I am The Soul Part 01

Author(s): Tarulatabai Mahasati
Publisher: Shri Gujarati Shwetambar Sthanakwasi Jain Association

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I am the Soul
least affected by the death of thousands who die across the world everyday. Why? Attachment and aversion are more dangerous than death itself. To break this hold of attachment and aversion it is essential to understand the nature of both the animate and the inanimate. One who grasps this will be free from all sorrow.
After having stated this in the benediction, Srimadji goes on to tell us the purpose of the Shastra -
वर्तमान आ काळमां, मोक्षमार्ग बहु लोप,
faalcar 34TCHIA, HTG 3 mo.....? What do we consider as the present? The time when Srimadji lived or the scientific age today? There are two ways of looking at this. One is to know that the fourth ara has ended and the fifth is on, and that in this ara it is said that no one can achieve liberation from Bharat Kshetra (region).
The other way is to look at the time when Srimadji lived. Srimadji would have noticed how the people about him were engrossed in the pursuit of the inanimate and indulging their senses. Imagine India as it were a hundred years ago. It was a period of Kings and Landlords who lived wallowing in luxury, pleasures and power. There were some among them who knew about the path of liberation, but never wanted to follow it.
Today after a hundred years, where in time do we stand? In these hundred years, man has unraveled the mysteries in the depths of the Earth, discovered the secrets of the sky and space, and invented the atomic-nuclear bombs. In the pursuit of power, mutual trust was lost and now even after two world wars man lives under the constant threat of a third world war. It is surprising that despite acquiring the means to physical and worldly pleasures, man is lacking peace and contentment. There is cinema and TV to please the eyes, air-coolers and air-conditioners to ward off heat; automobiles, so one need not walk. In Kabir's words, one who needs only two yards of land, has palatial bungalows. Yet, is he happy? Is there contentment? No. Just