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THE JAINA DOCTRINE OF LIBERATION
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A tirthamkara is considered to be a spiritual leader, a reviver, an inspirer, and a founder of the Jaina religious faith. He is a symbol of all that is good and great, noble and pure, moral and virtuous. He does not, in any way, share the responsibility of creating, preserving, supporting and destroying the world. He does not bestow any favour or grace on any individual. He is the embodiment of right knowledge, and he imparts that knowledge to all persons. He is the best of all, and those who know him overcome grief and sorrow.
In the Jaina texts the words jina, arhat and tirthamkara are used as synonyms. They denote a fully enlightened being who has achieved perfect knowledge of supreme truth and is liberated from all passions; he reveals to others the path to liberation.
A tirthamkara or an arhat has one thousand and eight synonyms, e.g. vitaräga, sarvajña, jina, kevalin, buddha, mukta etc. There is a text called Jinasahasranama170 composed by Aśādhara, which mentions 1008 names of Jina. Several of the names listed in this text are already found in the list of Buddha's names in the Mahāvyutpatti. According to a Jaina tradition,11 gods and goddesses perform five great ceremonies when a being (a tirthamkara) is conceived, when he is born, when he takes initiation (diksā), when he attains perfect knowledge, and at the last stage of attaining liberation (nirvāņa). These five great ceremonies are technically known in Jainism as pañca-mahākalyānaka.
In fact arhat, kevali, tirthamkara, buddha and siddha do not differ in their spiritual experience, but in certain outward appearances and circumstances. They all are possessed of supreme knowledge and have attained ultimate goal.172 As Haribhadra points out, since the liberated being is differently called as mukta, buddha or arhat, but ultimately he is the same as the Supreme Self or Lord possessed of supremacy, the difference is only that of terminology. 173
SIDDHA
When the self is completely free from all types of karmic particles, goes to the top of the universe, knows all, perceives all, and enjoys transcendental bliss forever, it is called perfect and liberated being (siddha).174 It possesses eight great attributes, such as perfect know
170. Edited by Hiralal Jain (jñānapitha, Varanasi). 171. Jainendrasiddhantakośa by Jinendra Varņi, Part II, p. 372. 172. See L.M. Joshi. Facets of Jaina Religiousness, pp. 54-58. 173. Yogabindu, 302. 174. Pañcastikāyasāra, 28.
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