ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 04

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

Page 259

It is stated that karmas, bonded with the empirical soul already, affect the various capacities of j va until their duration lasts when they are automatically flushed out like ripened fruits from trees. The rate of fruition depends upon substance, location, time, mode, birth state and duration etc. Thus the j va experiences these fruits and then dissociates them off (nirjar ). This process will go on forever unless the first process i.e. stoppage of new bonding takes place. However still it can be almost an endless process as the duration of existence of karmas and their strength of each bonding can be extremely large and it may not be possible for the jva to continue the first process during all this time. Further it is necessary that j va experiences the fruits of karmika activation, even though it is miniscule or not felt sensually.
Jain texts however detailed specific activities, like penance, which speed up the ripening process of existing karmas (like we ripen raw mangoes with some chemicals). This is possible as by definition, as detailed in section 4.0 later, karmas have different states and most of them, except the one, can be changed by prescribed ethical practices and penance/ austerities. Tattvarthas tra in its chapter IX details the means of speedy flushing of karmas associated with the empirical soul. Detailed relationship of various species of karmas and their effect in this process of speedy dissociation are detailed in Dhaval and other Karmagranthas.
The karmic fruition has four varieties like the four bonds. For example the durational fruition has two varieties:
1. With effort 2. Natural
Dissociation when total i.e. when all the karmic bondages are eliminated from empirical soul, then the empirical soul attains the status of pure soul / pure soul / Mok a.
4.0 States or Modes of Karmas Jains do not subscribe to Fatalist and Theists theories and give significant commitment to selfreliance. This means that the soul has innate capability or energy (v rya) to influence its own future even though karmas are extremely powerful and affect soul in many ways shown earlier. Thus soul is the material (up d na k ra a) cause of its defilement and obscuration. Its energy attribute actively differentiates the karmika matter into appropriate efficient cause (nimmita k ra a). The energy attribute of the soul can affect the matter karmas in eight different ways (out of ten possible states of karmas marked by * below out of ten states of karmas). Thus changing the state of the karmas can change auspicious and inauspicious results of karmika activation. Refer Bhagavati s tras no 23, 24, 44, 47, 357 and Gomma as ra karmak nda g ths 441-450. This indeed is the cornerstone of the Jain doctrine of karma and pr rtha / self-effort and refuting fatalists (niyativ da) and theists i.e. no supreme power being benevolent for our achievements or luck. Even though we are born with some past karma and associated luck, still we can change our destiny by our efforts.
An empirical soul makes special efforts, like undertaking meritorious activities (e.g. bhakti / devotion, service to others, charity etc that are practiced to enhance the effectiveness of merit (p nya) karmas or to reduce the duration and intensity of de-meritorious (p pa) karmas; penance and observing vows etc to be able to continue performing spiritual purification activities so as to achieve stoppage and dissociation of karmas. Thus the entire path of spiritual purification is based on these capabilities of the empirical soul and different states of the karmas.
There are ten states of karmas, which are identified as:
1. Bandha or bondage, 2. Satt or existence, 3. Udaya or activation / realization, 4. Udra a or premature fruition 5. Udvartana or increasing the duration and/or intensity of the karma, 6. Apavartana or reducing the duration of existence and activity
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STUDY NOTES version 4.0