________________
Bhavhimsa Internal harmful intentions
This world is not a lie, but people have a wrong understanding of it. Many say God is up there, but that is not so. People's understanding is incorrect which is precisely why 'we' have to say it candidly that there is not a parmanu in this world through which 'we' have not traversed. Living within as well as outside this universe, 'we' are saying things exactly as 'we' see them and exactly as they are. Furthermore, 'we' assure you that there is no God up there. People have needlessly created a mess by saying 'the one up there...the one up there.' Everything you do with the belief that God is up there, will be in vain. All your prayers, good intentions and time will be wasted. There is no one up there to listen to your message; your message reaches no one. If you talk to Him where he truly is; which is within you, then one day your request will reach Him. Otherwise, you can also worship Him in an idol, because you can see the idol directly in front of you. It does not matter if it is made of stone but people accept it. You may not believe in it, but people have accepted it; they have instilled their living bhaav (chaitanya bhaav, pratishtha) in that idol. The belief that God is up there is a wrong belief; it is a wrong address. If you mail a letter without addressing it correctly, whom will it reach? Look at the one within. God is within you and nowhere else. Let me give you the correct address of God: 'God is in every creature, whether visible or invisible.
If you see God in every creature, then you will not have an inner intent of hurting any living being and so you will be saved from bhaav himsa (intent of violence; inner intent that binds karma of violence). People are constantly doing bhaav
Aptavani-2
himsa. What are anger, pride, deceit and greed? They are all bhaav himsa and this is precisely where the Lord has said for us to become ahimsak (non-violent). However, people set out to protect cows and elephants from violence. Who are you to save the elephants? And who really gives these animals life? What egoism in thinking you are saving the life of the animals!
314
One should never say, "I am going to kill these bed bugs." Get rid of any intent you have of killing any bugs, otherwise you are committing himsa against your very own self. The bugs will die when it is time for them to. Who has the right to kill them? Only the one who can create them! The Lord says, "Whatever you can create, you may destroy. I do not interfere when you are destroying what you have created. Therefore do not kill anything." It is so easy to understand such simple language, is it not? It is not possible to create a single bed bug, even if you want to. And yet, these fools do whatever they please; they kill so many bugs! They take so many lives.
Power of intent
Except for intentions (bhaav), nothing new happens in this life. Having created the intent to hurt or kill in countless past lives, whatever bugs that are meant to die, will die at the hands of the one who has made such intent. Nothing else happens. When it is time for the bugs to die, who gets to kill them? It is he who had made the intent to kill. No one has a right to kill, but is there not a time for every bug to die? Some bed bugs live for seventeen days, some for three months and some live for five months. Is there not a time for all to die? So when it is time for the bugs to die, they will encounter Chandubhai because Chandubhai had decided (in his past life), 'I want to kill all the bugs. The Jains do not believe in himsa (violence) and hence their intent is 'not to kill' and so it will not fall upon them to become instrumental in the death of the bugs. This is all there is to it. There is no need for one to have the ego of being non
