________________
I am the Soul
241 Here the question is, how can the quantum of karma, that was redeemed due to the penance, be ascertained? Karma is not a measured or weighed substance, where we can again measure and say - so much is the reduction. Karmas are infinite. How does one know if some of them are reduced? If a little water is removed from the ocean, how does one ascertain the quantum of water left? Can all the water of the vast ocean be measured? Same is the case with the Karmas. Even after a few karmas are redeemed out of the infinite, they still remain infinite. Can you say how many karmas were redeemed?
To solve this mystery, Srimadji has placed a potent word vrtti (@fa ) - disposition, in the gatha. He says - MEU 1946.9 7 gioj; the vrtti has to be recognised. Alongwith the Karma, there are two types of vrttis flowing in the Atma. One is natural disposition (Tanufaa qfar ) and the other is the affected disposition ( duifaa qfar ).
Realising the true form of both the vrttis, dispelling the affected vrtti and awakening the natural vrtti, is all that there is to the pursuit of dharma. Penance becomes only a part of it.
Now, one who is conscious of the vrtti, and performs a penance for that very reason, if he has to fast even for one day, he will sit aside on the previous day and think, “What dispels the affected vrtti is a vrata. I should be observing such a vrata. Then which is the vrtti within me that has been bothering me?” Presume that there is passion within. Passionate disposition is of course, detrimental to others but is more so for oneself. “My passionate disposition bothers me a lot. It taints my thoughts. It lowers the class of my speech. It goads me into doing things that are improper. I get disturbed on seeing beauty. My heart starts pounding when I hear passionate words or see passionate scenes. It bothers me a lot. Now I do not want this disposition. Tomorrow I shall fast and try to remain close to my soul. I want to reside in my true dispassionate inner form and observe my disposition at close quarters. I want to wage a spiritual war against it. I want to vanquish it. I want to uproot it. It is there because it is rooted
Jain Educationa International
For Personal and Private Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
