ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 04

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

Page 256

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The control on activities (mental, speech or physical) leads to lesser bonding It is only actual actions, which leads to bonding other factors are just instrumental. The activities of ascetics performed vigilantly may not lead to rebirth. All activities of laity are long-time bonding ones.
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The scriptures mention 25 kinds of activities, which may be incidental, natural, induced due to ignorance or thought that may bind karmas.
Similarly there is theory of functional consciousness, which states When entities or sensual perceptions are in proximity, they create passions, which are a form of consciousness and which, then, lead to bondage'. Recently Kaccara, Nahata and Mardia have developed bonding theories based on formation of molecules and chemical compounds.
3.1.2 Nature of Karmic Bond There are different opinions about factors in karmic influx and bonding, which are simultaneous processes. Their description is scattered in many places under different contexts and, hence, they vary from 1 to 28. Dhaval favors four causes with 57 sub-varieties. Some other texts like Tattv rthas tra follow five causes with 72 varieties. In fact, ignorance, different kinds of volitions and wrongness are the basic causes. On detailed analysis we find that almost all kinds of internal and external activities lead to bondage. The degree of bondage depends upon their nature and intensity. The scriptures give specific details under spiritual stages. One must see that all the causes are extensions of only one causes or wrongness. The j va or empirical soul is taken as karma bonded since beginningless time.
According to the moral value of their activity - and corresponding also to the kind of karma, which they bind - the j vas can be divided into six categories. The first is characterized by the possession of the greatest sinful, while each following one improves and the last is finally standing in the state of highest attainable purity. The attainment to one of these six classes shows itself in the soul externally; the soul, which is free by nature from all distinctions perceptible by the senses, receives colour, taste, smell and touch. In short it becomes a defined type, which distinguishes from the other souls although not recognizable by the senses. This type of soul is called le y . The different le y s are distinguished according to different colours, which they give to the soul namely black, dark blue, gray, fiery red, lotus pink and white. Le y is considered to be a product of passions (ka yas) or activity called yoga in the Jain texts or a product (parima) of 8 karmas by different authors.
3.1.2.1 kinds of Bondage Dhaval and other karma texts have classified karma bonds in many ways including the four major divisions under different heads namely:
Space point bond prade aba dha Species bond prak tibandha Intensity bond rasa or anubh gabandha
Duration bondsthiti bandha
The nature of these bonds has been discussed earlier in section 2.0. The spiritual stages of purification, the different species of karma and their cause and effect are detailed in Dhaval and other karma texts.
3.1.3 The Causes of Bonding
The penetration of matter particle into the soul and its transformation into karma proceeds through the activity (yoga) of the j va. The species of the karma into which the matter can be transformed is,
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STUDY NOTES version 4.0