________________
16 ]
[The Six Aras
man's life, in this Ara, is three Palyopamas. The indescribable beauty of nature and country side, climate of the land, and fruit diet produce so great and wonderful an effect on mother's milk that the baby, who is suckled up on it, is able to walk, eat and drink, and express his feelings very well within only fortynine days from his birth. After that, he does not need the help or guidance of his parents. In the first week of his birth, he sucks the thumbs of his own hands. In the second week, he begins to walk on all fours. In the third week he learns to speak, and in the fourth week he can stand up on his legs. In the fifth week he begins to walk, while in the sixth he learns to express his feelings, understand things and manners and ways of living. In the seventh week he can comprehend every thing like a young man. In this Ara, the mother gives birth to a pair of children when only six months in the life of the parents are left. One of the twins is a boy and the other a girl. The husband and wife indulge in copulation only for a short time at the end of their life; that is why the population is so thin in this period. In the first place, the pious intentions and good character of people are to some extent responsible for making them passionless; secondly, the influence of company and neighbourhood, diet of fruit, absence of wants, superiority of climate and peculiarity of nature help in making the mind of man more peaceful and more restrained.
Now we will try to show how this scantiness of popula tion in the Sukhama-Sukhama Ara can be accounted for in all its various aspects by modern science.
The readers might be aware that according to the census of 1921, the population of India was about 32 crores. Bu
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org