Jain Journal 1995 10

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

Page 39

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JAIN JOURNAL : Vol-XXX, No. 2. October 1995
existence, i. e. continued cycle of births and deaths. 46 Hence in Buddha's first sermon47 it is proclaimed that craving must be got rid of, if nibbāna or enlightement is to be attained. Buddhist ethics relate the characteristic condition of humanity (suffering, unease, ill etc. caused by the basic evil of desire) to the recognized goal of Buddhist ethics thus favours those attitudes and kinds of behaviours which help humanity towards ultimate goal of transcendental enlightenment.
Such' attitudes and behaviours are set in the 8-fold path (atthāngika - magga), a schematic description of the Buddhist life. Earlier texts 48 give a three fold scheme of life namely, wisdom (samadhiprajñā or pannā),49 Morality (sila) and concentration or meditation50 (samādhi) : "great is the fruit, great the advantage, of meditation, when surrounded by morality; great the advantage, great the fruit of wisdom, when surrounded by meditation". Each of these aspects are sub-divided : the initial faith which ultimately becomes wisdom, into right understanding and right thought ; morality into right speech, right bodily action and right livelihood ; meditation into right (spiritual) effort, right mindfulness and right concentration.
The outcome of practice of this 8-fold way is held to be the attainment of right mental attitudes become direct and immediate, where formerly they were based on faith (saddhā) i. e. understanding the world and human existence in tems of the 4 Noble Truths derived from Buddha. Thus the tiniest state of enlightenment. This state of enlightenment, called Nirvāņa, litierally means 'blowing off. It refers to blowing off passions or defilements i. e., morally defiling passions such as greed etc.
CONCLUSION
Both Jaina as well as Buddhist traditions speak about the growth
46. Emotions are the principal condition for Karman. It is by the dominating
influence of emotions that karman is able to present a newfile. Emotions are the root of the fact of continued existence. Where emotions are
exhausted, the world ceases to exist. 47. Sutta-Nipāta, V. 48. Like Sutta-Nipāta and Mahāparinibbana-Sutta I. 12. 49. The unrest of dhammas are resolved through prajñā or wisdom. An
ordinary man and a saint are two representatives of two distinct combinations of dhammas, the former of Avidyā and the latter of Prajña. The knowledge and the discernment of dhammas in their nature and
characteristics lead the worldlings to Final Liberation. 50. Atthasālini, III. 282 defines concentration as 'absence of distraction'
(avisāhara). 'non-confusedness' (avikkhepa) and 'non-dividedness' (avisāhatamanasata) because concentration scatters and reverses the