Jain Journal 1969 07

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

Page 43

JAIN JOURNAL
place, but the immunity of the soul does not welcome it, and it purges away at once. From this view-point Umasvati classifies the influx (asrava) with passions (sakaṣāya) and without passions (akaṣāya).17 Passions catch the inflown matter just as oil-painted body catches the dust;18 similarly, in their absence the inflown kārmic matter gets back, as the dust is dashed away by the smooth surface of the pitcher.
Asrava and bandha, however, depict a constant state of tension in the domain of the soul. The matter bound partially with a certain attribute of the soul forms, in the terminology of neo-psychology, a complex, which is partially subjective and partially objective ; or it is a fusion of a little part from the side of the spirit and a little from the side of the matter, which is naturally dynamic by virtue of the dynamism of both the constituent entities separately. From this dynamic fusion the complex emerges as a psycho-biologic striving, constantly struggling for proper catharsis. In this endeavour the person adopts a particular line and philosophy of his actions. His attitude is always guided positively or negatively by the complexes. Thus by virtue of these complexes the person remains always in a state of mental tension, and in order to neutralize the tension he accumulates further collocations grosser than what constitute a complex. In the Jaina terminology, kārmic molecules (kārmic vargaņās) constitute the complex proper in a subtle form and quasi-kārmic molecules (a-karma varganās) grosser in form and nature constitute the external limbs of the body in consistency with the subtle complexes. Thus this state of internal tension hampers full manifestation of soul's energy. The spontaneous current of consciousness flows thereby preserving innumerable stumbling-blocks in its womb. The bandha is, in this way, preceded by the āsrava of the karmas.
It is, however, not a sufficient elaboration of the nature of bandha. The Jaina has a very clear conception about it, and he looks very confident in its accuracy. The matter inflown in the spiritual domain, he further elaborates, neither comes, nor does it remain in a chaotic form; it form a system-dynamic but artificial in nature. Every vibration of each attribute of the soul has its unique character that attracts the molecules-each of unique nature, befitting only a particular call of the soul.19 The whole of inflown matter, according to its diversified uniqueness, is, in this way, retained up. It assumes various forms in collaboration with the soul's different thought-activities (bhāvas) full of passions ;
17 T.S., 6-4. 18 Ssr., 237, 241. 19 Pky., 65; Ssr., 91.