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ETHICS FOR ASCETICS
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characteristics, who abounds in virtues, who is associated with a family of distinction, who possesses an attractive physical form, who is endowed with mature age, who is bereft of mental insobriety and who is honoured and extolled by other saints. He then besceches him to injtiate."2
A person is thus initiated as an ascetic and with his initiation, he becomes naked, pulls out his hair with his own hands and commences practising the great vows and austerities. Jainism Jays great emphasis on internal purity, as impurity of the soul even in the slightest degree retards its progress. Therefore, the vows and austerities which an ascetic had been observing as a householder are required to be practised with full faith and utmost firmness. He must possess and practise 28 basic qualities or Mula-guņas. They are : The five great vows of 1) Ahimsā, 2) Satya or truthfulness, 3) Asteya or honesty, 4) Brahmacarya or celibacy, 5) Aparigraha or non-possessiveness, the five Samitis (great care) : 6) carefulness in walking, 7) carefulness in speaking, 8) carefulness in receiving alms, 9) carefulness in keeping things on the ground or lifting them, 10) carefulness in the choice of place for answering calls of nature. Then he has to control the five senses of 11) touch, 12) taste, 13) smell, 14) seeing, and 15) hearing. Besides, he has to observe the six essential duties : 16) repentance, 17) renunciation, 18) confession, 19) expiation, 20) non-attachment to the body, 21) contemplation during fixed hours every day regularly. Besides, there are seven external observances : 22) removal of hair with one's own hands periodically, 23) nakedness, 24) no bathing, 25) non-cleansing of teeth, 26) taking food while standing, 27) only one meal a day and 28) sleeping on bare ground.
An ascetic takes precautions not to violate these Mūlaguņas; and in case he violates them, he duly approaches his teacher, reports and confesses the sin, and adopts the lustral course. Negligence is his greatest enemy, so he keeps himself constantly alert. Not only he has no attachments at all, but he is absolutely
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