Jain Journal 1968 01

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 54

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JAIN JOURNAL
quintessence of character is carried over by the ego in two inner bodies, the kārmaņa and the taijasa, which, taken together, have been termed 'soul by St. Paul.
That there should be some such thing as transmigration of souls is put beyond the possibility of doubt by the differences of individual character, which the thesis of heredity is unable to explain. As Hoffding says, there must be a substratum to be acted upon by variations. Immortal by nature, the soul must have had a past, just as surely as it will have a future. When we look at the formation of the child in the parent's body, we are led to the same conclusion : for there is no one to make it unless it makes itself. Karma is discovered to be the determining factor of the differences of form, understanding and circumstances, and furnishes a much more satisfactory explanation of the misery and unhappiness, of which there is so much in the world, than the hypothesis of the creation of each soul there and then at the time of conception.
So far as the world, the third subject of the metaphysical problem, is concerned, investigation into its nature leads us to the conclusion that it is without a beginning and without an end in time, though certain portions of it may undergo periodical destruction and reformation from natural causes.
It is not only possible for man to become God, but he is already none other than God, in potency. The amelioration of his condition is, therefore, a matter which exclusively rests with him; and the power which enables him to attain this end is his own indomitable will. Investigation shows that the soul is in bondage of its karmas, the chains of which are composed of a very subtle kind of matter. Hence, the tearing asunder of the veils of matter which go to obscure the inner spiritual illumination, is clearly the means for the realisation of the Self as a being all-knowing, all-powerful and naturally blissful. Now, since these veils of matter are inaccessible to human hands, and may not be destroyed by hand-made weapons of destruction, the only power which can tear them asunder is will. But the very first requisite for self-exertion is faith, since people only live up to their beliefs and seldom act in opposition to them. Hence, Right Faith, Right Knowledge and Right Conduct, that is, the doing of the right thing at the right moment, are the true means of liberation.
Different religions have pointed out, more or less, the same methods of realisation, though some lay stress on jñāna, some on bhakti, and so forth. But the difference is only a seeming one; in reality, they all lead