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prevailing in India and it cannot be applied to the areas of extreme temperatures. One in the temperate region cannot afford to go without adequate protection in winter. Moreover, it is not practicable to go without clothes at places, where there are strong social sentiments or legal strictures against that. It is also noteworthy that Shrimad has used here the term "Najnabhäv (sense of nudity) not Najnatä (nakedness). As such, every person belonging to a particular spiritual level need not remain unclad. As a matter of fact, insisting on remaining unclad or on any other mode constitutes a knot, an entanglement, which needs to be avoided. One has therefore to take into consideration all the relevant aspects and decide whether to remain clad or unclad.
Now let us consider the question of taking bath. The monastic people do not undertake any activity, which would make them dirty and hence should justify taking bath. Moreover, they belong to a state, where bodily instinct has ceased to prevail. Similarly they are not supposed to take sticky, enriched food that would necessitate cleaning of teeth.
A spiritual aspirant needs to remain detached towards the body. In order to avert the attachment for the same, he would better stay unclad, shaven-headed and without bath or cleaning of teeth. In the case of body becoming dirty or mouth getting sticky one may resort to some mode of cleaning. On the other hand, hairstyle, hair-dye, manicure and other make up, which are meant for beautification and attractiveness, need to be avoided. Refraining therefrom is necessary for averting the physical entanglement.
The last line of the stanza states that a disentangled person should be observing the material as well as the modal restraints. The material restraint consists of averting the external entanglements, while modal one consists of remaining free from internal ones like indulgence in defiling instincts, particularly of craving and aversion. How to overcome the same has been indicated in the previous four stanzas. A spiritual aspirant should thus stay free from all sorts of the entanglements.
10) Shatru Mitra Pratye Varte Samdarshitä, Män Amäne Varte Te Ja Swabhäv Jo; Jivit Ke Marane Nahin Nyoonädhikatä, Bhav Mokshe Pan Shuddha Varte Sambhäv Jo. Apoorva.
Let there prevail equanimity towards friends or foes and for respect or disrespect; let there be no concern for life or death, and let pure equanimity prevail irrespective of the embodied or the liberated state. When?
This stanza deals with maintaining equanimity in all the circumstances. In our life we come across different types of people and various types of situations. If we like someone or perceive a situation as favorable, we develop attachment for the same. If we dislike the person or perceive the situation as unfavorable, we resent that. We do not remember that such attachment and resentment lead to acquisition of Karma, which leads to the continuing cycle of birth and death. That can be avoided by observing equanimity. Therefore the main objective of the spiritual pursuit is to gain equanimity. The perfect equanimity itself amounts to liberation.
As a spiritual aspirant continues to overcome defilement, he stops perceiving anyone as a friend or a foe. By virtue of the right perception, he realizes that every soul is imbibed with infinite perception and infinite enlightenment. The only difference is of manifestation. Some have manifested them fully and the others partially. As such, he cultivates regard for everyone. Eventually he can develop it to a stage, where he forsakes his likes and dislikes altogether. This is evidenced by the life of Lord Pärshwanath. During his spiritual pursuit while he was meditating, Meghmäli, the god of rain, tried to drown him by causing torrential rainfall, while Dharanendra, the head of snake world, protected him by lifting him and holding the fang over his head. The Lord, however, did not have any sense of pleasure or displeasure for either of them. Neither did he admire Dharanendra for his helpful attitude nor did he despise Meghmäli for causing the affliction. Knowing that every one behaves according to his nature, he maintained equanimity towards
both.
The concept of equanimity is at times misunderstood. Some people treat it as equality of all. That is wrong. Truthful and liars, meritorious and sinners, virtuous and vicious, straightforward and crooked, generous and selfish, cannot be at par. Even an enlightened being does not equate them. He knows wickedness as evil and wholesome attitude as helpful and desirable. We are, however, prone to treat the wicked with despise, while the enlightened treats them with affectionate compassion. He feels sad that the wicked people do not
