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Letter 2
9
With increasing Veetaragata one attains the status of monk / Muni. Muni is devoid of passions and possessions both external and internal. That is why at this stage he leaves his own home, his family and other worldly possessions like clothes, ornaments, wealth, utensils, servants etc. and goes to the woods with other monks. They are all the time immersed in the inner tranquility [ bliss ] of the soul and when they come out of this blissful experience, they engage themselves in gaining knowledge from scriptures or in preaching others.
Thus gradually as Veetaragata increases, they finally attain total Veetaragata first and then they accomplish infinite perception i.e. omnivision and infinite knowledge i.e. omniscience i.e. Sarvadnyata, infinite Bliss, and infinite power i.e. omnipotence. At this stage of total Veetaragata and Sarvadnyata they are called Arihant.
Though Arihant are in the state of embodied human form they are totally immersed in their own inner self. They do not have any desire left in them. They neither have the desire to acquire or gain anything nor do they desire to give anything to others or even punish or oblige them. In fact they don't even have the desire to impart knowledge or preach. Some of the Arihantas preach the doctrines of Jainism through the divine sound in the form of 'OM' which is called Divyadhvani ff.
This Divyadhvani consists of the Jain Doctrines which if followed rightly will liberate the worldly souls. Due to this quality Arihant are also known as benefactors i.e. Hitopadeshi. These Arihantas are called Tirthankaras. Arihantas are devoid of eighteen flaws i.e. Dosha namely birth, death, old age, hunger, thirst, sweat, sleep, disease, fear, anxiety, wonder, ego, attachment, aversion, affection, spiritual ignorance, sorrow, fatigue.
We have seen what is Veetaragata. Now we will try to understand the other attribute of Arihant namely, Sarvadnyata i.e. ominiscience. The word Dnya'' means to know. One who knows everything is Sarvadnya d. What do we mean by knowing Everything? It includes knowledge of all these six substances in the cosmos namely soul i.e. Jeevita, Matter i.e. Pudgal yum, Ether i.e. Dharma, Anti ether i.e. Adharma अधर्म, Space i.e. Akash आकाश and Time i.e. Kaal काल.
You are aware of their quantity.
Souls are infinite. Matter substances are infinite times infinite. Ether, Anti Ether and Space are one each and Time substances are innumerable. Each substance i.e. Dravya has infinite attributes. These attributes are constantly changing their manifestations every moment i.e. Samay समय. And these manifestations are called Paryay पर्याय.
