Essence of Jainism

Author(s): Jyoti Prasad Jain
Publisher: Shuchita Publication Varanasi

Page 13

by or suffer from the consequences.
Man
is the measure of all things. He is the master of his own destiny and can make it or mar it accordingly as he wills. The entire emphasis is on the development of strong willpower and conscious personal effort in order to thwart and annihilate the various adverse influences, the forces of the Karma, and in this way to effect spiritual evolution, leading to the ultimate goal, the very godhood, whence is no return to the samsara. This transformation of man into god is the realistic end of religious pursuit in Jainism for a sincere aspirant of the Truth.
In order to work out this spiritual evolution, it is necessary to comprehend properly the seven Tattvas or essentials :
1. Soul, which is the principal and, in its present embodied state, needs and seeks liberation.
2. Matter, the basis of all worldly existence, which keeps the individual
-
12
B