Jain Journal 2002 01

SR No.: 520145
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication
Publication Year: 2002
Total Pages: 84
Language: English
Classification: Magazine, India_Jain Journal, & India
File Size: 5 MB

Page 29

JAIN JOURNAL: Vol-XXXVI, No. 3 January, 2002
The Nature of the free soul. The sage following the right path ultimately becomes liberated from the cycles of birth and death. Words fail to describe his state.
128
All sounds recoil thence, where speculation has no room, nor does the mind penetrate there. Alone, he is the knower of that which is without support. [The liberated soul] is not long nor short nor round nor triangular nor quadrangular nor circular; he is not black nor blue nor red nor green nor white; neither of good or bad smell; nor bitter nor pungent, nor astringent nor sweet; neither rough nor soft; neither heavy nor light; neither cold nor hot; neither harsh nor smooth; He is without body, without resurrection, without contact [of matter], he is neither feminine nor masculine nor neuter;
He perceives, he knows, but there is no analogy; its essence is without form; there is no condition of the unconditioned.
There is no sound, no colour, no smell, no taste, no touch-that is all. Thus I say (1.5.6).
Conclusion
The tone of authority and lack of ambiguity in the above quotations from the Acaranga are specially to be noted. At the end of every section we find the commanding expression: Thus I say'. Throughout we find the injunction pāsa, 'look', meaning, listen attentively, be an observer of your mental modifications, ponder deeply on what is being said, and practise it in your life.
It is not possible to present here all the spiritual gems stored in the treasure-house of the sacred books of the Jains. A work called Isibhāsiya or Rṣibhāṣita, however, deserves special mention. From the language, style, contents and the composition of its verses it appears to be a work of 3rd or 4th century B.C. and later only to the first book of the Acaranga. In it a number of non-Jain Rishis like Asit-devala, Uddalaka, Angirasa, Nārāyaṇa, Vidura, Aruņa, Nārada and Dvaipayana are respectfully mentioned. Since sectarian bias generally enters into religion after it is organized, this religious catholicity of sibhāṣita is noteworthy and is a definite proof of its antiquity. Its study may help one to get a glimpse of the purest and the earliest form of Jainism, and its relation with Upanisadic thought.
The Acaränga is a holy scripture of the highest order and is the revealer of transcendental truths and eternal universal laws. Every sutra, every fragment of its sentences, every quarter of its verses, must