ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 04

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

Page 44

That which is non-violence, self-restraint and austerity is Dharma (spiritual values). It is by virtue of spiritual values that supreme spiritual beneficence results. To him whose mind is (absorbed) in spiritual values, even gods pay homage.
The above verse in essence sums up his philosophy of life. Dharma is the essence of life and those who are constantly absorbed in it are even worshipped by gods. Jain literature describes dharma as the nature of a being (vastu svabh va). We shall discuss these three most constituents of dharma each briefly here.
a. Non-violence / ahi s. Jainism is often described as the religion of non-violence. All its ethics, philosophy and way of life are based on being non violent. Ahis paramo dharma sums it all and this aphorism is generally associated with Jain religion and translated as 'Live and let live the concept of Jain non-violence.
He defined his as giving pain (to one's own self or others) or asking others to do so or admiring those who do so by mind or speech or body singly or by all of them). Absence of his is Ahi si
In Acaranaga, M havra says. All the worthy men of the past, the present and the future say thus, speak thus, declare thus, explain thus, that all breathing, existing, living and sentient creatures should not be slain, nor treated with violence or abused nor tormented' We can see that most of the issues related to terrorism, ecology, slavery etc could be solved to a large extent if we understand and implement this concept of Ahis. Thus this definition of Ahis and of living beings earlier, M hav ra's doctrine becomes universal in nature i.e. of beneficence to all.
Noted c rya Amrta Candra in Purus rthasidhiup ya analyzes and explains the entire gamut of Jain ethics as derivatives of non-violence. The example of the person who wants to throw fire on others to burn them has to first burn his hand. Besides he makes an enemy in the other persons who wish to take revenge all the time. For food, the concept of Ahis (extreme type of vegetarianism for monks) is explained beautifully in the following verse (g th )
Jah dumassa puffesu, bhamaro viyai rasa Na ya puffa kil mei, so ya pi ei appaya,
(Like the bumblebee, who takes the nectar from different flowers in different gardens without hurting or causing damage to the flower; so should the saint take his food from householders)?
b. Self-restraint / sa yama. Self-restraint in Jainism primarily means to gain control over one's senses or be indifferent to sensual pleasures or experiences. Another word used abundantly in Jain literature for self restraint is equanimity (samat ) which means, Not getting disturbed by either pleasant or unpleasant sensual experiences' as pleasure and pain are the two sides of the same coin. Philosophically it means to become introvert and concentrate over your self ( tm ), be detached from all external objects (including your body). The five major vows for ascetics coupled with five attitudes of restraint (samitis) and three attitudes of control (guptis) and their simpler version of five minor vows (a uvrata), four gu avrats (multipliers of vows) and three iks vratas (teaching major vows) constitute the code of conduct for Jains which all are based on non violence and self restraint. Examples of the problems associated with each type of sense organ; e.g. elephant is trapped because of his uncontrolled lust for sex, fish for her taste, mosquito for the light etc. show the importance of self-restraint. Self-restraint enhances the will power and the effectiveness of the individual in focusing on his objective to achieve excellence. To move up the ladder of spiritual purification or worldly pursuits, it is an essential act.
c. Penance / austerities or tapa: To make effort in controlling / suppressing or destroying the passion tainted tendencies of sense organs as per the capabilities of the individual is penance. Penance should not cause tension or distraction in the practitioner; rather it should help the practitioner meditate more on the self. We
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STUDY NOTES version 4.0