________________
Structure etc. : According to Jainism, the heavenly beings have karmic sharira, taijasa sharira and vaikriya sharira. 19 These devas do not have bones, blood, and hence there is no decay or damage to their body. They can have the form according to the will which is imperceptible to the common man. The vaikriya type of body is produced in the case of birth by way of sudden manifestation.20 In Tattvartha Sutra we find that, “It is also produced through labdhi or super ordinary power”.21 Devas are masculine or feminine but not neuter.22 The birth of celestial beings is by instantaneous rise on special beds (box beds).23 These beings take the kavala or roma ahara. 24 Respiration occurs at fixed intervals.25 Thus, devas are magnificent and have some super human powers.
Devas are of four types namely, the Residential (Bhavanavasi), the Peripatetic (Vyantara), the Steller (Jyotishka) and the Heavenly-spheres beings (Vaimanika).26 Now we shall discuss the four celestial beings in brief :
1. Residential Beings: The Residential beings (Bhavanapati Devas) live in a palace (bhavan) in Ratnaprabha earth.27
In Uvavaiyam Suttam we observe that with divine colour, divine smell, divine shape, divine touch, divine body frame, divine structure, divine fortune, divine glow, divine radiance, divine grace, divine decorations, divine brilliance and divine tinge, brightening and beautifying all the directions, they came down to Shraman Bhagavan Mahavira and paid homage and obeisance to him.28
Bhavanavasi-nikaya consists of the ten types of Devas viz., (i) Asurakumara, (ii) Nagakumara, (iii) Vidyutkumara, (iv) Suparnakumara, (vi) Agnikumara, (vi) Vatakumara, (vii) Stanitakumara, (viii) Udadhikumara, (ix) Dvipakumara, and (x) Dikkumara.29 The symbols of these Residential Gods are chudamani, serpent, thunder-bolt, garuda, jar, horse, pair of bowls, crocodile, lion, elephant respectively.30 All the Bhavanpati
THE CONCEPT OF DIVINITY IN JAINISM
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
