Jain Journal 1972 04

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

Page 17

The doctrines of Jainism can be broadly divided into three categories : Metaphysics, Philosophy and Ethics.
METAPHYSICS
Navatatvas (The Nine Cardinal Principles):
The principal aim of Jainism is the attainment of the freedom of the soul by its perfect evolution. But it is not possible to achieve the evolution of the soul unless one knows what the soul is, what its intrinsic attributes are, how it has been compelled to bear the agonies of existence in its wheeling from birth to birth, and by what means it can be freed from this wheeling. And in order to know all this, one has also to acquire knowledge of the constituent elements of this world, their mutual relations, the why and the how of the soul's bondage, and the means of its release. All this knowledge is classified as nine tatvas or cardinal principles in Jainism. They are : (1) Jiva or conscious soul, (2) Ajīva or unconscious non-soul, (3) Asrava or the influx of karma, (4) Bandha or bondage, (5) Punya or virtue, (6) Papa or sin, (7) Samvara or arrest of the influx of karma, (8) Nirjarā or exhaustion of karma, and (9) Mokşa or liberation. The two principles of jiva and ajiva comprise all the objects of the world. The other seven principles explain how the jiva or conscious soul is bound by ajiva or unconscious matter, what is the nature of the bonds, and by what means they can be got rid of.
Jiva (Soul) :
The first principle is jiva. The essential attribute of the jiva is consciousness, in other words, that which possesses consciousness is jiva. Infinite knowledge, vision, power, bliss. etc., are also the attributes of jiva. Each jiva has an independent existence, and the number of the jivas is infinite. The jīvas are of two kinds : sansāri or mundane and mukta or liberated. Those that have attained to nirvāņa by exhausting all karmas are called mukta (free) or siddha (perfect). They are also called liberated souls. They are endowed with infinite knowledge, infinite vision, infinite power, and infinite bliss; and they never come back to this mortal world. The supreme and ultimate goal of every terrestial being is to attain liberation. The jiva is also termed jivāstikāya.
Sansāri jivas are those that have been passing through birth and death and have not yet attained liberation. They are born as devas (gods), mānavas (men), nārakas (beings of hell) and tiryakas (birds, beasts, insects, vegetation, etc.) and when the sands of their lives run out, they