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ruin the word panchmahavratdhari through this wrong belief." Instead you may say, 'I have renounced possessions (I am parigraha tyagi) and I am in the process of learning to renounce further. That is not regarded a vow (vrat). The mahavrat of parigraha (the supreme vow of non-possession), is a very high state indeed. 'Dada' is free from all possessions, nonacquisitiveness (aparigrahi); He is completely aparigrahi. He does not have a single parigraha in his mind; not a single parigraha occupies his awareness. He is not even aware of any parigraha missing or present. Whereas these ascetics have only four possessions; two items of clothing, a bowl for food, a rosary and a pair of tongs. And if the bowl were to break, they get very upset. Then you had better watch out! You are in trouble. Or if one of their possessions is not found in its place, they will demand, "Where did it go?" So they have that much parigraha in them; it remains in their awareness. They have only the four items in their possession and yet they remain in their awareness. Whereas despite living amidst abundance of material things, nothing remains in 'our' awareness, and that is why 'we' are considered aparigrahi. Our mahatmas have the awareness of being the pure Soul. Therefore, they take possession and they give their possession and yet they are considered aparigrahi. This is because parigraha is not in their awareness. Their awareness is that of being the pure Soul. One can have either the awareness of the Pure Soul or the worldly life. One can have only one or the other. That is the science.
Many people in the world do not steal overtly. However, the Lord does not consider that as tyagi (renunciation) of the vow of non-stealing. The Lord says, "That is your vow": it is a part of your being (vartey tey vrat). That in which one does not have a feeling of 'I-ness, and where one does not feel, 'I am renouncing' and that which is natural to one, then it is called vrat (vow). Why is it that the Lord directed the anuvrats (minor vows) for the Jains? Because even people in foreign countries
have anuvrat and also different religions here too have anuvrat. However, these vrats do not have the seal of approval by the Vitarag Lords. When people gain the understanding that this vrat is one given by the vitarag Lords, that vrat falls in their experience and conduct and therefore it is called anuvrat and this is acceptable to the vitarag Lords. In reality even other people do not steal either, but this non-stealing is a natural conduct for them. Here one is easily aware that one should not steal, then why is it still considered a minor vow (anuvrat)? He may not steal overtly but he steals a lot through his mind; that is why it is called anuvrat. And what is the definition of mahavrat? It is when there is also no stealing through the mind, body and speech.
Questioner : What if one does not wish to steal but is forced to do so by circumstances?
Dadashri : If one steals driven by circumstances, he is not held accountable spiritually; in karmic sense), but he reaps the consequences for his action on the outside. If one is fortunate enough to have a lot of punyas, then he will not suffer external consequences, otherwise even if that person has never stolen anything in his life, he will get caught the moment he does. The external or overt consequences are proof of one's bad intentions. Never do I hold accountable anyone who steals driven by circumstances. One situation is driven by circumstances whereas the other is driven by one's inherent nature (swabhav). There is a tremendous difference between the two. The one, who is a thief by nature, will always be looking for things and ways to steal and he will steal from wherever he can. All the while he is talking to you, he is constantly checking to see where he can steal. Whereas the one forced to steal due to his circumstances is not guilty. Even a King may have to steal due to circumstances. Did you understand vrat and mahavrat? Wearing white clothes does not signify that one is in compliance with the vrat. Not stealing through the mind, body and speech
