Anandrushi Abhinandan Granth

Author(s): Vijaymuni Shastri, Devendramuni
Publisher: Maharashtra Sthanakwasi Jain Sangh Puna

Page 784

Human Nature and Destiny of Jainism
33
Upanişads. Their final attempts in determining the reality and Moksa are almost the same to some extents. We witness certain glimpses of negative descriptions of in scattered forms. Ācārangasūtra declares : All sounds recoil thence where speculations have no room; nor does the mind penetrate there. The Saint knows well that which is without support.66 Besides this, the liberated sage has positive descriptions too. Prof. Radhakrishnan rightly observes, "Though not quite consistently, positive descriptions are given of the freed soul as that it has infinite consciousness, pure understanding, absolute freedom and eternal bliss.67 It can perceive and know, since perception and knowledge are functions of the soul and not of the sense organs. The freed soul has a beginning but no end, while a bound soul has a beginning but has no end. These freed souls enjoy a kind of interpenetrating existence on account of their oneness of status. Their soul substance has a special power by which an infinity of souls could exist without mutual exclusion. The identity of the saved is determined by the living rhythm retaining the form of the last physical life and by the knowledge of the past. This ideal of freedom is manifested in the most perfect degree in the lives of the twenty-four Jain tirthankaras."68
Now, let us give a critical estimate to the problems which lie unsolved in Jaina philosophy regarding soul and its destiny, bondage and liberation. The approach of Jainism towards life and its problems seems at first sight, realistic one, and consequently the spirit alongwith matter are real. However, they hold that bondage is real too. Fortunately our everyday experience is a proof to this fact. But Jaina thinkers forget this hard and fast assumption that if a thing is real then it cannot be negated. Under this metaphysical error liberation is not possible. In this respect, under ultimate analysis, both cannot be regarded as real because truth cannot be refuted. What is removed or concealed is not truth about anything on being liberated, but one's own nescience or avidyā. And this nescience lies in the way of not knowing the nature of our true self. "The change in the attainment of liberation is only in our thought and not in the world outside. Thus, the transition from bondage to liberation is only epistemological and not ontological. What is required is only transvaluation of phenomena and not transformation of it." To be frank on this topic it can be said openly without any hesitation that no religions or metathysical system of Indian philosophy can determine the exact time, exact moment ; regarding the origin of nescience or avidyā i.e. bondage. If the soul is beginningless, then naturally merit and demerit which surround it might be beginningless too. Here the objection is not against the origin of ignorance or bondage but about the nature of bondage. Bondage can, in no case, be regarded as real because the nature of reality is as Bradley rightly says, “Ultimate Reality is such that it does not contradict itself.69 Then, what is negated is only one's own ignorance which itself is not real ultimately. This type of ignorance can be about the nature of one's own self, nature of the world, nature of the reality. Thus, transition from bondage to liberation is only in the world of knowledge.
Pluralism of soul in Jainism creates a large number of philosophical
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