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The pursuit of self-purification must culminate in realisation of the true nature of the self and according to Jainism the true nature of self is nothing but the state of equanimity or complete self absorption, in which self remains undisturbed by the flickering of aversion and attachment. It is the state of Nir-vikalpa Citta, which can be achieved through the practice of meditation or Yoga, i.e., the controlling of the activity of mind and body.
The word Yoga, in early Jaina literature, has a different sense. Jaina canonical works as well as Umasvati (c. A. D. 375-400) explain it as one of the five causes of bondage. If we go in the history of the meaning of the word Yoga, we find that in Rgveda, and other early works of Vedic literature the word Yoga is used in the sense of connecting or yoking. In this very sense of connecting, the word Yoga is used in Jaina literature also. For Jainas Yoga means which connects the soul with Karmic particles and thus, it is the binding principle. Later on, the term Yoga is adopted in the sense of the activities of mind, body and speech and it is considered that due to these activities that the soul comes into contact with the Karmic particles which, in turn, bind the soul. Though in some early Jaina texts, the word Yoga also means check or control upon the senses. In this very sense the term has also been used in some of the later Upanisadas. Though in Vedic tradition from the time of Panini the term Yoga attained its technical meaning - Yuj-Samadhau and is explained as control or modification of mind (Yogah Cittavrttinirodhah), yet in Jaina tradition it is Haribhadra (c. A. D. 740-785), who for the first time defined the term Yoga in the sense of that which leads to emancipation (mukkhena joyanao jogosavvo dhammavavaro - Yogavimsika, 1).
Generally the term Yoga is equivalent to Jaina term SamyakCaritra but in its wider sense it includes Samyak-Darśana, Samyak
Jainism and its History | 220
| SR No. | 032590 |
| Book Title | Jainism And Its History |
| Original Sutra Author | N/A |
| Author | Sagarmal Jain |
| Publisher | Research Foundation for Jainology |
| Publication Year | 2018 |
| Total Pages | 328 |
| Language | English |
| Classification | Book_English |
| File Size | 34 MB |