Istopadesa The Golden Discourse

Author(s): Vijay K Jain
Publisher: Vikalp

Page 73

Iṣṭopadeśa - The Golden Discourse
bodies are extremely fine and face no impediment anywhere up to the end of the universe.
Each of our senses - touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing - is of two kinds, physical and psychical. The physical sense consists of the accomplishment of the organ itself (nirvṛtti), and its completion by means or instruments (upakarana). The psychical sense consists of attainment of capacity (labdhi), and attention or active consciousness (upayoga). The soul makes use of the physical sense to gain knowledge in the presence of the attainment of capacity. Attentive disposition of the soul for that purpose is the active consciousness. A physical sense has 'life' and meaning only till the time it is complemented by the psychical sense. Only so long as the body is in the company of the soul does it have charm and worth. A corpse generates repugnance; it requires soon to be suitably cast aside as its shelf-life is very little.
Acārya Amitagati, in Yogasāra Prabhṛta, distinguishes thus between the body and the soul:
देह-संहति-संस्थान-गति-जाति-पुरोगमाः ।
विकाराः कर्मजा सर्वे चैतन्येन विवर्जिताः ॥
56
(2-35)
The body, its molecular interfusion, its structure, its state of existence, and its class, are all karma-generated transformations that cause aberrations in the consciousness of the soul.
It is thus clear that the body is karma-generated physical matter. It is home to numerous diseases, and objects like urine, faeces, saliva, mucus, and blood, the sight of which can easily turn one squeamish. Unrestrained sense-indulgence is the cause of many ailments that our body is subjected to, besides of filling it up with stinking refuse.
There can be no objective in life more laudable than soul