Basic Principles Of Jainism

Author(s): Narayan Lal Kachhara
Publisher: Narayan Lal Kachhara

Page 89

Parigraha is infatuate attachment to possessions (murccha parigrahah). The desire to acquire and possess a number of worldly things like lands, house, cattle, gold silver and cash is natural to men and women. This desire should not become insensible. When attachment to such objects of possession becomes uncontrollable or unreasonable, the mind becomes affected by passions of greed and delusion; such mind becomes oblivious to right faith, knowledge and conduct. Infatuation or attachment of any kind becomes a source of evil. In safeguarding property, one is likely to resort to violence and falsehood.
The desire to posses becomes an evil when it is uncontrolled. To be free from such evil, one should voluntarily decide upon the extent of property and wealth that one should acquire and refrain from all activities of acquisition after the target is reached; this is called icchaparinama - vrata.
Amritachandra Suri defines parigraha as attachment; it is the result of delusion or operation of the moha karma. Complete renunciation of all sense of attachment is aparigraha. Parigraha or attachment to possession of property is either external (bahiranga) or internal (antaranga). The former has reference to actual possession of goods or living beings like slaves, servants, cattle etc. Internal parigraha is of fourteen kinds 1) wrong belief (mithyatva), 2) urge for sexual enjoyment with a woman (striveda), 3) with a man (pum-veda), 4) with eunuchs (napumsaka-veda), 5) laughter or cutting jokes (hasya), 6) indulgence (rati), 7) indifference or displeasure (arati), 8) sorrow (soka), 9) fear (bhaya), 10) disgust or hatred (jugupsa), 11) anger (krodha), 12) pride (maana), 13) delusion or deceit (maya), and 14) greed (lobha).
Attachment which is the source of parigraha will be of various kinds and intensity. Possession of female servants and slaves may lead to arousing of sexual passions and consequent desires of indulgence, laughter, and sorrow. Other mental states referred to as internal attachments are attributable to acquisition or protection of various kinds of objects. While greed, deceit and pride are involved in the uncontrollable thirst for accumulation, fear, anger or sorrow are aroused when one has to part with the objects.
The object of the vow is that every householder should impose upon himself restrictions as to the nature and extent of objects (animate and inanimate) of possession so that there could be a check on his greed. Renunciation is the true way of life but it is not possible for everyone to follow it. Hence there is need for self-imposed limits on acquisitions.
Acharya Sri Tulsi has been the modern exponent of these doctrines under the Anuvrata Movement. He has emphasized that the vow of Non-violence can solve not only the personal problems but also international problems of war and peace. All the vices of modern life like lying, black marketing, adulteration, profiteering and permissiveness can be solved by observing the five vows which form the tenets of the Religion of humanity. He has published books and pamphlets to prove that one could find a solution for every problem of human life or for national and international problems by raising the ethical standard of individuals. The problems of
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