Doctrine of Liberation in Indian Religion

Author(s): Shivkumarmuni
Publisher: Munshiram Manoharlal Publisher's Pvt Ltd New Delhi

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THE DOCTRINE OF LIBERATION IN INDIAN RELIGIONS
material karmas, it neither accepts nor rejects them, although it is
always present in the midst of matter”.55 This and such other statements of Kundakunda, however, are to be understood in the light of his exposition of vyavahāra-naya and niscaya-naya.
It would not be incorrect to say that the freedom of the will of an individual self is tacitly accepted in Jaina philosophy. The self is, therefore, the maker of its own destiny. It has been declared in the Uttarādhyayanasūtra :
"My own self is the river Vaitarani, my own self the Salamāli tree; my own self is the miraculous cow Kamaduh, my own self the park Nandana. My own self is the doer and undoer of misery and happiness, my own self, friend and foe, according as I act well or badly."56
This notion of moral responsibility of an individual self for each of its actions belongs to the common heritage of Indian religious thought. A remarkable parallel is found in the following verse of the Pali Dhammapada :
"Self is the master of self, who else would be the master ? With self well subdued, one finds a master, difficult to find."57
In yet another verse we find the doctrine of self-reliance expounded in no uncertain words :
"Rouse thyself by thyself, examine thyself by thyself; thus self-guarded and mindful, wilt thou, O monk, live happily.''58
A similar teaching is found in the Bhagavadgita :
“Raise yourself by yourself; do not allow yourself to fall. For self alone is the friend of self, self alone is the foe of self”,53
That the ultimate release is obtained by the self through its own efforts, is taught in the Jaina Canon at several places.
"The body is the boat, the self is the boatman, and the realm of transmigration (samsāra) is the ocean which is crossed by the great sages”, 60
s
55. Pravacanasāra, II. 92-93. 56. Utrarādhyayanasūtra, XX, 36-37; SBE, vol. XLV, p. 104. 57. Dhammapada, verse 160. 58. Ibid., verse 379. 59. Bhagavadgitā, VI. 5. 60. Uttarădhyayanasūtra, XXIII. 73.