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Beyond the Endless Dusts
[Dedicated to SRI HARAKHCHAND BOTHRA]
Leona Smith Kremser
Caravans of the living And their goods in due season Pass into the endless dusts.
Thereof speak Jaina teachers : "Living and non-living alike, Neither are created nor destroyed, Only their substances modify, Pot to shards, dust and again clay, Person to birth, death and rebirth -Cycle without beginning, And for the non-living without end, For therein is no eternal entity.
Whilst in all living beings are Souls, pure, individual and eternal, In plant, animal and human alike. Soul-bondage to the wailing body may End by non-attachment,
For attachment is cause of rebirth, And rebirth is effect of attachment. Yet, everyday view-point sees Living beings cleaving to body-life -Ultimate attachment in conflict With spiritual progress.
How many lifetimes of thorns Till the foot sets to the path Bequeathed by the Tirthankaras ? -Path with venerable guidepost ...Non-violence.
Truth-seeker follows step-by-step In Jaina restraint and penance Toward harmless thought, word and deed, Till the potential of purity
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