Doctrine of Karman in Jain Philosophy

Author(s): Hiralal R Kapadia
Publisher: Vijibai Jivanlal Panalal Charity Fund Mumbai

Page 76

IV.]
THE DOCTRINE OF KARMAN
3. THE ACTIVITY OF THE SOUL.
Kg. I, 85 b et seq., 98 b et seq., 123 a et seq., 146 a ; II, 44 a et seq., 93 b, 99 a et seq., 102 b; KP. 3 a et seq.; Ps. 4 et seq., 17 et seq., 32 et seq., 88 et seq., 719 et seq. ; Lp. III, 1243 ; Tattv. II, 26, V, 44, VI, 1,7,9 ; Gandhi 57.
The jiva possesses not only the faculty of cognition, but also activity. The Jaina philosophy occupies herein, as well as Nyāya and Vaišeşika, the position of the kriyāvāda, in contrast with most of the other Indian systems, which deny every activity to the soul.
The soul has virya “energy” "infinite capacities of activity”. This innate quality manifests itself only if the jīva is free from all karmanmatter. As long as the vīrya-antarāya-k is operating, the vīrya is, although not completely eliminated, nevertheless exeedingly restricted. It does not manifest itself spontaneously, as is the case with released souls, but it is bound to matter. It needs an organ as “accompanying cause” (sahakārikārana), in order to be able to act; it needs the medium of the body, the organ of speech and manas, in order to manifest itself. This form of vīrya, bound to matter, is called yoga (activity).1
The characteristic mark of the activity is its causing the movement of the particles of the soul.2 It attracts the matter which is necessary for the body, the organ of speech and manas, changes it into the specific essence of these organs and, finally, emits it again. Because it continually conveys matter to the soul, it is the chief cause of the assimilation of new karman; salvation is therefore only possible, if every yoga has disappeared.
The activity of the soul is threefold : it consists in thoughts, words and deeds and is, therefore, produced through the manas, the organ of speech and the body. The two first species of activity are subdivided into 4 groups, the last into 7.
I. mano-yoga, activity of the organ of thinking. It has 4 species :
1. satya "true.” The manas occupies itself with the thinking about a thing that is true.
2. asat ya "untrue.” The manas occupies itself with the thinking about a thing that is not true.
3. satyāmrsā “true and untrue". The manas thinks of something that is partly true, partly untrue. For instance, it thinks : "this
i kāyādikaranayuktasyā 'mano viryapariņatir yoga ucyate (SthānāngasūtraTīkā, Benares 1880, p. 26a).
2 viryam spandanārūpam yathāsambhavam sūkşma-bādara-parispanda-rūpakriyātmakam. (Ps. 721).