Atma the Self

Author(s): Punyadarshanvijay
Publisher: Sanmarg Prakashan

Page 41

... ĀTMĀ
The Self....
with the sole aim of acquiring pleasurable life and happiness of the 'Body', forgetting or ignoring that there is an 'Immortal Soul' - 'Self' within, quite separate from the ever-changing, disintegrating bodies, that will be destroyed, buried or consumed by fire, once the soul leaves the body, what remains in the grave is only the outer physical shell of the dynamic Soul. Death signifies the departure of the immortal Soul migrating for a new body elsewhere, empty handed-alone.
For acquiring material gains, happiness and greed or to avoid pain and miseries, they indulge in perverse tendencies, even resort to deception, fraud, lies, exploitation, violence, etc. Their daily visits to spiritual centres of worships, practising all the rituals, even fast, penance, confessions and prayers with the aim of acquiring more and more worldly materialistic pleasures, all these are against the principles of Jainism. It is against the 'Tenet'. It is sacrilege.
Even his donations to the charity are for fame or glory. There is merit to a small degree in these but done with the selfish ulterior motives results in disastrous future lives of pains and sufferings. One throws away by misuse of the most precious existence, excellent and extremely rare opportunity of eternal salvation one gets in the endless cycle of wanderings in the ocean of worldly illusion (Samsāra).
The Bhavyātmā - The Joumey:
The Soul who has the capability of salvation, the one whose time is ripe-due (in the last Pudgala Parāvarta Kāla) initially becomes spiritually slightly inclined, towards religion. With gradual increase in self dedication, faith, charity, love, fellow-feelings, compassion, reduces wants, controls desires, etc; results in acquisition of spiritually higher 'Gati' and 'Jāti'. He has reverence for all living beings, visible or invisible, mobile or immobile, regards every soul equal to his own, treats it with utmost care and sympathy, with equanimity (Samvar) and confidence, now he realizes who am I? - A Bhavyātmā