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GURUDEVA SMRITI GRANTHA
a man aspiring for perfection must be spiritually free from animal passions and in external conduct must follow the path of non-resistance to evil. All discomforts, inconveniences and lack of creature comforts must be endured without resistance and with infinite forbearance. This is of course the ideal which can be lived and fulfilled only by saints. But the householder also has no immunity from the moral obligation Purity of conduct must be the exponent of perfectly pure mind.
Truthfulness is also a necessary concomitant of non-injury. Lying and decert are resorted to by those who want to avoid the unpleasant consequences The tyraat must be disarmed not by recourse to physical violence, but by infinite forbearance. Not a word of abuse escape the lips of the saint. Pride and greed are the signs of moral weakness. They are the concomitants of the fear of loss, or the desire to be feared by the less fortunate creatures. This weakness must be transcended by the realzation of the truth that infinite greatness in knowledge, power and self-possession are the natural heritage of the individual soul, and until this consummation is reached, one has every reason, to feel humble and ashamed of the limitations. No pride of possession is legitimate and rational, because material power and wealth have their inevitable limitations. Only one who has risen above greed can be really great and noble. This is in sum and substance the ethical philosophy of the Jasna
The concept of ahimsa 18 not negative. One has no right to take the life of another creature for his selfgratification Life cannot be restored to the victim, and it is nothing short of brutish barbarism to indulge in self-pleasure at the expense of other creatures who have the same charter of rights to live and work out their ultimate destiny. The tyrant is the worst coward, though he poses to be the boldest man. The true hero is he who has mastered the animal in him The last Tirthankara was called Mahavira, the great bero, because he conquered the weaknesses of the flesh Religion
In religion, the Jaina lays emphasis upon self-exertion. One must not depend upon the grace of another for his self-upliftment. Of course, the teachers of humanity, the prophets, seers and the path-finders are entitled to the respect and loyalty of all right-thinking persons This is the reason why Mahavira is worshipped as God These perfected saints show their mercy by only imparting spiritual strength to the weaker souls who are victims of their own past deeds The very contemplation and meditation of perfect teachers of humanity voachsafes grace and spiritual strength. Grace cannot be acquired by sinners unless turn away from the evil course of life.
It 18 nothing but a travesty to think that the Jainas are atheists. Worship of a Personal God is not encouraged in Jaipa religion, because this has the tendency