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Celebrating Jain Society of Houston Pratishtha Mahotsav 1995
fourteen stages of spiritual development). This state is symbolized by splinter-thin wood which bends easily and spontaneously. One is reborn a celestial being after death in this state of passion. The span of this passion is one month.
We get karma because of our ego. What happens is that the body has ten praan; five senses, mind, speech, body, inhale-exhale and life span (aayushya). Every one is doing its own actions (kriya). Our ego reacts to this action (kriyaa) called reaction or pratikriya; this results into anger, deceit etc. This can be stated with one example:
A wife makes tea for her husband with no sugar (action or kriya); the husband tastes it and responds, "Oh! there is no sugar, how come you forgot that I take two spoons of sugar" (reactionpratikriya). The wife replies, "Why you are getting so mad? You could have told me to give you sugar or got yourself more sugar." (reaction). The husband gets up angrily and walks out without tea.
Scriptural Examples of Ego:
Pride of Bahuball: The story of the second son of Bhagwan Rishabhdev is quite well cited. This pride became an obstruction to attaining kevalgnaan.
Bahubali's ninety-eight younger brothers took monkhood (diksha) before him. Later, Bahubali also renounced the world, but did not go to Bhagwan Rishabhdev. Bahubali thought, "I will have to bow to my ninety-eight younger brothers. I am their elder brother. How can I pay obeisance (respect) to them? They have already attained kevalgnaan. I will go to them after I attain kevalgnaan myself so I won't have to bow to them. There was clearly pride due to his superiority feeling and assuming higher status for himself on account of his age only. Bahubali renounced kingdom with wealth and pleasures, but did not give up his pride. Bahubali had been a mendicant for one place, standing in one place in kayotsarga posture for one year without eating, drinking, speaking or allowing evil thoughts. Yet the thought did not occur to him "I cannot attain kevalgnaan on account of my pride on my inner enemies."
Bahubali's sisters Brahmi & Sundari (Sadhavees) found about him from Bhagwan, and told Bahubali "Alight from the elephant. Kevalgnaan can not occur to those seated on the back of an elephant." Soon, it dawned on Bahubali that his sisters were referring to "Elephant of Ego" and that they were right. He thought, "proud and arrogant people
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not attain Kevalgnaan, and I will go to Bhagwaan and bow to my younger brothers (monks) in deference. As soon as Bahubali started on his way to meet Bhagwaan, he attained Kevalgnaan.
Vishwabuti: Pride to Anger : Bhagwaan Mahavir's Jiva was born as prince Vishwabhuti in the sixteenth prior life (out of known twenty seven). His younger cousin Vishakhanandi had an issue of rivalry and jealousy about enjoyment of a garden. By a deceitful plot, Vishwabhuti was sent away so Vishakhanandi could enjoy the garden. Upon discovering the plot, Vishwabhuti got very angry and struck a branch of tree with his fist so hard that many fruits fell. Pointing to those fallen fruits, Vishabhuti indicated to Vishakhanandi's guards that he could have knocked off the heads of the associates of Vishakhandi but he won't.
This incident got Vishwabhuti thinking about the deceit and insult of others due to worldly pleasures. He renounced the world and did a lot of penances. As a result of his penances, Vishwabhuti became quite feeble. Many years later, Vishakhanandi and his servants witnessed that a cow made Vishwabhuti Muni fall down. The cow was weak, as she had recently given birth to a calf. Vishkhanandi and his servants made fun of Vishwabhuti's strength, who had earlier felled so many fruits by strike of his fist once. This was an insult to Vishwabhuti due to the pride of strength. It caused tremendous anger in Vishwabhuti, who lifted the cow from the horns and circled it twice in the air. During this incident, Vishwabhuti made a wish that he would like to have unlimited strength in a future life as a result of the austerities and penances he did; he was determined to take severe revenge with Vishkanandi with that strength in the future. In this incident, pride resulted in anger, which resulted in long-term enmity and sale of Vishwabhuti's valuable penances for physical strength.
Indrabhuti : Arrogance which easily disappeared: When Bhagwaan Mahavir attained kevalgnaan, the Gods and Indras were going to samovasaran, a path where Indrabhuti and others were engaged in yagna. When Indrabhuti found that the Indras were going to Bhagwan Mahavir and not coming to his yagna, he felt jealous, but made such commands of arrogance, "I am unique and of unequaled abilities. How can it be that Indras are leaving me and going somewhere else.
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