, "I will cook only ash-gourds. Such things as giving up vegetables cannot be done in my house. If you like, you eat the food I prepare or you may ...
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