Introduction to Jaina Sadhna

Author(s): Sagarmal Jain
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

Page 27

20: An Introduction to Jaina Sādhanā
and foe when it acts unrighteously. An unconquered self is its own enemy, unconquered passions and sense organs of the self are its own enemy. Oh monk ! having conquered them I move righteously.
In another Jaina text Aurapaccākkhāṇam it is mentioned: Ego me sasado appā, nāṇadaṁsaṇasamjuo Sesā me bahirā bhāvā, savve samjogalakkhaṇā. Samjogamūlā jiveṇam, pattā dukkhaparamparā Tamhā samjogasambandhaṁ, savvabhāveṇa vosire. (26.27)
That the soul endowed with knowledge and perception is alone permanently mine, all other objects are alien to it. All the serious miseries suffered by a self are born of the individual's sense of 'mine' or attachment towards the alien associations and so it is imperative to abandon completely the sense of 'mine' with regards to the external objects. In short, according to Jainism ceasing from identifying oneself with the objects not belonging to the soul, is the starting point of spiritual practice (sādhanā ). Non-alignment with material object is the prerequisite for self-realisation. According to it, renouncement of attachment is the same as the emergence of a balanced view of even-sightedness (samadṛṣṭitā ).
The reason for which Jainism regards abandonment of 'sense of mine' or of attachment as the only means for selfrealisation is that so long as there is attachment in a man, his attention is fixed not on self or soul, but on not-self, i.e., material objects. Materialism thrives on this object-oriented attitude or indulgence in the not-self. According to the Jaina philosophers, the identification with the not-self and regarding worldly object as a source of happiness or unhappiness, are the hallmarks of materialism. This is considered as a wrong view-point. The