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Mahavir's unflinching' faith in the strength of the soul, which is freed from the karman body and has returned to its pure nature, is running in the thinking nerves and veins of this country. 'The illumined soul cannot be compared with any other resource. On earth, above earth and below earth / this is the most powerful resource.' - Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, President of India.
NINE TATTVAS Feeling the thrust of soul or the knowledge of its distinctness from the body is not easily done. For this, we have to assimilate the tattvas - Jiv (soul), Ajiv or Pudgal (nonliving or matter), Asrav (inflow of karmas), Bandh (bondage), Paap-punya (demerit-merit), Samvar (blocking inflow of karmas), Nirjara (shedding of karmas) and Moksha (liberation). And take the help of Dev (Arihant, Siddha), Scriptures (shastra) and Guru (Acarya, Upadhyay and Sadhu). How does the body-centred vision travel further? We get the body for a certain period, whereas the soul has generally to go through the ebb and tide of Time. The soul of Mahavir became Mahavir only after passing through many births.
Mahavir believes in multiplicity. The souls are infinite in number and independent. Each soul is one complete whole in itself, is eternal immortal and retains its individuality even in liberation. It is all pervading and in the embodied state is of the same size that it happens to occupy. The souls of an ant and that of an elephant are equal. In its pure condition, it is without sense qualities, is all the quality of sentience, is beyond inferential mark and has no definable shape. All souls are equal and alike in their inherent nature, essential qualities, intrinsic characteristics and potentialities; they are capable of attaining liberation. The unity of soul with body is life. But this unity is a mark of continuity of karman body with soul. The soul liberated from the bondage of karma also gets liberated from transmigration. It is the Everest of developed joy, bliss, power and consciousness. It remains in the subtle form. It does not merge into any thing. This is its liberation. This is its Nirvana (salvation).
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