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The pleasure of the senses, even if it is caused by merit, is ultimately suffering. True happiness lies in the contemplation born of wisdom. (59) Victory is achieved, and the state of "Jinatva" is attained by conquering the senses. What is considered a source of happiness in the realm of words and other objects, when viewed from the perspective of ultimate truth, is actually a source of suffering, or merely an illusion of happiness. Because of the ripening of merit, deities attain exquisite sensual pleasures, but they do not experience natural happiness; instead, they experience natural suffering. This is because they are enslaved by the pain of their five-sense body, which is like a ghost, and they are drawn to and jump at objects that are pleasing to their minds, like a bird falling into a pit. They appear to be happy because of the accumulation of merit that makes them present at their will, but they are deeply attached to objects and experience the suffering of craving for them, like water in impure blood. Just as a thirsty person who desires to drink bad water suffers by consuming blood, so too do these meritorious beings, who crave and accumulate objects, suffer by experiencing destruction and the annihilation of their souls. Thus, even the merit that arises from good deeds is a source of suffering, which is merely an illusion of happiness. If the happiness of deities, who are highly meritorious, is ultimately suffering, then what can be said of other forms of happiness?
Furthermore, the sensual pleasure that arises from merit is not only an illusion of happiness but also a source of suffering in many ways. It is dependent, accompanied by bondage, fragmented, a cause of bondage, and uneven. Therefore, the pleasure that is obtained through the senses is actually suffering. Because it arises from external causes, which are separate from the soul, this sensual pleasure is dependent. It is accompanied by bondage because of the intense craving for objects, such as sounds, tastes, and so on. It is fragmented because it does not remain constant and unbroken, but is interrupted by the arising of pleasure and pain. It is a cause of bondage because the army of passions, such as attachment, follows it, and the heavy burden of karma accompanies it. It is uneven because it is constantly subject to increase and decrease. Thus, merit, like sin, is proven to be a source of suffering.
"Bound by attachment, accompanied by bondage, fragmented, a cause of bondage, and uneven. That which is obtained through the senses is indeed suffering." - Shri Kundakunda Acharya's Shri Pravachana Sara. And "Those who do not believe that there is no difference between merit and sin are like beings covered by a thick veil, wandering in the vast house of the world." - Shri Amrit Chandra Acharya's Pravachana Sara Commentary, verse 76.
For just as a chain made of iron or a chain made of leather are both chains and therefore a form of bondage, so too are the bonds of merit and the bonds of sin both bonds.