Essence Of Jaina Scriptures

Author(s): Jagdish Prasad Jain
Publisher: Kaveri Books

Page 88

62
THE ESSENCE OF JAINA SCRIPTURES
Moreover, since it is necessary that after giving up evil (papa) activities, one has to adopt good or auspicious psychic attention in order to attain pure psychic attention, Kundakunda stresses that one should not be content with all that one can achieve by good psychic attention. One should, he argues, should strive to make use of all the facilities or the means of good health, noble birth, etc. afforded by punya, to advance further in moral and spiritual development in order to attain durable and lasting peace and happiness. One should not forget that "if anyone, although giving up sinful undertakings and even getting ready to undertake efforts in good conduct, does not get rid of infatuation, etc., then he does not attain the pure self" (PS 79), but moves about, covered with infatuation or deluded view (moha), in the terrible transmigratory existence of the cycle of births and deaths (PS 77).
In Pravachanasara 180, Amrtachandra clarifies that commendable attachment (prashasta raga), i.e. good psychic attention (shubha upayoga), has a purifying effect and is part of purification (vishuddhi). Ashubha (evil), on the other hand, is of the nature of affliction (sanklesha). Good state-of-evolution of psychic disposition, he adds, leads to merit (punya), while ashubha is the cause of sin (papa) (PS 18).
Shuddha and Shubha Upayoga
Pravachanasara 11 states that when the state-of-evolution of the soul or consciousness through dharma (conduct, duty, equanimity, righteousness, moral precepts or piety) is accompanied, conjoined or endowed with pure (shuddha) conscious attentiveness, in the sense of practising self-restraints (sanyam) and austerities (tapa) (PS 14), it leads to the happiness of nirvana (liberation). When it is endowed with good or auspicious (shubha) attentiveness, it leads to the happiness of heaven. Both are adherents of dharma and also followers of the path of liberation.
While shuddha (pure) upayoga is capable of being the direct cause of liberation, shubha upayoga, being conjoined with attachment and therefore somewhat lacking the efficacy of directly accomplishing its objective of liberation is in some respect (kathanchit) productive of contradictory effect (viruddh karya) of bringing about the bondage of heavenly happiness. For instance, whereas massage of hot butter (ghee)