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Three sensed beings (Treindriya Jiva): Three sensed beings have the senses of touch, taste, and smell, e.g. bugs, lice, white ants, moths, insects in wheat and other grains, centipedes, etc.
Four sensed beings (Chaurindriya Jiva): Four sensed beings have the senses of touch, taste, smell, sight, e.g. scorpions, crickets, spiders, beetles, locusts, flies, etc.
The five sensed beings can be divided into two groups. Those having a mind are called Sanjni Panchendriya and those without a mind are called Asanjni Panchendriya.
Five sensed beings (Panchendriya Jiva): Five sensed beings have all five senses of touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing e.g. human beings, heavenly beings, hellish beings and animals such as cows, lions, fish, birds, etc.
Four Gati (Destinies)
Unless the soul gets rid of its Karma, it will never be free. After death, a living being is reborn into any one of the four destinies. These four destinies or Gatis are:
Hellish Beings:
As a hellish being (living in hell), one has to continuously suffer. Most of the time, hellish beings fight among themselves causing more suffering to one another.
Animal Beings:
As a Tiryancha, (being born as an animal like a lion, elephant, bird, plant, insect, etc.) one is considered to be in a lower form of life
Human Beings:
As human beings, we have been endowed with the ability to think and we can differentiate right from wrong. We can decide what is good for us, and what is not. We also have the capacity to control our mind and activities. We can learn about the virtuous religious principles of Jainism and put them into practice by adopting appropriate vows and restraints. We can also renounce worldly life for the monkhood, which can lead to liberation from worldly life (Samsär).
Heavenly Beings:
As a heavenly being, one has, of course, superior physical capabilities, various supernatural powers, and access to all luxuries. Nevertheless, heavenly life is also impermanent and when it ends, heavenly beings feel very unhappy. They cannot adopt restraints or renounce heavenly life to become monks or nuns. Therefore, there is no liberation in heavenly life. Such beings have to be reborn as human beings in order to attain liberation.
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Neither heavenly nor hellish beings can perform any austerities and therefore cannot attain liberation during that life. Animals possess limited restraint and therefore, they cannot attain liberation directly. The human state of existence is the most preferable because during that life one can use logic to the fullest extent, can observe austerities, can live with restraint, and only through the human phase a Jiva can attain liberation or Moksha.
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Ajiva (Non-Living)
Ajivas have no consciousness, no feelings of happiness or sadness, cannot endeavor itself, do not have the sense of fear even if they face something harmful. Anything that does not have life (consciousness) is Ajiva. Ajiva literally means without a soul and therefore, they cannot accumulate any Karma. They have no birth, death, pleasure, or pain; they are Achetan (inert). Ajivas are of the following five categories:
Pudgalästikäya (Matter) - has nature of joining and disintegrating
Dharmästikäya - Medium of Motion
Adharmästikäya - Medium of Rest
JAIN PHILOSOPHY AND PRACTICE - 2
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